Children walk to church
In the cold
In the rain
Often with parents unaware
Of where they are
Or why they are there
Cars park far away from the church building
Kids get out
And run for where they will find love
The car speeds away
Lest someone speak with them
Or invite them to stay
Kids come having no boundaries on their lives
Parents often don’t care
Some just don’t know what to do
But the parents will not accompany their children
For fear of hearing the truth
Their kids are just not worth it
The firm direction of a pastor or an elder
May be the only taste of discipline they know
May be the only real love they have tasted
The command to love one another
Is a foreign language to a child brought up in a sea of selfishness
Is a huge step to think of others first
Hope and despair walk side-by-side through the church doors on Wednesday evening
The anticipation of real love in one set of eyes
A spirit of rebellion in another
Who will answer the call to be love as God is love
The harvest is plentiful
The workers are few
Yet the remnant that persists thrives on hope
Lives with courage
Encourages others
Those whom God has called and do not come
Live with busyness
But not fulfillment
It hurts so much to see children growing up without love
Throw away kids
Kids left to fend for themselves
It hurts more to see those whom God has called
Stay on the sidelines
Surrender their lives to busyness
For all who come will be filled
With God’s love
With a renewed spirit
All who come and are completely spent when they arrive
Will leave full of energy
Will find that God will refill and renew whatever is used up
We who should lead will never find abundance in timidity
Only in giving do we gain
Only in serving do we grow
We who should say follow me to the One I serve
Can find no peace in excuses
Wonder why love does not abound in their lives
How will those who do not know love come to know love
When God’s people sit this one out
When the followers of Jesus are on an extended break
How will we answer the question, “What did you do with what I gave you?’
By hanging our heads
Or in expectation of sharing our Master’s happiness
We were not made to feel guilty
But to be God’s love
But to fully live
We are made to put God first in everything
In our life
In the lives of others
We see the children of our community living in households of rebellion
And say, “How pitiful.”
And think, “Something should be done.”
But we are the ones to lead the lost to the light of love
By going into the community with the good news
By being present when the children come seeking love.
So let us be love
As God is love
As we are commanded to be love
So let us be love
Without excuse
Without fail
Amen
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