 St Alban’s Episcopal Church Bolivar, Missouri Monday, March 28, 2022 Lent with Children you need them!  We love our kids – but do we need them? Yep. We do. Walk with a child through Lent, and you may find in this season a rekindling of your own spirituality. Children strive towards life and passionate living. Adults can learn, or relearn that from them. Lent is for hearing all of the Bible stories more deeply. Children need everything that encourages and protects in them what is childlike and filled with wonder. Adults can use this season to purge ourselves of what has turned small and childish. Lent is for repentance. Children like to practice simple order, good manners, serving and eating with grace, knowing “what to do”. Adults need to remember that the table is sacramental, the dinner table is, breaking bread together not always on the run, is…Lent invites us to slow down. Children do not naturally take quick offense. They forgive their friends and make up quickly. Adults can learn to relinquish our need to hold on to hurts. Children need good food – not junk – to develop healthy bodies; Adults need to fast from everything that makes us sluggish, unhealthy and apathetic. Lent is for fasting. Children are easily led to empathy, compassion and sharing. Adults need to relearn detachment from possessions and a generous spirit of giving to those in need. Lent is for almsgiving. Children pray all the time if you give them the freedom and the vocabulary and hear them. Adults have all the vocabulary but often don’t have a clue anymore how to pray. Lent is for praying. “Teach children the meaning of Lent – even in these last few weeks, and they make us rethink everything from their point of view. The reduce us to essentials. They inspire a practice of faith which is simple, tangible, and direct. Children won’t tolerate what is phony. Take every childhood need mentioned above and prepare an environment for the children – or for the child in yourself – to experience them. If you help them and hear them at their level, a change will begin to take place in you in a real and deep way. Your adult spirituality will be kindled through the child’s natural religious sensibility.” Gertrud Mueller Nelson  And here’s another thing: Children naturally want to share their gifts and interests. Let them, but rediscover how much fun it is to share yours, too! Ezra Whatley is going to read the first lesson next Sunday, and lead the Psalm. But he quipped that his mom, Amanda, might get to be brave enough to do it too! Yesterday after Lent 4 – Rose Sunday  Rachel Grainger and Olivia Cox served up rose colored pies and cookies, pink lemonade, strawberries and blueberries after Church. Sandy Sherry, Mari Woosley, Minda Cox, and Eve, Eleanor and Michael Woosley in conversation, and laughter. Both Eleanor and Eve are good readers, and will soon take their turns reading the lessons on Sunday morning; they are also studying piano, and will be playing the Offertory as soon as we can find the right Sunday for the music they know. If you want to turn and become like little children – in any way, as the gospel suggests – do it! You want to read? Do it. Feel like making something for after church fellowship? Go for it!You have a song? Let us know. Sing it!    Janet Wray, Paula Shepard, The Rev. Larry Lewis, and Louise Ritter There was more conversation than it looks like! |
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