Tuesday, August 29, 2017

Wondering About the Big Stuff - Part 2

Tuesday, August 29, 2017
O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth!  Your glory is higher than the heavens.  You have taught children and infants to tell of your strength, silencing your enemies and all who oppose you.  Psalm 8:1-2(NLT)
It is an amazing fact that cannot be denied; children have an incredibly powerful effect on adults!  How undeniable that when a child enters your life, no matter what your upbringing, formal training, or chosen method of parenting, you will change!  And you will eat some of the words you previously uttered!  Those words include, I’ll never do what my parents did, and my kid will never…and the list goes on. 
Most everything gets turned upside down when that first child shows up; daily routines, priorities, and budgets have a way of creating life as we never knew it!  No matter how strong you thought you were, one look into that new daughter’s wide-open, innocent eyes turns your legs into jelly.  Hearing your baby boy’s giggle for the first time will have Mr. Tough Guy trying hard to swallow that lump in his throat.  And someday, totally unexpected, that child will say something at just the right time, that will humble you and change your life in a way you never thought possible.
I never saw it coming. 
One day in the big city of McIntosh, Florida (population 257), Elizabeth and the preacher were discussing how in the world we were going to stretch the money thin enough to last through the month.  We’ve always had a struggle with staying out of the red, but a few medical bills, car repairs and need for kid’s school clothes had taken us to a record high point of frustration; the math was frightening, and neither of us had an idea how we would keep Brownworth family solvent. 
That’s when the Psalmist showed up.
Our youngest, Carrie, was only 3, her blonde pigtails and big innocent eyes were all that peered at me from the other side of the kitchen table.  With characteristic sweetness she smiled and extended her pudgy little hand towards me revealing the entire contents of her piggy bank – 3 pennies.  Here Daddy you can use my money.  
I’ve never been shot with a canon, kicked by a mule, or decked by Muhammad Ali, but those would’ve been minor compared to being taught by a three year old that the strength and glory of God has got all my troubles and worries covered. 
Now, I was the pastor, harbinger of Godly wisdom and spiritual insight.  I was the Dad, the leader of our little clan.  I was the one with a seminary degree…but it took a preschooler to remind me of the basics of faithful action.  I had said a prayer over our finances, but Carrie took the steps of faith in action, offering me all she had because she loved me.  And in doing so, she was proclaiming in childlike faith the majestic strength and wonder of God.  I guess I'd forgotten what the old Gospel song says:  Little is much when God is in it!
There is a difference between being childish and childlike; childish means making selfish and immature decisions, while childlike indicates faithful trust.  The former, taken as a lifestyle leads to a life of sin and separation from God.  The latter, faithful trust of an open pudgy hand extended towards God, is the entry door to the Kingdom!

For You Today

If you’ve been wondering too much about the big stuff, and not getting any answers, I would advise you to go play with a three year old…and pay close attention!
You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road…have a blessed day!



[1] Title Image: Courtesy  Pixabay.com

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