I grew up technology free. My favorite childhood toys were books and dolls that inspired imagination in my play and developed a nurturing spirit in my heart. My favorite doll was Raggedy Ann. I recently had a desire to see her again, so I opened the trunk that holds touchable memories and there she was, nestled cozily on top of a soft quilt, beaming up at me with that painted smile and those shiny, black button eyes!
As I held her in my hands, the child in me was recreated and I reveled in the sight of her familiarity. Her little white apron adorned a classic, blue flowered dress; red and white stockings ended in black shoe-feet and a large loop of red yarn was the crowning glory on top of her head. She was exactly as I remembered: perfect!
Of course there were other things I didn’t notice at first glance. A faint, brown stain rimmed her mouth. Her red yarn hair was faded, worn and matted. The ribbon that fastened her apron was no more than a blue string. Ann’s bloomers had lost their elasticity and kept creeping down around her candy-stripe legs. (Poor thing!) The years of loving had taken their toll on her.
One thing about Ann has remained miraculously intact: the red heart on her chest. It still boldly reads “I Love You”. As a child, I loved to hunt for it under the folds of her dress to be sure it was still there. It was like a sweet secret between us that I could “find” anytime I wished. It never changed; it always read the same thing, “I love you”. And I loved Ann because she said it first.
Raggedy Ann reminds me of how God must see us - worn ragged by trying to be "enough" in a world of all things shiny and sophisticated. But God sees our imperfections as an invitation for His grace. He asks us to come to Him exactly as we are – stained faces and saggy bloomers – so that He can love us into the image of Christ.
And our hearts say, “I love You”, because He said it first.
We love him, because he first loved us.
1 John 4:19
