WFW for October 26: Unless you have the faith of a child...

Matthew 19:14 Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."

Mark 10:15 "I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it."

There are several passages in the Bible where it is mentioned that Heaven belongs to those who are like children. What does that mean? Does that mean we are to behave like children? Children often are extremely selfish, "MINE!", or throw temper tantrums when we tell them, "No!". Obviously those are not Godly qualities, or qualities at all, that we are to mirror.

So what then is God saying? Children have the greatest ability to completely trust and have unwavering faith and belief in something. Have you ever seen the face of a child on Christmas morning, convinced that Santa has been there the night before? Nothing you could say at that point could ever get them to believe otherwise. Have you ever seen a child pray with all their heart and put everything they have into that prayer? Eyes squinched up, hands folded tightly and the fervent requests that they send to God with the full and utmost belief that God is going to answer their prayer?

Ah, now you have an idea of what it means to be "like a little child". Unwavering belief and faith that the impossible is real, that God answers prayers, the uncompromising love that they have for their mommy and daddy and all things wonderful in their eyes.

If we can’t fully believe that God is going to do what He says He will, if we don’t have faith that He is really, truly real and that we are saved, by Grace, through Faith, then we are as lost as one who has let go of the innocence of their youth. When we lose the purity of our hearts to worldly pursuits and see things through the world's eyes instead of God's eyes, we no longer have the faith of a child. Faith the size of the mustard seed can move mountains. Do you know the size of a mustard seed? It’s about ●<= that big...if even that big. Yet, how many of us truly have even that tiny amount of true faith?

Children are marvelous and miraculous in their faith. My mom still tells the story of when I was about 5 and we were driving home in a horrible rainstorm. It was raining so hard that you couldn’t really hear each other speak for the din of the rain pounding the small car and forget even trying to see more than 10 feet in front of you. To top it off, it was rush hour traffic on a very busy major thoroughfare. My mom says that I suddenly closed my eyes and (yell) prayed (to be heard over the noise, I guess), "Dear God, please make the rain stop. In Jesus' Name, Amen". No sooner had I said "Amen", then the rain immediately stopped. Not a single drop more fell from the sky and we made it home safely.

Oh, to have that pure faith again! To trust absolutely that God will take care of us, no matter how big or how small. That’s why I have prayed over and for my two precious children since before they were even born, that they would accept Christ at an early age and stay firmly on that path that He has set before them. My daughter accepted Christ just 3 days shy of her 5th birthday. My son, 23 months, is not old enough to truly understand, but sometimes when we go outside, he will point up to the sky and say, "God".

Unless we believe in God like and have the faith of a child, we can never enter into Heaven because then we rely on outside forces, people, actions, etc. to get us there instead of the one thing that can actually get us there. The one thing that seems improbable and impossible, but is very real and did happen...Christ’s death on the cross for the sins of the world. Your sins. My sins. All sins past, present and future. Unless we absolutely and completely believe and have faith that His death and resurrection alone is enough for the payment of our sins, then we are lost indeed.

The faith of a child is a beautiful...and necessary thing for everyone to have. Even grown ups.

For other Word Filled Wednesdays please visit the Internet Café Devotions or drop by “The WFW portion of the Internet Cafe” to find out more about how to participate in Word Filled Wednesdays.