Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs” (Matthew 19:14).
Statues is a beloved playground game that has stood the test of time. My children played it growing up, and now my grandsons play it as well. I remember being “It” when I played statues as a child, standing in my elementary school yard in New York City. I would count to 10, my back turned, as my classmates quietly advanced on me. The idea was for me to turn around and yell “Freeze!” before someone reached me. Then everyone had to stop, exactly where they were. Anyone who moved even a muscle at that point was out. The excitement of statues was “It” whirling around just in time, catching those who didn’t freeze and changing the game’s outcome.
Lent is the season when we are called by God to look at our lives and make some adjustments that will keep us moving in the right direction.
For a long time, I thought of God as “It” in a cosmic game of statues, ever ready to whirl around, yell “Freeze!” and catch me doing wrong. Now, as a parent of five grown kids and nana of three cherished grandsons, I see things quite differently. God is indeed “It” but doesn’t want to call me out. Instead, God delights in my approach. The nearer I get, the happier the Lord is. When I’m close enough to touch God, it’s cause for celebration. And if, at times, I need to “freeze,” it’s just a chance to stop, to think and then to start forward again.
Let’s reframe Lent for our little ones, not as a time of sorrow and regret but as an opportunity to play statues with the God who is the ultimate “It.” Remind them that our life’s journeys are meant to bring us ever closer to God. Encourage them to “freeze” (stop in their tracks) in this season and reflect—but then move forward once more.
Make sure the children in your lives know that there’s nothing they can do to make God stop loving them—and that being in the presence of God’s forever love is the joyous, unchanging outcome of life’s game.
Practices:
- Play a game of statues with your kids. “It” can have fun turning around and “freezing” the other players. But when one of them touches “It,” no one is the loser—in this version, everyone is a winner!
- Talk together about the people who are most important in your lives—your “Its.” What are some things we do that can keep us apart from them? How can we stop, think and then keep moving toward them?
- Invite the kids to draw pictures of themselves playing statues, with God as “It”—always waiting to catch them in open arms. Don’t forget to draw a picture yourself!
