People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them; and the disciples spoke sternly to them.  But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs.  Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.”  And he took them up in his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them. 

 Mark 10:13-16

Our All Saints’ Day service is a solemn occasion.  We gather in the sanctuary, the beautiful room with intricately carved dark wood pulpit, lectern and chancel railing adorned with elaborate needlepoint kneeling cushions, imposing organ pipes filling the wall behind the altar, stained glass windows covering the side walls, with banners, each representing a member who died during the previous year.  We remember all the saints who have come before us, focusing specifically on the recent few who are now with our Lord in heaven.  With friends and family and the full congregation, the sanctuary is typically crowded and reverent, worshiping God, thanking God, and remembering loved ones.

During most church services, intervals of silence are rare.  Attention is given to coordinate the flow of events, removing moments of silence, ensuring the service progresses seamlessly forward.  Children assisted with our recent All Saints’ Day service.  They carried a banner bearing an individual name from the back of the sanctuary to the front as each name was announced, and then stood displaying each banner.  During a moment of silence, one young boy standing near the pulpit called out to his father, “Hi Daddy!”  His voice filled the room, resonated for a few moments, and warmed every heart in the place.  It was beautiful – an honest, pure example of how we should all be, particularly in that place and time, a child expressing genuine love, delight and desire for his father.

The voice rippled through the room as solemn faces melted into smiles and I suddenly thought about the remarkable opportunity I had experienced over the previous few days.  Through a series of overlapping events, I was suddenly forced to pause from my normal schedule of trying to cram way too much into each day, and to simply spend time with my two-year-old grandson.  As I entered his house, he smiled this huge heart-melting smile, and shrieked a happy exclamation, and ran and jumped to me, so I could easily pick him up and hug him.  He was so happy to show me everything making up his world.  We worked on his wooden train, assembling the track and taking turns moving the train around it.  He stood on his little stool and watched as I made eggs and sausage for breakfast, and we ate together, and played with his toys, and watched tv, and cuddled, and spent the day together.  He is just beginning to convert thoughts into words, and he loved that I simply sat with him playing with his small cars.  He handed me one, said “here you go” and was delighted when I understood his words.  Over and over he handed me a car and said “here you go.”  I placed the car at the top of a track and he pushed a button releasing the car to race down.  After it stopped, he picked up the car, repeating the process. 

I cannot describe how wonderful it made me feel that he was so happy to be with me.  He loved our time together and the attention I gave him.  He loved sharing his world with me.  It was beautiful – an honest and pure display of love, delight and desire.

I sat in the solemn service, memories of the boy and his voice and the melting hearts and my grandson swirling in my mind, feeling the warmth of it all with tears streaming down my cheeks.  We gathered worshiping God through Christ Jesus with the Holy Spirit.  Do I make Him feel the way my grandson made me feel?  Do I delight in Him?  Do I desire Him and desire to share my entire existence with Him, and reveal my delight by calling out to Him the way my grandson shrieked when he saw me or like the boy in the sanctuary called to his father?

This is possibly the attitude Jesus had in mind when He said we should “become like children.” The disciples asked Jesus about greatness and Jesus replied telling them to be like children.  Matthew records the exchange as follows:

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”  He called a child, whom he put among them, and said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.  Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.  Matthew 18:1-5

May you delight in our Lord and may you reveal your delight by joyfully greeting Him.  Amen.