This morning as I was on my way to work I thought about a past blog post I had about a song we used to sing when I was maybe 7 years old singing in my church’s children’s choir.  That song was called “Apple Red Happiness”.  The lyrics were as follows:

Apple red happiness, popcorn cheerfulness, cinnamon singing inside, peppermint energy, gum drop holidays when you give Christ your life. The benefits of God’s great love are super satisfying.  Open up your heart! Let the Spirit in! Try Him and you’ll see how you get apple red happiness, popcorn cheerfulness, cinnamon singing inside, peppermint energy, gum drop holidays when you give Christ your life!

In that post, I recalled that I was blessed with the opportunity to take my sons (age 5 and 8 at the time) to the County Fair.  As I was watching them ride the rides I couldn’t help but look around at the various food vendors and all the great things they had to offer.  Caramel apples, soft pretzels, funnel cakes, elephant ears, dippin dots, and anything else you can imagine.  In the description of that moment, I recalled the memory of the song above.  It’s a simple song that is perfect to be sung by children, but even more perfect to be absorbed by adults.  In many ways maybe it is an anthem for the feeling I get when I’m connected to my faith.  And, for me, being connected to my faith is about love and kindness or better put to be a living example of it.  I often think about the different variants of followers and believers of the different religions around the world.  I think about what draws people to them and what is the cornerstone of each.  I would argue that it’s love.  It’s not iron sharpening iron, it’s not about being better than anyone around you, and it certainly isn’t fueled by the self-righteous notion that you somehow know better or can judge anyone because you can quote from a book or recite verses that many don’t understand anyway.  But, unfortunately so many get lost in that and lost in the idea that you have to be perfect to help others.  Nothing could be farther from the truth.   I’ve seen repeatedly that being human, leaning into brokenness, and being real has helped far more people than sitting high above them.

But, enough about the theology discussed above.  As I close I would ask you to reflect on the following question: 

Are you living your life through the eyes of a child and showing the kindness and love mentioned in the song above or have you been hardened so much that you cannot see?  Many times when my heart is hardened I’m reminded that inside I’m really just a child… a child that is going to fall, going to fail, but hopefully leads with love and I hope the same for all of you!   Let your light shine!  Find that Apple Red Happiness regardless of your faith and SHARE IT!  Share it today, tomorrow, and all of the days of your life.  The world sure would be better if we could!