The Beauty of Childlike Faith
I had an experience with my four-year-old son recently that taught me a tremendous amount about faith.
It was later than I had planned bedtime to be. We were very close to getting into bed with our bedtime routine done, when my son turned to me and said, “My Lego piece is missing.”
I hurriedly answered that we would find it in the morning. He would not be deterred. “Mama, I need it, or I can’t go to sleep.”
I sighed deeply and barked, “Where did you last have it?”
“Right here,” he answered, pointing to his bedside. “It must have fallen on the floor.”
The floor was covered in books, toys, and other debris from an evening of playing that I hadn’t had time to tidy away. It was hopeless to try and find one little piece of Lego. Again, I said we would find it in the morning. My son turned to me and, with determination etched into his little face, said, “If we pray to Jesus, we will find it!” I was taken aback by his powerful declaration but impressed at the same time.
My four-year-old had more presence of mind than I had as he knew, not hoped but knew, that if he prayed, Jesus would help him find it. So, he prayed to Jesus to find his piece. Despite the prayer of an innocent and precious child of God, I still doubted. I searched for a moment then, humbled by his faith and ashamed of the lack of my own, said my own silent prayer that my Father in Heaven would help me. This moment would be a precious faith-builder in my son’s life that he could look back on, and I could not fail.
A few moments passed, and just as my search seemed hopeless, I lifted a book, and there was the piece underneath. A wave of relief and gratitude filled my heart. My little boy turned to me and said, his face beaming with pride, “See, I told you!” I was humbled by my precious son and his amazing faith.
Despite the many times we’ve spoken of faith, I am never sure how much my children listen. Sometimes family home evenings seem like a waste of time. It has been almost a year since my son has attended primary, and sometimes I wonder how will he ever develop his testimony with such a key piece of the puzzle missing? This experience showed me that our example touches our children, and they do hear the words we teach them. I am so grateful for the Come Follow Me programme to fill in the gap in the puzzle as we focus more on what happens in the home and not just at church. Each precious experience with our children, where we call on the Lord, is an opportunity to build our child’s tower of faith so that it is solid and immoveable.
Image of boy: (Sister Hinkle is his mother and has given full permission to use his image)