{"id":3208,"date":"2024-03-25T12:59:46","date_gmt":"2024-03-25T17:59:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/?p=3208"},"modified":"2025-03-05T14:56:40","modified_gmt":"2025-03-05T20:56:40","slug":"nurturing-children-in-the-faith","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/2024\/03\/nurturing-children-in-the-faith\/","title":{"rendered":"Nurturing Children in the Faith"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

by Rev. Dr. Char Rachuy Cox<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t
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These days,<\/span><\/p>\n

I spend a considerable amount of time<\/span><\/p>\n

Thinking about,<\/span><\/p>\n

Imagining,<\/span><\/p>\n

Creating,<\/span><\/p>\n

And Collaborating with a gifted cadre of folks<\/span><\/p>\n

About how we<\/span><\/p>\n

Nurture the littlest among us<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I can still smell<\/span><\/p>\n

the sweet musty scent<\/span><\/p>\n

of the church basement<\/span><\/p>\n

where I went to Sunday School<\/span><\/p>\n

as a child.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I can still see the\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

white plastic, church-light-coin-box\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

in which we deposited our pennies<\/span><\/p>\n

on the Sundays<\/span><\/p>\n

closest to our birthdays \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

one penny for each year of our age.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

I can still hear the old upright piano,<\/span><\/p>\n

slightly out of tune,<\/span><\/p>\n

and so familiar<\/span><\/p>\n

as we sang our Opening songs\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

every Sunday \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

He Leadeth Me,<\/span><\/p>\n

O God our Help in Ages Past,<\/span><\/p>\n

Savior Like a Shepherd Lead Us.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

I can still see the little chairs<\/span><\/p>\n

on which we sat,<\/span><\/p>\n

the tables around which we gathered,<\/span><\/p>\n

the steps that we climbed to the sanctuary,<\/span><\/p>\n

and the clusters of children and adults<\/span><\/p>\n

throughout the one big room,<\/span><\/p>\n

learning Bible stories<\/span><\/p>\n

and Luther\u2019s Small Catechism,<\/span><\/p>\n

and that there are people of faith<\/span><\/p>\n

who love you\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

and care about you<\/span><\/p>\n

and who want the best for you in life<\/span><\/p>\n

and want you to know<\/span><\/p>\n

and trust<\/span><\/p>\n

and believe<\/span><\/p>\n

more than anything else in the world<\/span><\/p>\n

that God loves you<\/span><\/p>\n

as God\u2019s own beloved child \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

full stop.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

No exceptions.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

And I can still see Eunice.<\/span><\/p>\n

Eunice was my Kindergarten Sunday School teacher.<\/span><\/p>\n

Eunice played the guitar<\/span><\/p>\n

and she sang songs<\/span><\/p>\n

and she wore white fashion boots<\/span><\/p>\n

and smiled a lot<\/span><\/p>\n

and she taught us about Jesus.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

I remember one Sunday<\/span><\/p>\n

in particular.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It was a day that we left the basement<\/span><\/p>\n

for Sunday school.<\/span><\/p>\n

We didn\u2019t have to sit<\/span><\/p>\n

on the little wooden chairs that day.<\/span><\/p>\n

We didn\u2019t have to sit still<\/span><\/p>\n

for the whole hour that day.<\/span><\/p>\n

Instead,<\/span><\/p>\n

Eunice led us up the steps<\/span><\/p>\n

that came in the back of the church,<\/span><\/p>\n

and we went up the aisle<\/span><\/p>\n

and got to sit on the floor<\/span><\/p>\n

inside the altar rail.<\/span><\/p>\n

We never got to go<\/span><\/p>\n

inside the altar rail \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

But that day we did.<\/span><\/p>\n

And Eunice told us<\/span><\/p>\n

to look up \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

Look up at the picture that<\/span><\/p>\n

was above the white and gold-trimmed altar.<\/span><\/p>\n

Look up,<\/span><\/p>\n

She said.<\/span><\/p>\n

What do you see?<\/span><\/p>\n

She asked,<\/span><\/p>\n

when you look at the picture?<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

