Snuggled in his arms

Jesus, teach me to be thankful for love -- of bears, blankets and you! Amen.

Jesus prayed alone in a garden: "Father, the hour has come. I did the work you gave me; I taught people about you. I pray for them, because they're staying in the world while I'm coming back to heaven to be with you. Keep them in your name, so they'll be as close to you as I am."

Have you ever had a stuffed animal or blanket you really loved? Lots of kids sleep with their favorite stuffed animal or a special blanket. It helps you feel safe to have your bear or blanket snuggled in your arms. If you lost it, you'd cry for hours!

In a way, Jesus' prayer in this week's Gospel (John 17:1-11) is like what you think about your stuffed animals. As He prays, Jesus is reminding God the Father to keep people close to Him -- to help them feel safe and snuggled in God's arms, like you feel when you hug your teddy bear.

If you have a favorite stuffed animal or "blankie," you probably know every little thing about it: the space where its nose is missing, the hole where the blanket ripped, the way it fits into your arms.

God knows us even better than that. Jesus' prayer in the garden was because He knew He was going back to heaven soon; but, He'd gotten to know the people on Earth so well, He knew every little thing about them -- and how much He'd miss them.

On a bad day, just knowing your bear or blanket is waiting for you at home can make you feel better. Jesus wanted people to feel the same way about Him -- to remember that even when He wasn't right next to them, He was watching and loving them from heaven, and waiting to wrap His arms around them like a favorite bear.