Child's Play

You know those moments when you realize that the classic Disney or Pixar film that you used to watch with those bright innocent eyes as a child carry a whole new meaning as you watch them again in your adulthood? It's the same movie, with the same characters and the same cheesy but catchy songs that the humans and the animals sang along to all these years, but this time it's like seeing it with totally new lenses. You even notice things that you didn't realize were written into the script like the little innuendos, the "easter eggs" of other movies from the same production company, and by now you have probably even caught on to what the wise baboon was really saying to the teenage lion in that one film.

It's always fascinated me how the evolution of life will take a fresh, plump little baby that knows nothing and has no personal opinions, ideas, or desires except to be fed, changed, and held on demand to then a beautiful carefree child with a budding imagination, and a longing to explore the world boundlessly only within the span of a few years. But what amazes me even more than that is the way that that same child can go from being wild and free to reserved and caged depending on the experiences that clipped their wings along the way.

If you're anything like me and you have been doing life with Jesus for most, if not all of your adulthood, you can probably look back and remember the first time you were introduced to Him and how vibrant your surroundings became. Suddenly it felt like springtime even in the 30-degree weather. You probably felt like you could literally solve all of the world's problems but most importantly you could finally change that one coworker's attitude. I mean I get it; meeting Jesus tends to have that effect on people, just ask the Samaritan woman at the well (she'll tell you in John chapter 4).

So what happened?

Life happened. We grew up. We saw some things and we experienced other things. We acquired responsibilities. We went to college, we graduated or dropped out. We got a job, or we struggled finding one. We fell in love, and some fell right back out again. We got in debt only to realize we didn't want to do the thing we got in debt for in the first place. We got our first taste of burn out, some of us got a little more charred than others. And the next thing you know, the hopefulness and the wonder of that inner kid has dwindled and now instead of coming to Jesus "as little children" as He tells us to in Matthew 18:3-4, we, I sometimes find myself coming to him like I'm here to make some sort of business deal: "Ok Jesus, if you can sell me with a nice pitch, a mascot, and some catchy phrases then I might make a deal with you. However, until I am fully convinced that I can in fact trust you like you say I can, I will be keeping my heart to myself for the time being. But you've got a great personality! I just have to protect my end of the deal in case none of this works out for me, you understand."

So, what does my initial question have to do with any of this? Well, I'm finally landing the plane now and here is my point:

While most of us didn't know what the wart hog and meercat were really singing about when we were three, in adult hood you can probably orate an entire Ted Talk on the meaning of each and every lyric of 'Hakuna Matata'. The understanding of this song-and the fact that wart hogs and meercats don't sing (at least not in English)-has come by way of maturity and various life experiences. Similarly, the way some of us comprehended Jesus and His teachings when we were six is not the same way most of us comprehend Him now. Nowadays, there's a lot more life lived that has either helped or hindered the lenses through which we see the Lord. Some of us have grown in the excellence of the knowledge of Christ like Paul (Phil 3:8) and we can still proudly confirm that this Gospel is indeed true. Others, however, have become a bit jaded and would say that it's all "make believe". If you fall into the second category, as I have before, I pray that the childlikeness that Jesus tells us to come to Him as would be restored to you again alongside your faith in His faithfulness and love toward you.

Til next time.

Love,

Morgan