I was a shy five-year-old,<\/span><\/p>\n

so I kept my thoughts to myself,<\/span><\/p>\n

But someone said what I was thinking.<\/span><\/p>\n

A man sinking in the water.<\/span><\/p>\n

Someone else said,<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus standing on the water.<\/span><\/p>\n

Someone else said,<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus pulling the sinking man up.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

And Eunice smiled and nodded.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

After she heard<\/span><\/p>\n

everything we had to say about the picture \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

the picture of Peter sinking\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

in the water<\/span><\/p>\n

and Jesus holding on for dear life \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

Eunice asked us<\/span><\/p>\n

if we knew what the name of our Church was.<\/span><\/p>\n

I thought it was a trick question<\/span><\/p>\n

because our church had two names.<\/span><\/p>\n

And somebody said <\/span>\u201cRosehill.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Somebody else said, <\/span>\u201cEmmanuel.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

And Eunice told us<\/span><\/p>\n

that both were right.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our church was<\/span><\/p>\n

Emmanuel Lutheran Church of Rosehill Township.<\/span><\/p>\n

And then she said,<\/span><\/p>\n

Today I want to talk to you about<\/span><\/p>\n

Emmanuel.<\/span><\/p>\n

She asked us if any of us\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

knew what \u201cEmmanuel\u201d meant.<\/span><\/p>\n

When we all shook our heads,<\/span><\/p>\n

She said,<\/span><\/p>\n

Emmanuel means \u201cGod with us.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

It is one of the names of Jesus.<\/span><\/p>\n

She had us say <\/span>Emmanuel\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

with her several times,<\/span><\/p>\n

And then she told us to<\/span><\/p>\n

look up at the picture above the altar again.<\/span><\/p>\n

Look up.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

As we did so,<\/span><\/p>\n

Eunice told us the story of Peter,<\/span><\/p>\n

stepping out of the boat,<\/span><\/p>\n

and trying to walk toward Jesus<\/span><\/p>\n

on the water.<\/span><\/p>\n

She told us\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

how he started to sink<\/span><\/p>\n

and how Jesus reached out to save him.<\/span><\/p>\n

She told us<\/span><\/p>\n

that there would be times in our lives<\/span><\/p>\n

when we would feel like Peter,<\/span><\/p>\n

when we would feel like we were sinking,<\/span><\/p>\n

but to always remember<\/span><\/p>\n

that <\/span>Jesus is always with us,<\/span><\/p>\n

that <\/span>Jesus will always reach out to help us,<\/span><\/p>\n

to pull us up to his safe arms.<\/span><\/p>\n

She told us\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

to always remember<\/span><\/p>\n

that whatever happened to us \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

whatever we experienced \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

good or bad \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

happy or sad \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus would always be with us \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

just like Jesus was with Peter<\/span><\/p>\n

that day on the water.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

I can still see Eunice \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

the passion in her eyes,<\/span><\/p>\n

the smile on her face,<\/span><\/p>\n

the joy in her voice<\/span><\/p>\n

as she told us about <\/span>Emmanuel <\/span>\u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

God who is always with us.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

I have frequently thought\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

about that day<\/span><\/p>\n

over the years \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

how formative it was,<\/span><\/p>\n

how it has stuck with me,<\/span><\/p>\n

how often I return to it,<\/span><\/p>\n

and how,<\/span><\/p>\n

when I close my eyes,<\/span><\/p>\n

I can still see that picture<\/span><\/p>\n

that was above<\/span><\/p>\n

that old church altar \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

and if I let myself<\/span><\/p>\n

imagine it \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

I can feel the arms of Jesus<\/span><\/p>\n

reaching out\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

in both gentleness and power<\/span><\/p>\n

to hold onto me,<\/span><\/p>\n

especially when life is hard.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

