“They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house,

he began to ask them,

‘What were you arguing about on the way?’

But they remained silent.

They had been discussing among themselves on the way

who was the greatest. 

Then he sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them,

‘If anyone wishes to be first,

he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.’

Taking a child, he placed it in their midst,

and putting his arms around it, he said to them,

‘Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me;

and whoever receives me,

receives not me but the One who sent me.’”

Last weekend was the first for our choir to be back at the 11:00 a.m. mass. They sounded fantastic! Welcome back! I had been invited to one of the choir members homes for a gathering of the choir for some food and fellowship after mass and had a great time visiting and eating with them. I had another appointment to get to, so I was making my rounds and saying goodbye to everyone. One family, with two generations in the choir, was on the deck with their baby/grand baby as I said goodbye. As I was making my leave, the grandmother, holding the little girl, asked if I wanted to hold her. I hesitated because of the other appointment, but gave in and held the young child, who was alert, happy, taking it all in, and excited to stand with support on my knees. She was a joy to hold! Those few minutes were the highlight of my day! It was a God moment for me, when I encountered the way, the truth, and the life of Jesus in the presence of this little child. If I had said no and hurried off to my next appointment, my life would have been diminished by what I had missed in that moment. I am grateful for that brief encounter and received what God had to give me through that little girl. I was encouraged, energized, and at peace. For such a small and brief interaction, it was significant for my day and the tasks that were before me. 

Too often, we are like the Twelve, focused on who is the most talented, capable, charismatic, accomplished, or important. Who is the greatest? We are in the comparison game, weighing value based upon external success. Certainly, there is great value in surrounding ourselves with good people, having great friends and mentors, but placing too much emphasis on external and worldly markers of success leads to a diminishment of our lives and of our faith. I can’t tell you how often the dawn awakens for driven career people who share with me the richness added to their lives in the birth of a grandchild. It is like the sun rises and they see, sometimes for the first time, the simple joy of life. It is the goodness of God manifested in the life of the beautiful gift of a little child. Somehow, they were too focused or distracted to receive that in the birth of their own children, but were mature and seasoned enough for that grace to break into their lives at the birth of a grandchild. How much we miss when focused on worldly success! 

Don’t miss the point. Being able to pause, notice, and welcome a child is how we become the servant of all, how we become greatest in the kingdom. Unless we are able to welcome the smallest and least, to value what they have to give, we can never achieve true greatness. We will always be grasping at straws, striving for that which leads us away from love and life. Receive the child!