A tale of two Bens

You may have noticed that I have called this blog entry “A tale of two Bens”.  The first Ben is my young grandson.   He is a smashing little boy (most of the time), with a very endearing grin.  He is also a pointer.  Whenever something, or someone, attracts his attention he will point in that direction.  Last Sunday morning I was leading a Mothering Sunday service at one of my churches.  Ben, along with his brother and two cousins were at the service.  When I stood up to introduce the service, Ben noticed me, pointed his finger, and toddled down the aisle towards me.  When he got close, he lifted his arms in my direction, and I couldn’t resist gathering him in my arms.  He’s a very cuddly little boy!

Later in the service we watched a video clip which related the time when some children were brought to Jesus (you can watch it here).  Jesus’ disciples, thinking that Jesus wouldn’t want to be bothered with little children, tried to usher them away.  But Jesus welcomed the children.  The gospels tell us that he ‘took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them’ (Mark 10:16).  What an amazing picture of God’s love for us all.  As I held Ben in my arms I perhaps caught a glimpse of how God feels when we stretch out our arms to him and allow him to gather us to himself.

The other Ben is someone I met a couple of years ago.  My brother, Phil, came over from New Zealand (where he lives) to a conference in the UK, and brought with him a friend, Ben, who is from Vanuatu.  Ben is a lovely, gentle man who overflows with the love and grace of God, and it was a privilege to get to know him.  It was his first visit to the UK and I think that he found it a bit of a culture shock at first.  He loved his first experience of snow, although he didn’t appreciate the sub-zero temperatures!  I was fascinated to read later that a survey suggested although most of the people of Vanuatu have very little by way of material possessions, they are nevertheless amongst the happiest and most contented people on earth.

I was greatly saddened to hear of the devastation caused to Vanuatu by the recent visit of ‘Cyclone Pam’.  Not surprisingly, Phil has not yet been able to make contact with Ben.  Ben is often on my mind at the moment; he and his family and the people of Vanuatu are very much in my thoughts and prayers.  I hope and pray that relief efforts will be swift and effective, and that the people of Vanuatu will feel supported by the international community.  I am sure that Ben and many others will be finding strength in God’s presence, even in the midst of such devastation, and encouraging others to do so too.