“Look!” “Look, Mom!” “Look at me!” Nearly every parent has had these words spoken, shouted, exclaimed to them at least once if not thousands of times. Look…today’s word for this Lenten practice. I think of the number of times both our sons yelled this word…”Look!”…so I would turn from whatever mundane or important task I was doing and give them my attention. A ball was kicked. A picture was drawn. A physical feat that needed an audience. A creation that deserved a viewer. While the activity changed, the hope was constant. Notice me. See me. Take note of my presence in the world.
There is a certain poignancy to this plea: Look! It is something we all want, sometimes with desperation, always with hope. While our voices may remain silent as we grow older, there is deep within each of us, I believe, a call…look. Please, look. For it is knowing that we are seen by others that we come to know something about who we are in the world. Whether we are young or older, whether we are short or tall, regardless of our status, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, we want to be seen and valued. 

A favorite story in the Sunday School of the Christian household has always been that of Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus, a tax collector and outcast wants to see Jesus when he comes to his town. But Zaccaheus is short and cannot see over the people who have gathered to see this healer, this teacher. So he climbs up a tree to get a better look. As Jesus passes by, he shifts his gaze up into the tree and sees the tax collector. Jesus sees Zacchaeus,calls him down and invites himself to dinner.

It is a simple story and one I have often thought children like because Zacchaeus is small…like them. And Zacchaeus climbs a tree…like they like to do. And Zacchaeus is really saying by his climbing: Look! Look at me! Something that children call out over and over in an effort to name and claim their place in the world and in their parent’s hearts.

Today I pray for all the children who call out ‘look’ and who are ignored. I pray for the adults who miss the opportunity to see and affirm the young ones who long to be seen. I pray for all the adults who are carrying a ‘look at me’ message in their deepest self…a message that goes unheard, creating a deep wound that will take much to heal.

Look. May we know the gaze of the One who breathed us into being this day, the One who continues to look even when we do not have the courage or the heart to call out. 
***Don’t forget to visit #rethinkphoto or #rethinkchurch.org to see what photos have been created on the theme of ‘look’.