No more naked toys...

 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth...
Then God said, "Let us make man in our image..."

Sunday morning, my wife decided to cook up some new duds for Boomer, my  youngest son's stuffed bear. He was playing outside with the rest of the kiddos when she presented the bear, who normally turns out in army fatigues, in a checked button-down and blue jeans. The boy loved it. He grabbed Boomer and showed him off to his siblings with total delight. The next thing she knew, my wife was sitting behind the sewing machine with a queue of stuffed animals to dress.

As I watched the kids, waiting for their chance to receive some custom clothes, I got this idea of how we are like God. We imitate him without even trying. These kids, as soon as they saw the possibility, wanted their toys covered and cared for. I've seen the tenderness they use in putting a toy to bed and the anguish of losing one. Kids really will leave the ninety-nine action figures and seek out the lost one.

Being made in God's image has more to do with our actions and our character than it does the arrangement of our arms and legs. A kid's ego and desire can run wild, making him rude, insensitive, or selfish. But, his spirit is still innocent Not that he is sinless but he is yet ignorant of most of his sin. In that innocence, kids reveal the character of God without meaning to. All children are naturally creative. They care for and defend 'their own'. They can be eerie in their intuitions and are not deceived by mere social conventions. If a kid sees a grown-up acting bad, they say so. They don't make an excuse or try to explain why it was right in that circumstance. (Usually those tactics are saved for themselves when they've been acting bad.)

So, the simple act of asking for clothes for their dolls, of asking for what they need from the one who can provide it, inspires me this week. I hope I can be so upfront with God in asking for what I need.