Real Families: Meditations on family life

Iam one of those people who leave their Christmas decorations up past December. This mainly happens because I forget. I should also say that by Christmas decorations, I mean, our crèche. That’s all I put out. I’d like to have various Christmas decorations in our house, but it comes down to two things: time, which I don’t have, and the fact that my children are at ages where they would prefer to put decorations in their mouths instead of looking at them adoringly.

Last Christmas, I introduced the figures of the crèche to my children. I also let them play with the figures. My daughter often asked to play with them, especially Baby Jesus. Then one night, when they were asleep, I took the crèche down and packed it away. The next morning, my daughter asked for Baby Jesus. I told her I put Baby Jesus away but that he and all the figures would be back in December. She was disappointed but brightened up when I told her she could read about Jesus in her children’s Bible.

Lately, when she plays with her toys, the most common thing I hear is “getting ready for church” or “going to church.” It makes me wonder what she thinks about church, about Jesus and about God. I realize she is 2, so I don’t want to read too much into her play. But I wonder, What does she think of church? Is it a place for her to go to see friends in the nursery? Is it a place where she can run uninhibited among a crowd of people? Is it the place where Mommy works? What does she think when she hears stories about God and Jesus? What does she think about Baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph?

I have no idea. As her mother and as a pastor, I hope she has positive feelings about church. So far she seems to enjoy going, but this may not be the case (think teenage years). But I wonder, What does faith look like for toddlers? What does going to church mean for them? Again, I don’t know.

Two images come to mind: hearing her sing, “Will You Let Me Be Your Servant” from the Hymnal Worship Book, which she calls “Journey,” and hearing her little voice join in as my husband and I sing “Great God, the Giver” as our table grace. As a Mennonite, I suppose I should not be surprised that some of her first spiritual formation has come from song.

I think these little things matter a lot in the beginnings of faith formation. While my daughter may not understand the meaning of these words right now, my hope is that these words bury themselves deep into her soul so that when she gets older the words “Will you let me be your servant, let me be as Christ to you? Pray that I may have the grace to let you be my servant too” make her stop and think, What does it mean to be a servant? I also hope the phrase “Great God, the giver of all good” reminds her that God is good even when she faces a situation that is not good at all.

But these are my hopes, not hers. As her mother, all I can do is hope and guide her and her younger brother in faith. As I look toward the season of Advent, I have bigger plans to help us celebrate and learn as a family about the birth of Christ besides setting up our crèche. For example, I have high hopes for either creating or buying an Advent calendar as a way to anticipate and learn about the birth of Jesus. I also look forward to her growing participation in church.

In December she will turn 3, which means she can start attending some of our church’s programs, such as Sunday school and children’s worship. This also means she will sit up with us at church; no more nursery for her. This fall will begin a change for her, and how she views church will probably change. She will be entering the formal education phase of life, no more playing trains or playing with dolls in the nursery.

I wonder as the fall progresses if I’ll still hear her say to her dolls in a cheery voice, “You’re going to church.