John was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he said, “Behold, the Lamb of God.” // John 1:35-36
I sat on the floor next to a precocious four-year-old boy in the Atrium, a specially-prepared prayer space particularly for children. We had just finished reading Jesus’ words: “I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me” (John 10:14). As he moved the wooden figures of the sheep around the sheepfold to follow the Good Shepherd, I asked, “I wonder who these sheep could really be?” He looked at me, his face lit up, and he said, with utter joy and amazement, “It’s all of us!” He started pointing to each sheep and giving them his friends’ names.
As a catechist, as a mother, even in my most basic vocational life as a member of Christ’s body, I am called to recognize Jesus and teach others to do the same. Sometimes this looks like Saint John the Baptist, pointing and saying in no uncertain terms, “There He is!” How often have you seen a mother at Mass with a squirmy toddler? At the moment of consecration, she whispers, “Look! There’s Jesus!”
Sometimes it is slowing down enough to savor Scripture with a small child, asking questions that help them to deeply ponder the mysteries of faith rather than assume we have the answers.
It’s helping a frustrated pre-teen daughter gain empathy, hearing her out and helping her to see a situation from another point of view. It’s teaching her to recognize the face of God in every person she meets, and reminding her that she never knows the full story.
It’s listening to a friend pour out her feelings of inadequacy, guilt, or shame, praying for her and with her, and reminding her that she is truly a daughter of the Most High—that her identity is inextricably linked to her Creator.
There are daily, even hourly opportunities in our lives to recognize Christ and show His face to others. Who needs you to point to Him today? Someone in your life needs your outstretched hand, your voice to say, “Behold, the Lamb of God."
