Wednesday, February 7, 2024
(click here to listen to or read today’s scriptures)
Getting hugged, and loving it
Here’s a sweet note from Clarence Heller about grandkids and prayer, that is to say, prayer and grandkids, and the virtual hugs that come from God, and the hugs that come from God with skin on:
Do you know those times when your young grandchild rests on your lap,
perhaps to read to you or with you,
or just to talk about whatever,
and deep in your heart,
sometimes deeper than consciousness,
you know how precious and holy this encounter is,
smelling his hair,
rubbing his back,
kissing his forehead,
time stopping for a moment,
slightly rocking together as one—
that is what prayer is like for me.
Jasper and Miles were here yesterday. Jasper stayed for several hours, including lunch and a nap. He does that often, lately on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
The Queen of Sheba, having heard of Solomon’s fame, came to test him with subtle questions.
Jasper, who is four, absorbed a big Sesame Book of Letters and Numbers, although he has never watched Sesame Street. (Actually, that really surprised Margaret and me. We grew up with Big Bird and his buddies.) Jasper and Margaret sat on the couch and she showed him the magic of base 10 numbers, and he got it right away. 1-9, 10-19, 20-29, etc. He made it all the way to 100. Wowed us!
King Solomon explained everything she asked about, and there remained nothing hidden from him that he could not explain to her.
Before that I sat with him on that same couch and we read The Night Before Christmas – lavish illustrations of a large 19th century town. St. Nick smoking a pipe. Up and down the chimney. Hollering out the reindeer names.
“Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!”
Saint Nicholas blessed many people in his home town, especially the children. I asked Jasper who St. Nick was. “Santa of course,” he said. There is no santashenanigans in their home on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. On Christmas Day we performed a Nativity Play before we opened even a single present. The energy built and climaxed, as Jasper from his Jesus-manger looked up at all of us and swung his black eyes around and around, in silence.
And then the gifts. Such a sweet switch in priority, back to what we all say we want on Christmas Day.
The Queen of Sheba was breathless at all she saw and heard. “Blessed be the Lord your God.
At home Miles and Andi talked about how principles come before privileges. For example, honesty comes before dessert. If I’m dishonest, the principle fails, and dessert disappears. My example had to do with generations, how one generation frees up the next generation for more privileges. But this only works if each generation enjoys its privilege AND it practices principled life for the sake of their children. And the grandchildren.
Needless to say, we don’t do a great job with this forward-looking life, since we often feel compelled to claim our privileges too soon. Isn’t that what we deserve? But this kind of name-it-and-claim it cuts through us and hurts others even more.
Jesus spoke to his disciples:
What comes out of the man, that is what defiles him. From within the man, from his heart, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly. All these evils come from within, and they defile.
On the way home, while I was getting stuff situated in the back of our car, Jasper worked his way through putting together his own car seat belt. He’d never done that before with us. When I came to hook him up, his eyes were bright and his smile was a mile wide.
So we’ll do all we can to show him what it is to live a principled life. And when we fail, we’ll ask forgiveness.
And decline dessert, just for a time.
(1 Kings 10, Psalm 37, John 17, Mark 7)
(posted at www.davesandel.net)
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