I wonder if...

Jeremiah 29:11 - "For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope."

I found a kindergartener in my third and fourth grade Sunday school class. He was standing against the wall, being mauled by my welcoming clan of regulars.

The way he hugged his plush popular cucumber Bible set him apart from the other boys who were playing keep-away with a standard version. The chaos seemed to die down as I called the class to the circle.

"Ok listen up," I said trying to gain control. "It seems we have a special guest with us today."

Just then Mr. G, the kindergarten teacher, walked in the room. His "Son, why don't you come with me" suggestion was met by protest from the older sister who had apparently been instructed on where our misplaced youngster was supposed to be. "All right. Well, you can come if you want to," he said.

Eyes and ears suddenly appeared where moments before they had only been imagined. Suddenly, all eight class members erupted into a simultaneous cry for Mr. G to take them away.

Kindergarten must be more exciting than third grade.

I wonder if God ever feels like I did that day. He has this wonderful plan for us with each step revealed as class time progresses. Suddenly, a seemingly better offer comes along and all of his students begin yelling for a piece of the action.

It's not even that we consciously make a choice to sweep God under the rug and go play. Sometimes we just get distracted.

C.S. Lewis, in The Screwtape Letters, suggests that we may have forgotten what reality truly is. With everything we cram into our day, we being to think of the here and now as reality and forget that we are part of a higher purpose, a family.

Mr. G left the room alone that day. I swept my heart up off the floor adn dove back into my lesson plan. A call to refocus and talk about their weeks raised enough interest to continue. I prayed aloud that God would speak through me to this rowdy group of kids ready to play.

Amazingly, they calmed down and paid attention. Often all it takes is a reminder.