The Brothers

Ethan and Aaron seem a little camera shy. Don't believe it. They are just wiggly and mischievous like we once were.

Most of us adults can't remember how it was to be so full of life as these brothers. We chase fun and excitement, but they live it. And it doesn't take them any special props like it does for us. We hanker after owning one thing after another to bring us the good life, but each new thing acquired soon loses its lustre. We work harder and harder for what we think is success. Meanwhile we grow older and colder to all God has placed on earth to bring us happiness.

I believe every child knows there is a God. A sinful world soon blunts those nerve-end connections, buries those intimations of immortality beneath loads of materialism and anti-God propaganda. Vachel Lindsey, the poet, wrote "It is the world's one crime that its babes grow dull. Its poor are oxlike, limp, and leaden-eyed." Well, one doesn't have to be poor to take on these negative qualities. Rich and poor are plagued alike in respect to their separation from God and their neglect to enjoy those natural things He has placed here for them.

Does it have to be this way for us adults? Does life have to be a continuous yawn from boring sunrise to boring sunset? Another poet wrote, "Little do we hold in nature that is ours . . . we have given our hearts away . . . . The sad truth is, many people rarely stop long enough in their frenetic pace of working and pursuing fun to enjoy the change of the seasons, the "splendor in the grass," the music of the birds, the peace of the magic hour just before dusk. How many people rush to town for a movie, fighting the traffic, when a cup of tea, a bed of flowers, and a spring breeze to soothe away the cares of the day are waiting in their own back yards. Now, that's something to thank God for! There is the key: to enjoy the simplest things with a heart of gratitude for our Creator who knows what will truly bless our souls.

Is it surprising that the other part of Adam's and Eve's job description was to take care of the garden the Lord gave them? Still, more than simply partaking of the things He has created, we were placed here on earth to commune with Him, to enjoy Him forever. Adam and Eve walked in the garden with God in the cool of the evening.

A professor of education at Wittenberg once said to our class, "A good teacher needs to be a kid watcher." My grandkids are fun to watch. Could be, though, they are teaching me something of enduring value. May the Lord bless them and protect them all the days of their years.