Grateful Mothers

Grateful Mothers

Jesus Blesses The Children

Read: Matthew 19:13-15

The young mother stood in line, holding her son’s hand. Robbie had been ecstatic to learn that a star from his favorite children’s show would pass out autographed pictures at the county fair. Although they had come early, they found a long line already snaking around the booths. The mother didn’t mind waiting in the hot sun as the afternoon wore on. What bothered her was a fear that the star wouldn’t stay long enough to greet all the children. If he left on time, there would be a lot of disappointed kids.

A mother in today’s Bible passage probably walked across dusty roads and stood patiently at the edge of the crowd holding her child’s hand. She was surprised to see how many mothers had come, but she was willing to wait her turn to have her child blessed by the new Rabbi. Suddenly, several men stood in front of the crowd, frowning and commanding the parents to go away. The mother’s heart filled with disappointment as she turned around. Then she heard another voice reproaching the disgruntled disciples. Jesus spoke with authority and compassion, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them!”

The hearts of the mothers present that afternoon must have swelled with gratitude and joy as Jesus took the time to bless every child present before he left the area. He wants to do the same thing today for all of us. We don’t have annoyed disciples urging us not to bother the Master, so what keeps us from getting a blessing from Jesus every day? Too often, our busy agendas don’t include a time of quietness with God. We let the things of the world keep us from receiving spiritual nourishment. God longs to bless us with encouragement, comfort, and a sense of his loving presence. All we have to do is take time to go to the Rabbi. We won’t even have to stand in line.

He placed his hands on their heads and blessed them before he left.

Matthew 19:15