God's Celebration Train

I know the stereotype... so do you: Kids today, they don't listen to anyone.  No matter what you tell them, it goes in one ear and out the other.  Now, if you're talking about candy, or games, or Toys-R-Us then they're right with you.  But if you ask them to clean up their room... you might as well be talking to the wall.

Oh yeah, sure that's out there, plenty of examples of kids not caring about no one but themselves.  When you keep your eyes open, though, and really watch the kids, you might be surprised by what you see.  Go to a baseball game, the local playground, to a museum or a craft fair.  Most of the time you're going to see kids who are right on their parents' tail.  For a moment they might be distracted by something fun or something that comes to their mind, but it's not for long.  There seems to be that sixth-sense within them that tells them to stay close and keep up.  Like little ducklings, there they go into the crowds right behind dad.  You see it in grocery stores and you see it at the zoo: especially with the real little ones.

I get the chance to meet with a group of about thirty preschool children once-a-week.  I read to them a Bible story, we sing a song together, and close with a prayer.  It's great fun.  Those three, four, and five year-olds are so cute walking up the stairs together in a long "spaghetti" line.  Some are anxious to be the line leader, while other hesitate to take a step forward.  But all together they come up... one after another.  For the most part, they do a great job saying focused.

This fall I taught them a song called "God's Celebration Train."  With simple lyrics they are invited come aboard and choo choo choose "Jesus' love."  I use this song because they learn that they are God's children and God has invited them into the family of God through baptism.  "Come on board," I say to them.  Kids love trains too, so they get a kick out of making train noises and marching around the room pretending to be one long train.

Kids are experts at trains and they are pretty good at the whole staying in line thing.  The picture book Freight Train, by Donald Crews, is just about required reading in preschool.  In that book they learn about all the different cars in a train: the red caboose, the purple box car, the green cattle car, the blue gondola car...  They also learn that a train runs across "this" track, pulled by the black steam engine.  It is the train that is crossing trestles, moving in darkness and moving in daylight.  Going, going... Gone!

The fright train is made up of all those parts.  The orange tank car doesn't just sit on its own somewhere.  The purple box car doesn't go anywhere when its not connected to the freight train.  When connected... its part of something big... something exciting... something that will take all the cars past big cities and on to fantastic adventures.  Going, going, gone.   

When we march around the room like one big, long freight train those kids are part of something bigger than themselves and they love it.  They ask to do it again and again.  They are on board God's celebration train and i think they understand that God's invitation to this train is going to take them to some really cool places. 

Jesus teaches us and models for us the importance of our inter-connectedness in community.  We need one another.  We need the help of others and are called to use our gifts to reach out to help.  Like a train, as we pull the car behind us we are being pulled as well. 

So often those kids I see following their mom's tail at the mall or their father at the bowling alley, are far more aware of what's going on than even their parents, who too often are in the process of using their new i-phones or tablets.  Jesus knows that life is tough out there and the devil is ready to pounce with his lies and false accusations.  We need each other.  When Jesus speaks against divorce, like he does in Mark 10, I think his lesson is centered on this idea that we need each other.  Then Jesus immediately supports this message by scolding his disciples for sending kids away.  "Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs.  Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it (Mark 10:14-15)."

Adults fall for it all the time... another stereotype.  Be your own man.  Take care of yourself.  Don't be tethered to the demands of your "old lady."  The greatest cause of divorce is miscommunication... and the greatest cause of miscommunication is being self-centered.  When people don't listen to each other and just talk, talk and scream and scream over one another, it's just not going to work.

Jesus ends up using kids as the model for Christian community (and not just marriage).  Not the stereotype model, but the model of children who follow their parents because they don't want to get lost.  It is the model of children who listen and pay attention because they won't know what to do otherwise.  They receive that help and guidance from those they depend on and they receive the kingdom of God in a spirit of humility and need.  What a moment of genius for Jesus.  Children are a model for Christian community because they hop aboard God's celebration train willingly.  They don't want to become some lonely purple box car going nowhere.  On God's celebration train they go places and see great things.  Connected with others, and with Christ at the lead, they will be going, going, gone to places that are only available through faith.

Hop on board this celebration train.  Your ticket has been punched at baptism.  But you're going to miss out on the ride if sit one out and give it a try on your own.  No matter how cool a green cattle car you are, you ain't getting anywhere unless get on board this train.  All aboard God's celebration train.