“But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.” (I Corinthians 12:18 NIV)
Fastened securely in her seatbelt, a four-year old toddler is continuously talking on the long ride home from church. The parent is paying attention to the road, and somewhat to the talkative toddler, acknowledging every statement that the child makes with an apathetic response, “un huh.” I assume that the child sensed the degree of indifference in the parent’s repetitive response. So what does she do? She takes it up a level. She takes her talking up a notch to counteract the cold, disinterested responses of her parent. She probably thought at her young age, “You are going to talk to me whether you want to or not!” So she swiftly switches to a question/answer format.
The child asks, “Do you see the bird in the tree?” The parent responds, “Yes, that’s where they are supposed to be.” As they pass over a bridge, the child sees some ducks on a small body of water. She asks, “Did you see all the ducks swimming in the water?” Again the parent responds, repeating the same response, “Yes, that’s where they are supposed to be.” This toddler is a talker for sure, but I think she is trying to transition into a teaching mode. She asks, “Why do the little kids have to go to Sunday School?” The parent may be thinking the question/answer format would have been shorter if the church they attended was nearer to their house. Nevertheless, the parent once again repeats nearly the same answer, no sign of being irritated, but the answer is a little more abbreviated, “That’s where they are supposed to be.” The parent, anticipating that the toddler is not done says, “Next question.” The toddler responds, “I noticed in church that some people teach little children like me, some teach older children, and that old gray hair preacher teaches the grown-ups. Why is that?” You can tell the toddler is in full teaching mode now. She never attended a “How to Teach” seminar for kids, but she is building up to make a couple of points. Unsuspecting the child’s ulterior motive and unaware that a toddler could have such an unyielding degree of pedagogical astuteness, the parent says, “That’s what they have been chosen to do. They are where they are supposed to be.”
The child reaches over and picks up the parent’s Bible that had been set in the back seat, close enough that the child could reach it. The toddler asks, “Why is your Bible back here with me?” The parent is about ready to stand corrected, just doesn’t know it. The parent responds, “It is where I put it. It is where it is supposed to be.” Time for the first point. The toddler says, “That’s not right. I learned today that we are supposed to hide God’s word in our hearts so we would not do things that are wrong in God’s sight.” The parent had been taught, and tried to end the dialogue by going back to the initial response, “un huh.” The toddler had put something on the mind of the parent, and you would assume the teaching moment was over. I’m sure you are not surprised to hear me tell you that it wasn’t. The toddler is still in teaching mode.
It was like the child had some type of internal odometer and was aware that her house was just two blocks away. You would think she talked enough, right? But oh, now, she had a little more time, a few more blocks to be in the car, and one more question, an open-ended question for her parent, “I see people in the church during all kinds of things. I suppose they are where they are supposed to be. Where are you supposed to be?” Before the parent could respond, they are pulling in the driveway of their house. The parent puts the car in gear and turns the ignition off. The child does not wait for a response, but unfastens the seat belt holding her safely in her car seat and exits the parked car. The parent was left sitting in the front seat to mull over the purpose of the toddler’s last question. Now I don’t know the parent’s answer, can’t even guess. But let me close this morning by leaving you with the same question, “Where are you supposed to be?” Have a great Thursday morning! You respond to yourself, keeping in mind the verse above as you ponder and produce a true and heaven pleasing response. Love you! Be blessed!
“I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” (Psalm 119:11 NIV)
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King