Resurrection...

This week we heard a story about what happened in my boy Corban’s class this past Sunday at church. Corban is 11 years old.

As Easter Sunday approaches, the children’s ministry has been telling the pre-story events that occurred in Jesus life before the morning of his resurrection. The story will conclude with Jesus busting out of the tomb on Easter Sunday. So as one of the ministry team was talking about the sadness of what Jesus was going through with the religious leaders who rejected Him and influenced people to reject Him as well as his trial and suffering that he endured, Corban was sitting at the back of the class with his Sunday morning volunteer. Just then, with the other 4th/5th graders chit-chatting and not paying too close attention, Corban stands up and walks to the front of the room and sits down on the low stage next to the story teller. As he sits, Matt puts his arm across Corban’s shoulders and continues his story. Corban emits a whimper and Matt looks at Corban and asks, “Corban does it make you sad to hear what Jesus went through for us?” Corban responded with his version of YES by quietly saying, “Doh” followed by a little cry. The chit-chatters grew silent as they looked at what was happening up at the front of the room. All eyes were focused on stage. Matt continued by saying to Corban, “It’s OK for us to be sad about what happened to Jesus because after all the pain that He went through, Jesus came out of the tomb on Sunday morning.” And better than if it had been scripted, Corban jumps to his feet and thrusts both arms into the air and shouts, “YEAH!”

Jennifer Day, the ministry leader, filled in the blanks for us of what must have been going through the kids’ minds as they saw this strange boy with cerebral palsy who likes to throw the ball back and forth in the hallway.

As for me, I have witnessed Corban’s compassion on numerous occasions and it occurs without prompting from mom or dad. The unknowing world may look at Corban and see that he rides the special bus, has a scar across his head from ear to ear, wears braces on his legs, walks funny, doesn’t talk, makes shrieking sounds now and then, claps for no apparent reason, and so on. But on this day the unknowing world stopped their chit-chatting for a boy who has a heart that is aware and which has a connection with the loving Father, who gave him life, of which I am envious of. On this day, a loving Father chose to speak through a boy and the best thing about it was He used a boy who had no words to express his feelings. The message came through loud and clear.

Brian Herrian <'((><