Jump directly to the Content

A Slide, a Prayer, Again

Little Josh wanders the three-year-old room at Promiseland, stopping first at the art station to color a picture of Jesus, which he embellishes with a few lines and circles meant to be Thomas the train.

Little Josh wanders the three-year-old room at Promiseland, stopping first at the art station to color a picture of Jesus, which he embellishes with a few lines and circles meant to be Thomas the train.I admire his work. He smiles, but is already scanning the room, sizing up the possibilities: a reading corner with picture books, a play kitchen, bowling with plastic pins, and a rubber ball. Then he sees it: the sturdy plastic slide, brightly hued and inviting. "I want to slide," he says, pulling me by the hand. "Okay," I say.

He points to a spot on the carpet beside the slide. "You sit here and watch me," he says kindly. As a volunteer, that's my job during play time—to watch the kids (we'll talk about the Bible lesson later during small group time). I agree and sit on the floor. Josh climbs to the top of slide, sits down and looks at me expectantly.

"Ready, set, go!" I say. He slides down, his light-up sneakers catching slightly on the slide. He runs over to me and I give him a high-five. ...

March
Support Our Work

Subscribe to CT for less than $4.25/month

Homepage Subscription Panel

Read These Next

Related
The Roots of Busyness
The Roots of Busyness
How being busy grows from necessity to compulsion.
From the Magazine
Should the Bible Sound Like the Language in the Streets?
Should the Bible Sound Like the Language in the Streets?
Controversy over Bibles in Jamaica, the Philippines, and Germany reveal the divide between the sacred and the relatable.
Editor's Pick
What Christians Miss When They Dismiss Imagination
What Christians Miss When They Dismiss Imagination
Understanding God and our world needs more than bare reason and experience.
close