FOOD FOR THOUGHT
(04/05/2009)
THE
VELVETEEN DONKEY
Cindy Hong
The Velveteen Rabbit is a children's story that
highlights the transforming power of love. A stuffed rabbit is having
a pity party because he's been tossed aside. The Skin Horse shares with
him the secret of nursery magic: “Real isn't how you are made. It's
a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time,
then you become real.” Likewise, because God has loved us for a long,
long time, His love transforms us and infuses our lives with purpose.
Since our hearts are prone to wander, He uses different ways to turn our
attention back toward Him. I love the story of Balaam. He's a little slow,
so God uses a talking donkey to get the prophet's attention. Later the
poor Israelites are likened to donkeys: Even donkeys know their owners,
but God's children have snubbed their noses at their Father. In the gospels,
the Samaritan and his donkey give a lift to the man left for dead. Lastly,
we have the familiar story of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey.
People were anticipating a warrior king galloping in on a war horse to
overthrow the Roman government. But instead we have the King of Kings
on a donkey, to be crucified a few days later. Jesus' demonstration of
unconditional love on the cross is the only love that can transform us
from the inside out. Sure, loving others and being loved by them is a
pretty amazing thing. But if we are honest with ourselves, even the best
of human love leaves us wanting more at times. Jesus' love has the power
to strip us of our masks and bring us to the point of surrender so that
He can have His way in us. As we enter Passion Week, may we open our eyes
to the figurative donkeys that litter our lives every day: Anything that
God uses to get our attention, when we know and follow our Master, when
we allow Jesus on our backs, guiding us and working through us, and when
we take His words of love seriously, “Go and do likewise.”
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