At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” – Matthew 18:1-3

So I have been watching our grandson, Mr. T., who is five years old. Watching him move around, watching him play, watching him create, watching him be. And I have to tell you it is inspirational.

Sunday morning, for example, walking to the bus and then from the bus to church: he walks some, then he skips, then he bounces, then he runs but mostly he skips – all the while singing to himself, just loving his life. It’s a level of joie de vivre that is so natural and so all consuming that we can’t help but smile.

“I hope he never loses that,” his mom, Alicia, says. He’s in kindergarten now, but school – more and more as children grow – tends to push back against joie de vivre, as does life in general, as if joy too obvious is offensive. People too take their stand against a buoyant spirit, especially those who have lost their own joy – bullies, regular adults and, too often, even teachers; they do their best to stamp it out. So, yes, naïve joy can be a struggle.

Joy and to spare:

There will challenges all along the road, but it is possible to keep joy active and even to see it thrive. Success here requires a shift in thinking and a deep commitment to kindness, because it is when we find our own joy in the joy of others that true resilient joy takes hold. So I pray that Mr. T. finds that level so, when his innocence no longer protects him, he will discover that joy can not only survive but become a renewable resource.

So while I do agree that children have a lot to teach us, we have even more to teach them because we have learned (I hope) that we can be refilled with light and love and joy through sharing light and love and joy with the world.

Our grandson was born into such genuine love, and his family saturates him with love day by day. It is no surprise then that joy bubbles up so naturally.

But Mr. T. was also gifted to this world, by the Creator, to bring light and love and joy and healing and promise into this darkness (likewise all our grandchildren). For that he is going to need all the love we have for him… and he is going to need courage… and he is going to need to learn how to be an encouragement for others too.

Our love, then – and our joy – is vulnerable until we learn to give it away.

So yes, I agree with Mr. T.’s mom that we hope he never loses his ebullient spirit. But I also know that while he absolutely will get hurt, and people will make him sad, his joy is a renewable resource and God is willing to fill his cup every single day and when Mr. T. discovers that kind of joy it will be revolutionary and he will become even more of a great gift to this world.

I say all this in love, and because love is a renewable resource, and because the kind of joy I am talking about is real – DEREK