“God talks to me,” my nine-year-old grandson said to me when I found him sitting by himself on the playground at school. As an adult, I admit that I had some questions about what he meant. Did God really speak to children, or was this child imagining it?

In this passage, Jesus tells his disciples that the kingdom of God belongs to children! In a society that did not value children and where disciples would try to keep them away from Jesus for fear that they would “bother” him, this was a remarkable comment.

What is it about children that actually qualifies them to be part of God’s kingdom, perhaps more than adults? I believe that it is their weakness and dependence as well as their ability to believe in God and open up their hearts to his presence.

Because of this, children are God’s best examples of how to live the Christian faith. In fact, Jesus said that if we do not humble ourselves and become like a little child, we will not be able to enter the kingdom of God at all!

Does God speak to you? If not, do you need to humble yourself as a little child to enter God’s kingdom today? And if it has been awhile since you heard God’s voice, perhaps it’s time to come to him as a child and simply sit on his lap. Don’t let anyone tell you that you are not good enough. He will not turn you away!

Father God, I come as a child today, wanting to hear your voice and to know that you love me more than I can understand. Help me to ignore all of the distractions of my day for at least a few minutes and to remember that I can entrust everything to you. Amen.

Go Deeper — In what way can you be more “childlike” when it comes to your faith?



Tags: The Gospel of Luke Luke 18
Photo Credit: Bruno van der Kraan