Why
Call Us "Children"?
Every message by Our Lady in
Medjugorje, begins with the words, "Dear
children". In the modern era, we adults do
not take kindly to being called children. We
would far prefer to be called 'Friends' or
'Brothers and Sisters'. We find being called
children off-putting. It is counter cultural.
Yet Jesus said, "Unless you
change and become like little children you shall
never enter the kingdom of heaven" Mt. 18:3.
Learning to "change and become like little
children" is clearly a vital step
spiritually, one not to be avoided.
What does spiritual
childhood involve?
It involves a whole attitude of trust in God,
that we trust Him as a child trusts its father
and mother. A trust that, no matter what happens,
God knows best; that no matter how we feel, that
God can bring us through; that no matter how we
fall, that God's love is there for us.
It involves learning to depend on Him. Instead of
relying on our own power or setting ourselves up
as someone important, we acknowledge how weak and
imperfect we are, and cling instead to God's
strength.
It involves surrender:- the surrender of our
desire to go our own way, and instead to seek
God's way, and to leave how we are perceived
totally in God's hands.
It involves a willingness to run:- that no matter
what goes wrong, even if it be through one's own
fault, that one will run to God's loving arms.
It involves obedience. If there is a
contradiction between what I believe and what
Jesus teaches, then I'm not right.
It is not possible
to be a 'spiritual child' and a 'spiritual
teenager'!
There are a lot of spiritual teenagers around
today!
The spiritual teenager desires personal
recognition, to be seen as important.
The spiritual teenager may like to do things for
God - but will also like to get the credit for
them.
The spiritual teenager will pick and choose,
opting for what suits him, rejecting what doesn't
suit.
The spiritual teenager is big on independence,
and very low on dependence.
The spiritual teenager thinks that he knows best,
so if his thinking contradicts the teaching of
Jesus, he 'knows' that he himself is right.
The spiritual teenager will not believe that the
Pope is infallible, since there is only one
infallible person in the world - himself!
The spiritual teenager thinks that his
circumstances are special, and so exempt from the
commandments.
So choose which you
desire to be
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