I know, what a weird title for a blog. What is she talking about?! Well, several years ago, I was the lead safekeeper for the “Divorce Care For Kids” class (www.dc4k.org) at our church. Elementary-age children would hesitantly walk into the class and bring their hurts and family trauma with them. Some children would be shy and sit by themselves and some would almost take the room over with their energy as they acted out on what they were feeling inside.
They didn’t know how to handle the destruction of all they knew in their families. They didn’t know where they would live, or what school they would go to, or if they would ever see both of their parents or their siblings again. They didn’t know if they would ever be able to spend time with Grandpa and Grandma again. Where did they fit in? Who did they belong to?
My heart would break for these precious, hurt children, but it was our mission to extend the arms of Jesus to them and make sure they understood that their Heavenly Father would not leave them, yell at them, put them down, or hurt them in any way. Many times, I would wrap a sobbing child in my arms and hold them as I whispered in their ear, ” Sweetheart, I am so sorry you are hurting so bad. I love you, but Jesus loves you even more and He will help you through this.”
When it came time for snacks, the children would line up for food such as pretzels, carrots, cheese squares, bananas, peanut butter sandwiches, and sometimes pudding cups. It was always interesting to see which foods each child would choose for that class. Linda Jacobs, the developer/writer of the DC4K curriculum taught me that children who were angry would choose the hard and crunch foods and the ones who were sad and depressed would choose the soft foods. I’ll be darned if that isn’t just what happened in class! I was stunned and amazed that this was true! Who knew?
Just like those little children in the DC4K classes, we can imagine ourselves crawling up into the Lord Jesus’ lap and having Him wrap His arms around us and whisper in our ear, “I love you. You are safe in My arms.” Whether we are in the “mood” for crunchy or soft food, He can take that anger or depression and heal us if we are willing to let Him and if we are also willing to “do the work”.
“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your soul. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Matt. 11:28-30