Me and My Shadow

Alex was so adorably awesome yesterday. First, his parents told me that when they pulled into the parking lot, he asked them if he would see God in church today. That fit so well with the first reading, the call of Isaiah, that I ditched my planned children's sermon, and we just riffed on that statement and the story of Isaiah and where and how we see God today.

Then, during the announcements (which we do after the peace and before the offering), he walked up to me, so I asked "Do you want to help me make the announcements?" "Uh-huh." So I held his hand and he stood up front with me while I spoke. When announcements were done, he wanted to stick by me, and I'm all about creating space for children in worship, letting them share and engage in the ways that they are able, so during the offering he helped me set the table, and he also helped receive the offering (the ushers bring the bread and wine forward with the offering plates - normally the assisting minister takes the plates, and I take the bread and wine, but this day I gave Alex the basket of bread and I just took the chalice of wine).

Then he stood behind the altar with me for the communion liturgy - and he started to mimick my movements(!), from orans to hands folded in front of me, back to orans. This was too cute in itself and made me start to smile - though the assisting minster and I were the only ones who could see it, as Alex was fully behind the altar, which is taller than he is. Then, the best part - 2/3 of the way through the eucharistic prayer, he started to echo everything I said - so all of a sudden I heard the prayer coming back at me from 3 feet below! I almost lost it at that point, but paused for a brief second, smiled widely as I took a deep breath, then kept going.

Once again, he preached a better sermon than I did, using hardly any words. I spoke about call, trying to break out of the notion that "call" is language exclusively for pastors; emphasizing that just as there are a variety of gifts and a variety of members in the body, so too there are a variety of calls, and a variety of ways in which they come; pushing my parishioners to consider what their callings are. Alex was a living sermon, embodying the joy of doing what you feel called to do.

Apparently after worship, Alex told his parents that he wants "to be like Pastor C" when he grows up. Several of the adults also commented about him having "found his calling" as they came through the line after service. I don't know what God has in store for this little guy, but I do know at the ripe old age of 2, he's already preaching and teaching tremendous things to his sisters and brothers in faith.

And that's exactly why I'm so in favor of keeping kids in worship and creating space for them to be involved - you never know what they are going to do or say, but 95% of the time, they'll break open the whole experience in a profound way.