“Mama! You wanna see his owie?” The first words I hear a couple of days ago when getting Solace up from her nap. I knew exactly what she would show me. She was sitting in her new big girl bed with her Jesus Storybook Bible. She flipped through the pages until she landed on the picture of Jesus hanging on a cross. She sadly showed it to me and said, “See his owie, Mama?”
I had been struggling lately with my lack of discipline in teaching the girls about Jesus and even more how I lacked in showing them Jesus through my own words and deeds day-to-day. “How can they possibly grasp the concept of Jesus at this age anyway?” I said this to myself every once in a while. They were so young. They barely acknowledge understanding me on basic disciplinary aspects and why can’t we go to Mamie’s house right now? How could I get them to understand Jesus? God? The Holy Spirit? Even I don’t get it sometimes.
I sat down on her bed and asked her if I could tell her about Jesus’ owie. She handed me the Bible and we began:
We sinned, Solace. And right here, in this picture, is Jesus dying on the cross for our sins. You see, he loved us so much that he didn’t want us to be separated from him forever because of our sins. So instead, he died in our place. You see those owies? That’s a crown of thorns on his head and it hurts so much. And this is where they beat him. He loves you sooo much that he was beaten for you. But guess what? He didn’t stay dead! He proved that he is God and came back to life to show that even death has no hold over him. He’s alive now! Yay! He showed all his friends that he was still alive. Then, he spread out his arms and went up into the sky to be with God, his Father. He left the Holy Spirit for us. Mama has the Holy Spirit, and so does Papa, and Dan, and Lisa, and Randy, and Mamie, and Nana, and Grandpa, and Pappy! That way we can talk to him whenever we want! Isn’t that wonderful?
She asked me a ton of questions as we read each page together but for the most part, she listened, entranced. How do I know she listened and retained? Because later, she and Belle were sitting on her bed together with the Bible open between them and I hear, “They beat him, Belle! But look! He came back to life! He’s not dead. He loves me and he loves you so much. Yeah!”
I was floored. Didn’t Jesus himself say “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” (Luke 18:16-17) Solace, a child, has grasped the Gospel with an open heart because her faith is like that of a child. That day, I understood the gravity of what Jesus did for me on the cross. I saw it through her eyes; eyes that were hearing it for the very first time and I wept. I, to my shame, haven’t wept over the Gospel in too long.
God didn’t need me to teach Solace about himself! He had that under control. In fact, I probably wouldn’t even had tried to explain it to her in the first place but because she was reading it on her own and came to me about something she saw, I got to share the most beautiful truths with my daughter at the age of 3. I am a vessel, here to guide my children toward Jesus but he doesn’t need me to do that. That gives me way too much credit. His Spirit is alive and here, doing It’s work. Without me. In spite of me.
The Gospel is simple. It is true. This Easter, that is what I am learning. I’m trusting in Jesus with the faith of a child. Today, on Good Friday, I will be thinking about what Jesus did for me. How He took all my sin on himself, was turned away from his Father, beaten by men, scorned, humiliated, and killed, all for me. Because He loves me. Not because I deserved it. I far from deserve anything. This was the greatest gift any of us has ever been given. And then on Sunday, Easter, he rose from the dead. DO YOU GET IT? He conquered the unconquerable! He IS GOD.
Amen and Amen. Thank you Jesus. Thank you for showing me anew, through Solace, what Easter is all about.
Becky Laparra 
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