Have you ever been relieved in a social setting because your child is with you?
Or am I the only one who has found having a child with me can transform awkward interactions into something much lighter?
Sure, there are times that we wish our children were elsewhere. When they poo at the wrong time or throw a tantrum in front of the wrong person.
But when we look beyond the inconveniences and embarrassing moments there is an amazing little person who opens doors we couldn’t ourselves.
And from children we get a glimpse of what the upside-down Kingdom of God looks like.
From cold immigration offices to vibrant coffee celebrations with my refugee neighbours, there have been many times a situation would have been more unpleasant and uncomfortable if my son wasn’t there with me.
When I reflect on what my son did in the camp three words come into my heart:
- Bridge
- Key
- Kingdom
- Children are a BRIDGE
My son, who was only a four month old baby when we first arrived, has been a bridge for our family into the refugee community.
He was the great humanising factor as we entered a new culture.
He helped us build relationships.
Because of him I wasn’t just the foreign white woman, but also a mother with a baby to clean, feed, nurture and love.
A mountain woman’s entire life is entwined with nurturing and rearing children.
A good mountain woman may have more than ten children.
For example, the grandmother next door had given birth to sixteen.
Some of my best friendships in the camp were formed as I mothered alongside other women.
My most memorable moments were spent sharing the mothering journey with others and laughing at the funny things our kids did together.
I thank God for the gift of my son.
His presence permitted our family to bridge the wide river of cultural differences and helped us be welcomed into our neighbours’ lives.
- Children are a KEY
My son did the stuff normal kids do – played in his sandpit, on his bike and with his friends.
He wasn’t always well behaved, nor was he always kind to his friends.
But he ministered God’s love to our neighbours in profoundly simple ways.
He took no notice of skin colour.
He learnt the language of the neighbour children he played with and was happy to play simple games in the dirt with them for hours.
As he welcomed other children to play with him, he opened the hearts of the community to accept our family.
You see, little children can be the key to doors that adults struggle to open.
They do this by normalising otherwise awkward situations.
Social norms or cultural differences mean nothing to them.
They aren’t aware of time constraints and they have an appetite to do simple things over and over again.
- Children can teach us about the KINGDOM
Jesus uses a child to introduce to the world what greatness looks like in His upside-down Kingdom.
A Kingdom where the last are first, the weak are strong and the foolish things shame the ‘wise’. (Matthew 5:3-11, 1 Corinthians 1:27).
Jesus says, ‘whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18:4).
This lowly position enables them to love, laugh, trust and hope without restraint.
They perceive the world through the lens of being loved and totally cared for by their parents.
They do this until the world teaches them another way or they get hurt.
In Matthew 18:3 when Jesus says ‘unless you change and become like a little child you cannot enter the Kingdom of God.
Jesus is telling us how important the attributes of children are to entering His Kingdom.
How do we become great in the Kingdom?
Simply, we learn from our little children.
Children teach us that busy is not always best, that repetition is not always bad, that little things are sometimes the most beautiful things.
They show us how to dance like no one is watching and to trust in the unseen like it is more real than the seen.
They do not need all the details to follow, nor do they put up walls because they fear being hurt or inconvenienced.
Children don’t care about climbing social ladders and aren’t afraid to ask questions.
This Kingdom to which they belong is in stark contrast to the kingdoms of this world, where appearances matter, status and skin colour ostracise or elevate and truth is manipulated for personal gain.
That is why the Kingdom of God is upside-down, or perhaps we should say, right-side up.
Jesus called the children to Him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” (Luke 18:16)
I can’t imagine life in the camp without my courageous little man.
He has been my little companion, bringing so much joy, coupled with a lot more dirt into my every day.
He was an intrinsic part of our family team.
On the surface my son’s daily life looked very ordinary, but I believe what God did through him was profound and eternal.
Amidst the usual routines of childhood, our children possess the capacity to minister love to others in simple yet beautiful ways.
My prayer is that you will also be able to see the way your child is being a bridge, a key and carrier of the Kingdom in your parenting pilgrimage too.
Grace and peace
Hope
FURTHER READINGS
The ‘upside-down kingdom‘ concept is found in the Acts 17:6. I have also appreciated on this topic the writings of Anne Voskamp and Alicia Britt Chole on this topic.
Hallelujah in the Mountains 