Read below for a guest post from Jared Kennedy.
Kelly couldn’t wait to talk after the service. She met Megan and me in the stairwell on our way to the children’s wing. “I have to tell you about Lucy’s morning!” For parents of a child diagnosed with autism, that’s not necessarily how you want to be greeted. Anxious thoughts run through your head. Did she bolt from the classroom? Did she have a meltdown? Did anyone get hurt?
But this was good news. It was a baptism Sunday. At the service, one of our students was being baptized. So a seasoned teacher took her class into the service to watch. Our elementary kids heard a friend’s testimony and witnessed the church celebration. The children’s ministry director later reported, “Not only were the kids really excited about the privilege, but they also asked really great questions about what baptism means and why we practice it.” Taking the kids to see the baptism was a big win.
But the biggest surprise was Lucy. I fear a lot of things for my daughter when a class breaks from its regular routine. None of it happened this morning. No sensory overload. No tantrum or screaming interruption of the service. This is what Kelly told us in the stairwell: “When Jenna came up out of the water and the congregation began to clap and cheer, Lucy looked at me with the biggest smile on her face. I don’t know how much she understood, but she experienced the joy of the moment.”
On that morning, I was reminded of two things:
- God wants our hearts. It’s tempting to think our faith is about getting things right—our doctrine, our moral code. But this morning reminded me God wants something more. He wants our affections. He wants our hearts (Proverbs 4:23). Lucy’s capacity for grasping doctrinal concepts is limited. James K. A. Smith writes, “Christian worship that is full-bodied reaches, touches, and transforms even those who cannot grasp theological abstractions.” For those of us who have the capacity, transformed thinking is the fruit of a transformed heart. But for those who don’t have the capacity, a transformed heart is enough.
- Participating in worship is a path toward winning a child’s heart. If you’ve worked with kids for any amount of time, you know they don’t always remember the lessons. But they almost always remember the songs (and the hand motions too). Experiencing God’s presence through the practice of worship is formative (Romans 12:1-2).
As a family pastor, I can talk a lot about how to romance and shepherd a child’s heart—and not merely modify their behavior. That Sunday deepened my conviction. I witnessed the formative power of worship in high definition. Lucy experienced joy. Other kids were full of curiosity and questions about their faith. Kelly—who serves faithfully in our special needs ministry and knows our fears all too well—witnessed God’s work. And she couldn’t help but tell us right away.
Jared Kennedy is the husband to Megan and the father of three girls—Rachael, Lucy, and Elisabeth. He leads SojournKids as Pastor of Families at Sojourn Community Church in Louisville, KY and New Albany, IN. His family raises chickens in their backyard, and he follows Atlanta Braves baseball and Alabama football. Roll Tide! He blogs at Gospel Centered Family. You can follow him on Twitter.