Putting The Baptize On Charlie...

He said to them, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. " ~Matthew 19:14

This is Charlie... 
aka, "Charlie Warley Doodle all The Day" or "Sir Charles"
He is 3. ("Free")

For weeks he has been talking about going to church to.... "Put the Baptize on."

He was excited about the, "Jesus' river water"

 ...and "the sign it was gonna put on him." 

The first words out of his mouth yesterday AM was...
"This is sure a beautiful day to put my Baptism on"

So, God reminded me,
 through a teeny-tiny person in a seersucker suit- 
toting a bag of jelly beans and pulling on a juicebox,
That we should ALL greet the day....ready to "Put Jesus On."

Both Charlie and his gorgeous baby sister, "Carowine" 
both, "got the baptize put on them"

He handed out some high-fives along the way to his co-teachers 
(They're who taught him all about Jesus' tomb having "NUFFING" in it.)

"Jesus said, 'I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, 
you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.'" ~Matthew 18:2


When all was said and done...what was left on the dining room table was a
wrinkled seersucker and spiderman underoos...

 but, what was left on the heart, was proof in the pudding.
The childlike faith Jesus Himself describes......
was found to have snuck out of bed and was reading, 
 his new Bible Stories to his invisible friend, "The Boy." 

 He said to them, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. " ~Matthew 19:14

Looks to me, like childlike faith, isn't so childish after all. 

God, Thank You for Baptism and for allowing us to "Put You on." Thank You for reminding us thru Charlie and Caroline that Your Love has changed EVERYTHING.

In His Dust,

DCC

The Voice...

I've had a heart for special needs kids since I was little. 
My Aunt "Ding", who also happens to be my Godmother, chose to serve them as a vocation- which I've always seen as more of a ministry. I believe she was called.

I've had the privilege of announcing Challenger League Baseball games this past season. 
(Challenger League is special needs baseball)

It's been eye opening to watch the different angles of God. 

Students helping special needs kids- 

Parents beaming with pride and broken hearted at other moments. 

I learned that Elliott likes Linus and Lucy....

Caroline likes a pink helmet...it makes her happy... 

Jake, "Boogie Man" likes KC & The Sunshine Band... 

Annie does a cartwheel every time she scores..

Mikey hits it out of the park...

Drew likes to eat donuts and enjoys a little crowd recognition...

Gracie runs faster when I play "Who Let The Dogs Out"....

The Parents beam with pride....

as they face a hard sense of reality... 

At the end of the last game a gorgeous red-headed freckled face player- 

handed me a trophy of my very own. 

She said "Thank you for being our voice." 

My heart dropped and exploded at the same time. 

It got me to thinking- what does my voice sound like? Besides scratchy....

It better sound like love and grace and mercy.

 Because that is what my Rabbi's Voice sounds like. 

This post is not about me, or anything I did, it is about us being His Voice.

So, as His Voice, what are people hearing from you?
Since His Sheep know His Voice....

"God's Voice thunders in marvelous ways; 

He does great things beyond our understanding." ~Job 37:5

God, Please let them hear Your Voice in Mine...in Our's.

In His Dust,

DCC

Don't Be Shaped...

"Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. 

You’ll be changed from the inside out." ~Romans 12:2

I was honored to speak in a wedding this weekend at San Fernando Cathedral. 

It was founded in 1731 and is the oldest continuously functioning religious community in the State of Texas. 

(As in "Remember the Alamo type old," and believe you me, it does.) 

So, when I was told by the priest to "lift my hands" during my reading, 

needless to say, I did it.

The comments I got, by those who didn't understand the ritual, made me think.

"Wow, you really take this reading stuff seriously...you were really excited."

"Did you know your hands were raised?"

"You should so go and be a priest already or go into ministry!"

My answers in order.....

"Yes. Yes, I do take God's Word real seriously."

"Ummm, yes, I had control of my limbs. Thank you for your concern."

"The collar would look silly with my shorts and t-shirt...

and by the way, I am already in ministry..................we all are."

God calls all of us to, "Not conform to the world around us."

The word conformed is, "suschematizo." 

It literally means, to be molded or stamped according a pattern. 

This includes the pattern of public opinion which tends to define truth. 

It is so much easier to be affected by the world and it's opinions.

Including those we often swim with.

But, it is not what is best for us.

and He knows that.

God, Thank You for Your Mercy when we worry more about what others think, than what You do.

In His Dust,

DCC