Dressed up as a fledgling John the Baptist, I was stumbling through my role in this week's Vacation Bible School with a floor length tunic and rope belt in the overheated vestibule cum Banks-of-the-River-Jordan when I asked the two dozen children about how we prepare the way for Jesus - and more specifically, 'What does God want from us?'

It was young Cameron McReady who spoke up and said, 'I think God wants us to be us.'

From the mouth of babes....

Sure, many of the kids said, 'Jesus wants us to be nice,' 'Jesus wants us to share,' even 'Jesus wants us to love our mommies and daddies.' But nothing went quite as deep as Cameron's answer - which speaks to the heart of our own self-fulfillment and purpose, not to mention the Gospel.

After all, don't we often live as if our job was to please God by saying and doing the right thing? As if our 'works' were the basis of God's love for us. When we know deep inside, like Cameron, that the Christian quest is to live out our unique gifts and calling in the light of His love - and to love and accept ourselves just the way we are - because that's what God does.

In what ways are we relying on our behaviors and attitudes to earn God's favor? How are we looking at the things around us as random and capricious - as if God were not there - when we know that God is here - and that by putting our trust in Him, we are as loved as we'll ever be just for who we are?

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Reading
The Good of Affluence - John Schneider
The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver
Leaving Church - Barbara Brown Taylor