My grandson Titus is not by nature a “huggie” child. His brother would sit in my lap and we’d watch old westerns together on Saturday afternoons. But not Titus. He wants to be on the move.
So it is always a delightful surprise when, catching me working in my home study, he barges right in with “hi Dude,” comes over to me and says “draw.” Not as in the western “draw,” but as in “let’s get colored pencils and draw.” He’ll push me away from the desk, climb up in my lap, reach for the pens and look to me for paper. And no matter how intent I might be on the sermon, lesson, article or just reading, we have to draw. Together.
He’s more than a little presumptuous, just assuming that whatever I’m doing is not nearly as important as what he’s interested in and that if he’s interested in it, I will be too.
He calls me “Dude” (as do all the grandkids), but by his attitude, what he means is “Abba,” an Aramaic term of endearment characterized by child-like boldness and unquestioning trust. It’s the word Jesus used to refer to God as his father and exactly the term Paul used to describe our relationship to God (Galatians 4:6).
Never forget: God has nothing more important on his agenda than listening to his children and enjoying their companionship and company. We are not presumptuous in calling on His time. It is to Him simply endearing.