Adventures in Missions believes in community.  This semester I live with:

A married couple, their 2-year-old, their 4-month-old baby and 5 twenty-somethings. 

It's an adventure on a daily basis from coordinating rides to the office to navigating the life-change that comes when you're two and you go from sleeping in your parents' room to your own bedroom.  That transition is really not as easy or as fun as it sounds.

Don't tell the others, but my favorite roommate right now is the 2-year-old. His name is Maxi and he is teaching me the beauty of being known.  All of last semester, I believed that he had no concept of who I was, until a family dinner when he was able to point to each of the girls living there when prompted with their names.  

It was mind-blowing.

Now, this semester, we have reached a whole new level of friendship.  He actually calls me by name...OK, well, at least a version of my name that he expects me to respond to.  It's great.  We have conversations and have even developed an open-door policy with each other.  His idea, not mine.  He even decided to communicate this to me one morning.  I had gone to the bathroom and headed for my room with the intention of going back to sleep when suddenly, the bedroom door flew open.  He was quite proud of himself and so excited to have found me that I couldn't even be mad at him about the hour.  

How wonderful it is to be known and sought after. 

Right?  This naturally got me thinking about my relationship with Jesus.  I feel so joyful every time Maxi says my name, seeks me out, or wants my attention for whatever reason. He knows me and desires to be around me now.  It feels incredibly rewarding that the time I have spent in his world has made a difference.  I think I'm getting a taste of how Jesus feels when we decide to seek after Him.  The idea that He delights in us has never been quite as clear as it has been with my ever-developing relationship with Maxi.

My roommate is two.  He is the best.  Life is good.