Childlike Faith

Acceptance, Faith and Trust.

This past week I was in Denver, leading a clinic for pastors from five states – Colorado to California.

There was a Target across the street from the hotel, and so it naturally hypnotized me into going inside and spending about $35. As I was waiting in the checkout line, the lady in front of me pointed to a little boy – about five or so – sitting alone on a bench. She said, “I have been watching him for several minutes, and I’m not sure there’s an adult with him.” This got my attention, the clerk’s attention, and the attention of a few others. A store manager was called. As I checked out, I drifted closer to the adults who gathered around the little boy.

The kind store manager was asking him his name, asking if he was lost, and the little boy sat there perfectly calm. He simply said, “I’m waiting on my dad; he said he would be right back.” Is he in the store? Is he in the restroom? Where is your dad? The little boy said, “I don’t know where he is, but he said he will be right back and for me to wait.” And, so he was patiently waiting. So trusting of his dad, I believe he would have been whistling, too, had his dad asked him to whistle while waiting.

Just as the manager was about to call the police, the little boy’s dad arrived. Obviously, he met a lynch mob with two dozen scolding eyes, a few tough questions, and reminders that this is not a safe world.

Most of the people left that quick scene thinking about the lunacy of the dad. I left thinking about the faith of the little boy. His words made an impression on me: “I’m waiting on my dad; he said he would be right back.”

Faith is action without understanding. 

That’s what the little boy had – faith in his dad. To his core, he knew his dad would be back. He didn't know where his dad went or his dad's motivation, but he trusted what he didn't know and what his dad had told him. He had faith. The world around the little boy didn't share his faith, but the boy knew all was well because he knew his dad. And, he trusted his dad. And, he had faith in his dad. And, while the scene did not make sense to all of us – to the little boy it all made perfect sense, especially when the dad showed up.

This is a metaphor for our relationship with God made possible by faith in Jesus. 

Like the little boy, we say, "Lord, I don’t understand everything in The Bible, I can’t see you when I pray or hear your audible respond to my prayers, and it blows my mind to think that a feeble-minded human like me can communicate with you as the sovereign Lord of the Universe. And, yet, you tell me that you love me, and I have faith that you do.You tell me not to be afraid of yesterday, today and tomorrow because you will be with me until the end of the age, and I faith that you are there. You tell me that you have a plan for me, and I can believe that you do. My questions about life often outnumber the answers, Lord, but you tell me to wait on you and everything will become clear, and so I have faith in that, too."

That's exactly how each of us approaches the Lord. Right? No, we don't. Few of us are consistent in that childlike approach.

Something happens between childhood and adulthood. We are born totally dependent on others and so we develop faith that our needs will be met, we will be protected and we will be loved. We don't fully understand where and how it comes from, but we have faith that it is provided. But, as we age and mature, we become more self-reliant and independent. The world teaches and forces us to do so. We realize that we can do better for ourselves than others can do for us. We are hurt by the fickle nature of humanity. We lose faith in people, and that causes us to lose faith in God. We bring God down to our human level and ask human questions like, "Why did you let this happen?" or "Where were you?" We forget that God is supernatural; we are not. Our childhood faith is replaced by a jaded, adulthood faith.

As a little boy, before age 10, I was feeling conviction of the Holy Spirit to commit my life to Jesus. I could not escape it. Every chapter of my life – family, friends, church – everything was pointing me back to Jesus, and knowing Him as my Savior. But, I was scared; I was hesitant. The public profession, the baptism – it all paralyzed me.

Each summer, our family attended a few evening services at the Holbrook Campmeeting, which was a United Methodist event but attended by a lot of Baptists and Pentecostals. Services three times each day culminated in that evening service in the center of a circle of cabins. Services were conducted in an outdoor arbor with sawdust floor, old wooden pews, and funeral home fans because there was no air conditioning.

I can’t remember the name of the preacher on that hot summer night, but I remember the Scripture that he preached – Luke 18:15-17: “One day some parents brought their little children to Jesus so he could touch them and bless them, but the disciples told the parents not to bother Jesus. Then Jesus called for the children and said to the disciples, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I assure you anyone who doesn’t have their kind of faith will never get into the Kingdom of God.”

As the preacher finished, I just went to pieces. I thought God Almighty was about the punish my parents for my failure and nervousness about publicly acknowledging Jesus. My mama helped me understand that I had missed the message; that despite all of my fear and questions, I needed to simply let go and accept the salvation from sin offered through Jesus. Childlike faith - stepping into Jesus with lots of questions.

The faith of a child. Accepting the helplessness of the world, and the reality that God reigns over all of it. Faith that many of my questions will not be answered until I get to heaven, but I will trust completely in God's provision through Scripture. And, like a little boy in Target, I will have a quiet confidence that someone much larger and greater than me - God - is in control.

I am honored and humbled that people come to me with questions, for prayer, and with concerns over the problems of this world. And, what I try to do is reach in beyond the problem to the question of childlike faith. Where are you with Jesus? Do you believe in what Scripture tell us - not to worry, focus on others, and trust in Jesus? So many times, we as believers, focus on the problems and the root of our problem is a lack of childlike faith. If we had a child's faith, the swirl around us would not sting as badly because we would know - to the core of our being - that God is in control and all things work to His glory. 

Where are you? Please don't delay conversations about your faith journey or taking that journey to the next level. God has something He wants you to do and it's something that only you can do. And, He is waiting on you to step up with a childlike faith - not understanding and not knowing - to advance His Kingdom on Earth.