Jesus Loves Me

This I know

Our church decided to disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church this past week. I spent my whole life as United Methodist parishioner. I have good memories of growing up in Trinity United Methodist Church, moving to our farm and attending Kingston United Methodist Church, getting married and attending Bainbridge United Methodist Church, and spending the last 30 years as a member and leader of Salem United Methodist Church. Though I’m not likely to be a United Methodist anymore, what has struck me today really doesn’t have anything to do with the UMC, it has to do with the fact that I was taught that Jesus Loves Me in that church from a very young age.

What concerns me at this point in my life isn’t what I was taught or not taught in the church, but what future generations of children are being taught. Our Pastor chose “Jesus Loves Me” as one of our songs for worship today.

1 Jesus loves me, this I know,
for the Bible tells me so.
Little ones to him belong;
they are weak, but he is strong.

Refrain:
Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me! The Bible tells me so.

2 Jesus loves me he who died
heaven’s gate to open wide.
He will wash away my sin,
let his little child come in. [Refrain]

3 Jesus loves me, this I know,
as he loved so long ago,
taking children on his knee,
saying, “Let them come to me.” [Refrain]

You might be thinking our congregation might be a “little old” for “Jesus Loves Me.” Before singing, the Pastor told us we were going to sing it a little slower. I knew that also meant to better consider the words than we might normally do. And so I did.

There are two things that really hit me: 1) Jesus really does love me…and you…and everyone. Jesus loves us whether we are black, white or some other color. He loves us whether we are a saint or a sinner, and there are a lot more sinners than saints. Jesus loves me whether I am Democrat or Republican, whether I watch FoxNews, CNN, or no news at all. He loves me whether I am straight or gay, celibate or not. He loves me no matter what team I root for, what clothes I wear, how I smell, what I drink etc. You get the point. Jesus even loves Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and atheists. He loves everyone – On this 3:16 Day we are reminded that He made the whole world and loves us so much that He died on the cross for our sins so that we will not perish, but have everlasting life. All of us.

The second thing that really hit me was 2) Do our children even learn “Jesus Loves Me” anymore? With so few families in church these days, are our children even learning the very basic beliefs of the faith? Is our society becoming so hateful and divided today because children aren’t learning the very basic things that many of us were taught in church and Sunday school? and what can I do about any of this? are just a few of the questions I asked myself as I sat in church feeling a bit inadequate to do anything about this.

As my Dad coached me, I remember him talking about the basics. I learned the importance of the word “fundamentals” from a very young age. As a coach myself I think that may be the one thing I did well. My point is that we must teach our children that they are loved from a very young age [that is a must]. My personal viewpoint is that they are loved by God and that Jesus is part of the Holy Trinity and the Godhead loves us all. The basics of John 3:16, the Apostles’ Creed, the Lord’s Prayer and Jesus Loves me should be taught in our Christian homes. The fact that it is probably not is on display in America’s Schools, in our secular society, and on social media. I don’t say this in judgement, I say this in observation, wanting to help solve the problem and feeling a bit helpless to do so.

Many Americans continue to “identify” as Christians, though it seems as though we don’t always behave that way. Church attendance is down and we are continually bombarded by judgement and hate, even sometimes from people in the church. To quote Walt Whitman: What good amid these? Answer: That life exists and identity. That the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. My verse for today: Jesus Loves Me (and you) and so do I.