The Kingdom of God in the Eyes of a Child

Yesterday morning after Mass I saw this tweet from Katie Prejean McGrady:

I chuckled at this tweet about her young daughter, and it made me think about what this season looks like through the eyes of a child. Of course, we can look into a little one's eyes and see their fascination with gingerbread houses decorated with gumdrops and icing. We can sense their awe and wonder at Christmas lights and Santa Claus. Maybe we also hear the excitement in their voices as they vocalize what they hope will be under the Christmas tree just for them. But as I thought about Rose's exclamation, my mind also wandered to this photo that my sister sent me of their Nativity scene:

Now, I'd be the first to say that the Nativity scene isn't a toy and that Avengers weren't present at the Nativity, but this cracked me up. This kind of childlike mentality, whether you're Rose at Mass or my 3-year old nephew at home playing with superheroes, is what we should have this time of year. They know that they have a part in salvation history. Faith is not a hands-off thing for them.

Whether they know it or not, these two little ones are showing us what it's like to welcome and be a part of the Kingdom of God. It can be so easy to see what's wrong with the world: war, homelessness, hunger, injustice, immorality. But we're not the only ones who see it. God sees it, too. He knew that we can't fix it on our own - so he sent his Son to do it for us...for US. For me, it's something so unbelievable, but it seems like kids think, "Of course He did this for us...Of course He wants us to be a part of His Kingdom."

Make no mistake. I know that there are things I need to do to prepare for the Kingdom, but I don't always recognize that God's love is big enough to save us all. After all, the great Christmas carol says, "Long lay the world in sin and error pining, 'til He appeared and the soul felt its worth."

Jesus didn't come because we're perfect and He wanted to join in on the party. We need mercy. We need healing. We need someone to help us out of this big mess we've made out of life. And in His great Love, He comes so that we can have eternal life. We're a part of the story. It's not some far off thing that we're not allowed to touch. No. The story of Christmas is a story that includes us not as some extra in the background but as one of the main characters.

When you gather around to celebrate Christmas and reflect on the story of the birth of Jesus, I hope you, like Rose, can say, "That's me!"