When you think of somebody as “childlike”, what comes to mind?  Is it immaturity? Recklessness?  I look at the word “childlike” through the eyes of my two boys.  I see adventure, no fear, joy, peace, trust and open mindedness.    My boys are bold in the things they ask of me.   I may not always say “yes” to them, but they nevertheless continue to ask with boldness.   They have no doubt in their minds.   They ask questions and accept answers.   Of course Caleb (3 years old) asks the typical 3 year old question “why?”, but it’s his curiosity for the world that drives his constant questioning.  

I was reading in Luke chapter 10 today and Jesus is talking with the 72 messengers that he had previously sent out.  They returned and were filled with joy because of what the Lord did through them on their missions.    Jesus responds full of joy and praise and says “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.  Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.”

What Jesus was saying here is that everyone has equal access to God the Father through him.  We don’t come to Jesus through our strength or intellect or good looks, but through a childlike faith.   There are plenty more verses about having the faith of a child and I think what Jesus is trying to tell us is that trusting him doesn’t have to be a difficult or scary thing.   It just takes the faith of a child to say “Yes, Jesus, I need you in my life.”    Then, just as a child would do, we should trust and not have fear.

Are there any situations in your life where you know you’ve had to step out in childlike faith?

[image by teckie kev]

This story has been posted on a few blogs and I heard it on WGNR in Indy as well.  I thought it was pretty cool and a great story of faith.

Just watch the video and then think about how you would have handled this situation.