Eunice\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

is in her eighties now,<\/span><\/p>\n

and I am fortunate<\/span><\/p>\n

that I still have a relationship<\/span><\/p>\n

with this one who taught\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

me the faith<\/span><\/p>\n

so many years ago.<\/span><\/p>\n

In many ways,<\/span><\/p>\n

I am still a Kindergartener<\/span><\/p>\n

and she is still my teacher.<\/span><\/p>\n

Eunice continues to embrace life,<\/span><\/p>\n

to be full of laughter,<\/span><\/p>\n

love, and joy,<\/span><\/p>\n

still singing about Jesus,<\/span><\/p>\n

still reminding me<\/span><\/p>\n

that more than anything else in the world,<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus is always with me.<\/span><\/p>\n

God loves me.<\/span><\/p>\n

as God\u2019s own beloved child.<\/span><\/p>\n

full stop.<\/span><\/p>\n

No exceptions.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

Several years ago<\/span><\/p>\n

when my wife and I<\/span><\/p>\n

were getting married,<\/span><\/p>\n

there were some<\/span><\/p>\n

in our small, rural community<\/span><\/p>\n

who were less than kind,<\/span><\/p>\n

and Eunice sent us a card<\/span><\/p>\n

and to let us know<\/span><\/p>\n

how much she loved us both,<\/span><\/p>\n

to congratulate us,<\/span><\/p>\n

to speak a word<\/span><\/p>\n

of acceptance,<\/span><\/p>\n

love,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

and grace.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It was a holy,<\/span><\/p>\n

life-giving,<\/span><\/p>\n

sacramental gesture.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

Every once in a while,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

we will get a letter in the mail<\/span><\/p>\n

with a clipping<\/span><\/p>\n

from the newspaper,<\/span><\/p>\n

or rainbow bracelets,<\/span><\/p>\n

or a simply profound word of kindness,<\/span><\/p>\n

And when those missives come \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

We got one such letter last week,<\/span><\/p>\n

prompting me to write this reflection \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

it is as if I am five years-old again,<\/span><\/p>\n

sitting at the foot of that old wooden altar,<\/span><\/p>\n

staring up at Peter sinking in the water \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus holding on for dear life \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

and hearing again<\/span><\/p>\n

and anew \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus is always with you \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

And I am reminded\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

how utterly important it is<\/span><\/p>\n

to keep on speaking<\/span><\/p>\n

words of<\/span><\/p>\n

acceptance,<\/span><\/p>\n

grace,<\/span><\/p>\n

and love<\/span><\/p>\n

into people\u2019s lives.<\/span><\/p>\n

No one can ever hear too many times,<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus is always with you.<\/span><\/p>\n

No one can hear too many times<\/span><\/p>\n

God loves you.<\/span><\/p>\n

No one can hear too many times<\/span><\/p>\n

You are God\u2019s own beloved child.<\/span><\/p>\n

Full stop.<\/span><\/p>\n

No exceptions.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

And so, dear readers,<\/span><\/p>\n

If you are a Eunice<\/span><\/p>\n

in other people\u2019s lives,<\/span><\/p>\n

thanks be to God for you.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

If you need a Eunice\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

in your life today,<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve got a word for you:<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus is always with you.<\/span><\/p>\n

God loves you<\/span><\/p>\n

as God\u2019s own beloved child \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n

full stop.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

No exceptions.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

And finally,<\/span><\/p>\n

thank God<\/span><\/p>\n

for sweet, musty church basements<\/span><\/p>\n

and the messages of grace<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

that get planted there.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
The views in the post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Lutheran Center or St. Olaf College.<\/em><\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div> \n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div> \n\t<\/div> \n\n\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Rev. Dr. Char Rachuy Cox<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10038,"featured_media":2753,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,4],"tags":[13],"class_list":["post-3208","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","category-faith","tag-nourishing-vocation-with-children"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/files\/2023\/11\/NourishingVocation_Logo-Icon-01-FullColor.jpg?fit=2560%2C2555&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3208","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10038"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3208"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3208\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3819,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3208\/revisions\/3819"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2753"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3208"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3208"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.stolaf.edu\/nourishing-vocation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3208"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}