Sunday evening my husband and oldest daughter had to be at church early for choir practice. Sometimes we drive separately for various reasons but it is our preference to drive together and save the gas. So anyway, once we got to church Jav and Amera went right in and we waited in the van for a while. Manny was sleeping and of course I wanted him to get as much sleep as possible. But it wasn't long before the kids were asking when we were going to go inside the building so I set a time when we would go. It would still be early. Plenty of time to pick our seats and wait for the nursery workers to arrive so that I could get Manny and Isabel settled.
Maybe you have noticed that sometimes it is difficult to get children (especially in the toddler stage) moving after they have fallen asleep for a nap? It seems to be doubly difficult if this nap takes place in a car seat. Would you agree? So let's just say Manny was struggling. Once we got going and headed inside to put our Bibles on our seats, it was time for me to head over to the nursery with Manny and Isabel.
As we turned the corner, a sweet young couple was walking in the door and toward us. We greeted each other and then they turned their attention toward Manny. Still groggy from his nap and feeling any myriad of emotions he may have been feeling, he decides to move his body behind my leg in an effort to hide. He and I have spoken about this before. He does it every once in a while, depending on his current mood. Honestly, sometimes he surprises me because he hasn't done it in so long. Anyway, he knows it's not right and I remind him that God wants him to be friendly and love others, not hide from them.
In between my coaching and reminding him of what he ought to do, this sweet couple spoke kind words to him. The woman reminded Manny about how they had played together in the nursery that morning (as they often do during the Sunday School hour). "Remember the tower we built?" "Was it this high, Manny?" Meanwhile, I had pulled Manny out from behind my leg and I was gently speaking to him about being friendly (he's three but he has to learn) and by that point he was in tears. It's wasn't the first time. He had cried back at the van too. My little guy is passionate, let me tell you. He gets SUPER excited and he gets SUPER upset. Every day I am teaching him more about handling his emotions appropriately and I pray to God for wisdom.
Back to the couple. They didn't give up on Manny. It's such a delicate line, isn't it? I was thinking they might just move on any minute. For some reason (nap interrupted or maybe just plain sin) their attempts to reach out to him were causing him to cry. But they didn't let that stop them. They kept trying. The man told us he'd be right back and he walked over to the nursery and got two stickers. One for Manny and one for Isabel. And it's right here that my tears are welling up again. It just touched my heart so much.
I didn't cry in that moment either. It wasn't until this morning when I read these words in my Bible Study.
Jesus had time for children. (Mark 10: 13-16)
It wasn't until then that I fully realized how much that whole episode had meant to me. Their faces, so sweet and tender, taking the time to reach out to my son...not being scared away by his grouchy tears. Needing to be somewhere but not being in such a hurry that they overlooked the people in their path. So much like Christ toward us.
Love takes time and effort. And it often happens in those little moments that God puts before us. Just a little extra attention and Manny quit crying. And who knew that his momma would be crying the next morning? :)
"Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such
belongs the kingdom of God." -Jesus in Mark 10:14
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