The other day I had a strange sensation in my chest (probably heart burn) that carried on so long I began to worry. I assumed it was nothing, but had a hard time convincing myself since I hadn't had the feeling before. I asked myself: what would you say to one of your children if they complained of this pain? I knew immediately, of course, since I often deal with little ouchies from all of my children. I would say: Everything is fine. You will be okay.
Then this bible verse came to mind from Mark 10:15 (and whether you read the bible or not or even like it or not, you may well know this scripture). Mark remembers Jesus saying "Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it."
I thought on those two sentences, the one from the bible and the one I would tell my children. What does it mean to receive something as a little child? When my children are hurt and I tell them, "everything will be okay," they do something amazing. They believe me. They believe me before the cut heals or the bruise vanishes--even before the pain goes away. Sometimes, they must believe me about hurts they have never experienced before (like when our son badly damaged the skin of his face while sledding or when my daughter fell off her bicycle for the first time).
As a matter of fact, children must constantly believe adults' words without proof or evidence. If we tell them some food is "good for you," if we say, "Santa is coming," if we assure them someone who has gone away will be back.
The basic ability to believe without seeing is, in fact, faith. And the awesome lesson we can learn from children is that believing without seeing is not a fool's game, but a wise action.
Imagine a parent telling you, "everything will be okay." Imagine that this parent is the best version of a mother and a father, divine, all-loving and all knowing. If we have the heart of a child, we trust these words, without seeing the evidence--yet--and we strengthen our faith-muscle. When we do this, we are in the kingdom of God.
So, naturally, as I thought on these ideas, the pain in my chest subsided. Better still, I felt loved. What other ways do children lead us into that place of Agape (divine love)?
Rev. Sam Wilde
