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Passionate Children

Mark 10: 13-16 3And they were bringing children to Him so that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked them. 14 But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and said to them, “Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 15 Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.” 16And He took them in His arms and began blessing them, laying His hands on them.

Recently I have taken to reading articles and watching documentaries about world issues. Seeing documentaries on the living conditions in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo has made me remember ideas for inventions that I had in my younger days for access to clean water. In short, doing these things has reminded me of the passion that I had for social equality and fairness in my youth.

When I was a teenager I was a strong advocate for social change (and sometimes for fun joked with my friends by calling them “comrade”). But over the years this passion has dwindled away as I have had more responsibilities and more commitments of my time. This in retrospect is a disappointing occurrence; one that I think many would be familiar with.

Jesus tells us to have faith “like children”, not because of the simple level of their understanding, but because of their enthusiastic and zealous beliefs. Children ardently believe in what they believe, with all their heart and often believe that change is possible. The love of children is such a delight because it encompasses everything that it is directed towards.

Children are unbounded by constraints such as debt and family commitments, and youth can have a passion and zeal that is hard for us to regain as adults. This is because as we age the reality of disappointment and suffering sets in, the possibilities that we dreamed of as children melt away under pragmatics created by knowledge of past failures.

How few adults realise is that we have been unbound from the only eternally important debt, the debt of sin. Furthermore, all failure will be overcome by the ultimate victory that awaits us, heaven. As Christians we should always keep in mind that God has put passion in our hearts, and that that passion exists for a reason. My passions lie towards social welfare and mental health, even when things are difficult I should try to remember that passion. Children are blessed with passion and zeal, and as children of God we should be also. This is because we have a constant goal to work towards, a relationship debt-free relationship God and a victorious eternity in heaven.

What I am going to strive for in the future is not more for myself, but to rekindle the passion that once dwelt in me for justice, love and God. Now might be a good time for us all to try to do the same with the passions that God gave us and for the ultimate passion, the Kingdom of God.

Nathanael Yates from Perth, Western Australia, is an award winning young scientist who has won a scholarship to Oxford for 12 months as from October 2011

Nathanael's archive of articles may be viewed at www.pressserviceinternational.org/nathanael-yates.html

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