Naomi's Notes - 05/30/04
(Occasionally, I plan to use this column to share brief stories of children's choir members who have impacted my life and ministry through the years. Here's the first one.)
His name was Chris. I don't remember his last name, but he was about 8 years old and lived a few blocks from Lyndon Baptist Church, Louisville, where I was Associate Minister of Music. I only knew him a couple of months.
Chris had a "future football player" build, with blue eyes and freckles on his nose. Wild sprigs of cow-licked blond hair stuck out everywhere, the result of a bad haircut enhanced by classroom scissors. His friendly smile and pleasant temperament were charming, and he was unusually comfortable with engaging adults in casual conversation.
I don't think Chris was ever really clean. He always had more than the usual childhood smudges on his skin and ill-fitting clothes. He never seemed fresh, often looking "seedy" and smelling bad. There was no doubt that Chris was neglected. What was unusual was the absence of some typical behavioral problems for a child in his situation.
I first met Chris when he wandered into the parking lot one day, little brother in tow. He approached some adults, and they steered both boys towards our children's activities.
On his own, Chris began to attend Young Musicians Choir. He seemed oblivious that other children were openly reluctant to sit by him. I'm not sure he ever sang on pitch, but he would smile and participate intelligently and just looked "happy to be there."
Ministering to his family was difficult, despite our repeated efforts. We never could figure out the situation. Our impression was that they moved frequently. Once during choir, Chris asked us to pray for his family because his dad was in jail for trying to kill his mom. (I hoped he hadn't witnessed it.) Their house was vacant soon afterwards, and we lost track of him.
Earlier, to introduce a new song, I asked the choir to think of reasons why we love God. Their responses were mostly typical. Suddenly, Chris's face lit up and he said excitedly, "I love God because God gives us second chances." I thought, if there was ever a child who needed a million second chances just to survive, it was Chris!
My encounter with Chris was brief, but God used this special child to help me be grateful for all the grace-filled second chances I've been given. My prayer is that Chris has already experienced enough of God's abundant love and grace to overcome his circumstances and grow into the fine young man God created him to be.
"Jesus loves the little children, ALL the children…."
Naomi