Come to Me

I've heard pastors say all my life that we are to come to Jesus like little children, and I've always wondered what that really means. Do I go to Jesus with snot coming out of my nose or with poo in my diaper? Do I go to Jesus crawling on all fours? I think I've heard that it has something to do with humility and with having faith like that of a child (they believe anything you tell them, right?). Both of these things are correct, absolutely, but I was still curious.

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It's funny; sometimes the light goes on when you least expect it. This past Tuesday was just another day in India. My sister is here visiting and I was taking her to one of our schools so she could teach a class of 5th graders. As expected she taught very well. After she finished it was time for the students to go home and then we welcomed in the afternoon session children. Pre-kindergarten thru 1st grade. The first order of business was assembly in the one-room church/schoolroom. During assembly the children pray, recite verses, sing songs, and say the pledge to India. For verse recitation the teachers select a student to lead while the remaining children repeat what the leader is reciting. I don't know if it's a verse they recite everyday or if God had them recite this special verse on this particular day to appease my curiosity, but when the leader spoke... these words came out of his small mouth...

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"Let the little children come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." Matthew 19:14

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Looking around the small room all I could see were the nearly 100 children, eyes closed tight, hands pressed together in front of them in the posture of prayer, hair matted with sweat, standing in perfect lines, saying (or maybe shouting) this verse back to the leader with a reckless faith that I have NEVER witnessed in an American church, and then it hit me.

These children NEED Jesus. They have nothing else. They don't have the luxury of depending on the money their parents have. Most of their parents earn only $50 per month. This is just enough to pay rent and buy some food. They don't get to decide which outfit they'll wear today, many only have one. They can't decide if they'll take Mom's car or Dad's truck to school. They walk. They don't decide if they'll pack a turkey or a ham sandwich for lunch. They'll eat whatever they can find. They don't decide whether to go to the upstairs bathroom or to the one in the basement. They use the bathroom on the street. These children NEED Jesus. He's the only constant in their lives. He's the only One they can rely on.

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We don't need Jesus in America which is why it's so hard for us to go to Jesus like little children. 'I have everything I need (and want) and I'm doing just fine' is something none of us would say, but unfortunately it's something we subconciously think all the time.

"Let the little children come to Me". It is about humility and it is about a child-like faith, but it's more about a NEED. Like a 1 month baby needs its mother, we NEED Jesus.

To finish the verse recitation portion of assembly the children recited Psalm 23. "The Lord is my Shephard. I shall never be in want." How true that is. For them the verse does not read "The Lord is my Shephard (only when times get dark and stormy). (I earn good money and I have job security and I have so many friends that have the same and I can get to a hospital anytime I need to and I can send my child to get a good education for almost no cost.... But other than that it is the Lord that takes care of me and........) I shall never be in want". For these children the verse reads "The Lord is my Shephard. He is all I have, but He is also all I will ever need".

Do I NEED Jesus? Do I go to Him out of convenience or because I can't live without Him?