Have you heard of Chuck E. Jesus?

To say that I have a family who loves sports of all kinds would be an understatement.  If I said that we had hundreds of balls at our house, that would not be an exaggeration (and I am not counting golf balls of which there are a few dozen).  And if I told you that we had two dozen footballs of one kind or another, that is probably low by a bunch.

At least a half dozen of those footballs are always immediately available.  Not long ago I was in the basement with our 2½ year old grandson, Jarek.  He was lining up in a straight row five footballs that were within his immediate grasp.  One of those footballs looked unfamiliar to me.  I picked it out of the lineup to see what it was.  As I twisted it around, I saw that it had come from a Chuck E. Cheese pizza and game parlor.  (As it happens, Rochester will be getting a Chuck E. Cheese soon—not two miles from my house!)

Excitedly, I told Jarek about Chuck E. Cheese and how his next birthday party (in April) could probably be at this place—how much fun we would have together.  He seemed more interested in the football of the moment rather than a promise sometime in the far distant future.

So we continued to play with the footballs—he loves to play “fumble” and “tackle”.  We also got a yoyo out and a fire truck. 

It came time to put the toys away, and as the balls were being placed in the toy box, he picked out the little black one, brought it to me, and said, “Chuck E. Jesus”.  I smiled and said, “No, Jarek, that is a Chuck E. Cheese football.”  And he said, “No, Grandpa…Chuck E. Jesus!”

Jarek has no concept of what Chuck E. Cheese is (though I suspect he will soon find out).  But he does know something about Jesus—a frequent topic of conversation and song.  He doesn’t care if there is a little mouse on the football—it still is a Jesus football!  From his frame of reference, pretty much everything in life is connected to Jesus in some way.

And he would be right.  As Christians we come from the conviction that everything, everything belongs to God, and it is given to us to use for a while.  That includes our homes, families, possessions, money…and even our footballs.

Jarek changed the name of the football to something that was more familiar and comforting to him.  That new name is the one who has promised to watch over him for a lifetime, and even unto eternity.  It is Jesus, the Good Shepherd, who has promised to pick up innocent children in his arms and bless them. 

Chuck E. Cheese is a fine place.  I can already hear the birthday parties and the whack-a-mole (do they still have that?) from my house two miles away.  But for my part, I believe I will throw my lot in with Chuck E. Jesus.