John jumps for joy

Before Jesus was born, Mary went to visit her aunt Elizabeth. Elizabeth was going to have a baby, too: Jesus' cousin, John the Baptist. When Elizabeth saw Mary, John knew Jesus was nearby and jumped for joy inside his mother! Elizabeth told Mary, "God blesses you for trusting God's promise to send you a son, Jesus!"

Jumping is sometimes done for a serious reason. For example, a person in danger might jump to catch a rope or a rescuer's hand; if you see a snake or you're too close to a fire, you might jump back to get away from it!

Kids, though, are the best at jumping because they're happy and their whole body wants to show it by moving. You jump up and down when you find out you passed your swimming test this summer, or when your parents say, "Let's go out for ice cream!"

John the Baptist beats even the kids who really love to jump, though: He started jumping before he was even born. This week's Gospel (Luke 1:39-56) tells us about it.

Mary knew that baby Jesus was growing inside her when she visited her aunt Elizabeth, but she hadn't told everyone yet. But Elizabeth was about to have a baby, too -- John -- and even before he was born, John just knew Jesus was going to be someone special. So one baby greeted the other by jumping for joy inside his mother!

Whoever tells you to calm down when you're jumping for joy might want to read that Bible story. If one of the most famous people in the Bible liked to jump, it must be okay for you, too!

(8/12/04)