Like a Child

Another lesson I learned came to me when I was exercising one day. (I know - such a random time!)

Right in the middle of my work out, this verse popped into my head:

"I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."

(Spoken by Jesus & can be found in Matthew 18:3)

In the past, I've heard this verse many times, mostly in talking about approaching God as a child - pure and innocent. This time, however, I got to thinking about children - how they behave, things they do & say. (Now, I don't have kids, so I'm not going to say I'm the expert on this, but I have been around small kids in one situation or another all of my life, so I've picked up on a few things.)

The first thing I thought about is that kids, especially really young kids, are very inquisitive & are always asking "why". I don't think they are constantly asking "why" just to annoy whoever it is they are with at the moment. They're asking "why" because they want to know something new; they want to learn, and asking "why" is how they learn & how they grow.

So, how does this apply to approaching God as a child? We, like children, should be constantly asking "why", seeking to know more & to learn more. As a child goes to their parent, we should go to God, our Father, to learn more by spending time in His word and by just spending time with Him.

Following this thought of the constant "why", I thought, sometimes after the 500th "why" of the day, the only answer left is "because." ("Because" is sometimes followed by "I'm the mom/dad & I said so.") From a child's perspective (because I'm not a parent), "because" can be frustrating! You just want to know an answer. 

Why is "because" from a parent acceptable? Because that parent loves you unconditionally & only ever wants what is best for you. They aren't saying "because" just because they can or to hurt or frustrate you. They are saying it because they don't want you to get hurt & only want good things for you. (This lesson may have taken me so long to learn because I'm still a child & not yet a parent!)

So, what happens when, as children sometimes do, we hear "because" from Father God? We need to know that "because" is good enough. Why? Because, even more than our parents do, God loves us unconditionally. He only wants good for us. He's not out to get us or to see how much we can put up with. He has a plan for each one of us & knows what is to come. That is why "because" is good enough.

When you're only hearing "because", know that it's all you need to hear at that moment because God loves you & is always with you. It's enough.