Tammim

"Let love be without hypocrisy..." Romans 12:9

Does anyone (in their right mind) fault a baby for crying when hungry or tired or needing a change? Does anyone expect a toddler to be able to drive a car?

Echo is a young child, but two weeks ago she was given the task of hearing from God in Romans 12:9-21, and coming back this Sunday to share what God said.

I admit to a bit of anxiety... I was even tempted to write a back-up sermon, you know, just in case! But I was assured that He would speak and that, regardless of how much or how little this Body heard Him, this was the right path. If we sit and stare at each other for 20 minutes, well, so be it...

Well... shame on me for being (as Sharon put it) "of little faith." He did speak... and He spoke... and spoke... and spoke...

• "Children have a hard time understanding the idea of hypocrisy... how can someone's inside be different from their outside? Instead of us teaching them about hypocrisy, we can learn alot from them about integrity."


• "To love what is good, turn your mind to those things that are good... don't dwell on evil!"


• "When others are celebrating, don't wonder 'why him and not me?' instead be glad He is still in the blessing business! And remember, salvation is the greatest blessing of all..."


• "Being of the same mind with each other is less about agreeing on doctrine, and more about humbly preferring each other. In this way, we have 'the mind of Christ!'"


• "To be at peace with others, be a place of peace, don't add to others' anxiety..."


• "When others mistreat you... you have the opportunity to teach them goodness by not retaliating, but instead blessing them. In this way, you overcome evil with good!"

That last one came from the quiet 12-yr-old boy with the big smile... And there was so much more... You'll just have to listen in to get it all...

Sitting here at Panera on Monday morning, I'm overwhelmed by what just happened. I was prepared for young Echo to stumble along in this exercise, being the toddler that she is, but I daresay we have a prodigy on our hands...