a child

I have followed Jesus since I was a little girl.  I responded to His call on my heart with all the genuineness of a child looking up into the loving eyes and outstretched arms of a Father, the same way we all do.  The outline of my heart was forever marked by the truth that I was loved right to the cross.  That decision, by miles the most significant one of my life, was sweet and pure and thoughtful, fierce in that childlike way, and perfectly sincere. 

Matthew 19:14 is not a stretch to understand. 

‘Jesus said, "Let the children come to me and do not stop them, because the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."’  Of course the Kingdom of heaven belongs to the children.  They wholeheartedly believe.  They own the purest of smiles, boundless joy, a complete lack of artifice, and the limitless capacity to love. 

It needs to be said here that if you are involved in ministry to children or youth, yours is the holiest of callings.  Whether you are a sweet faith-filled mother who has forgotten what it is like to sleep through the night, or a committed saint that has given your Sunday mornings or weekday evenings to generations of kids, be encouraged.  Yours is not a lesser-than position, or behind-the-scenes work.  You are on the front lines, and what you do couldn’t be more valuable or more significant. 

This week I visited a church I have never been to before.  The sermon was thought provoking and the speaker quite attractive (okay, it was my husband). The worship leader was gracious and gifted; the people warm and welcoming.  We were blessed by our time with them.  My favorite part of the church service, however, came from a handful of a little boy who was completely unrestrained in his worship.  He danced, and twirled and rolled on the floor.  Had he been given a chance, you just know he would have tried his hand at the drums!  I loved it.  His mother was no doubt tired and desperate for the moment they would leave for children’s church (I remember that well).  Yet, I couldn’t help but think I had just glimpsed what our worship might be like in heaven.

Now, I do imagine there will be a profound reverence, awe and sacredness to our worship.  But I believe there will also be unrestrained joy as we abandon ourselves to the glory of the Lamb seated on the throne, the only one who is “worthy to receive glory and honor and power.” (Rev 4:11)

The worship we are part of on Sundays is simply and fully for an audience of One.  What we do in these moments trains our hearts for an eternity with Him.

  

‘Then he said to them, "I can guarantee this truth: Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”’ Matthew 18:3

This is a harder verse for many of us. Having a childlike faith is not an immature faith.  Instead it is a beautiful picture of how to live out what we believe in full surrender to the one who made us and knows us and loves us best.  This ‘becoming like little children’, calls us to a humble, honest and authentic belief that transforms our living.  It calls us to embrace each day with joyful anticipation, barrelling into it 'all in', loving hard, forgiving easy. It is a faith fully sincere and dependent on Jesus.  

Let's go ahead and admit it: What comes so naturally to a child has been squeezed out of many of us by the rawness of life until we are stiff and sore from our laziness, far too hesitant in our acceptance of others, too careful with our hearts, and too stingy with our praise. 

The years have coloured my faith. The childlike trust from my youth has been tried and tested.  Walking with Jesus has filled in the outline with rich hues born of God’s faithfulness, answered prayer and His constant presence.  I know that my redeemer lives.  I know that one day I will follow him straight into heaven and will see him face to face. (Job 19:25)  And I know that until then that I will never be outside of his grasp. I am training my heart for eternity.  I need the reminder to live in unbroken praise and in unrestrained worship.  I need the lessons of a child.

just being boys in Salquil, Guatemala

sweet girls in Ecuador

joyful 'just because' in Rwanda