Devotional thoughts on Luke 18:15-17; Mark 10:16

By Jen Dunning

Children have amazing faith and trust. The little boy who wants to be pushed higher on the swing because he knows Mommy won’t let him fall. A little girl who jumps into the pool without hesitation toward her Daddy because she knows she is safe in his arms. Children run carefree in the park because they know their parents are always watching. Unfortunately, as we get older, that childlike faith starts to diminish.

Are you familiar with the words of Jesus in Luke 18:16, 17? “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”

Why do we change so much? Why do we trust less and proceed through life with more caution and hesitation, especially when we know we are connected to the one true God? As we progress in our Christianity and allegedly mature in our faith, we seem to lose the childlike innocence of it. How do we get it back?

• Crumble the Walls—As time passes we experience hurt, broken trust, and disappointments that cause us to put up walls to protect ourselves. Trusting God with everything includes the things we have safely hidden behind the walls. Crumble those walls!

• Humble the Heart—Pride and arrogance keep us from living in God’s greatness and convince us we are living on our own. Be willing to live with unanswered questions and trust in God’s goodness—that will keep us humble.

• Love Largely—Children love unconditionally and trust the good in others. Adults are guarded and love more gradually over time. We don’t have to earn God’s love, so why do we make others work to earn ours?

• Forgive Further—As adults it is easier to hold on to hurts because we believe it protects us. Kids often offer up forgiveness before we even ask. God has told us to forgive the way he has forgiven us, which is before we even asked.

Take your faith back to the basics. Crumble the Walls of fear and stay humble in God’s goodness. Move outside your comfort zone to offer large love to others and forgive further than you think you can. Recapture a childlike faith and enter the kingdom of God your Father.

Jen Dunning and her husband, Anthony, and their two daughters, Natalie and Brynn, live in Katy, Texas, where she is the director of Pre-Teen Ministry at Current—a Christian Church.