SCRIPTURE FOR TODAY
“Truly I tell you,” he said, “unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child—this one is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”
— Matthew 18:3-4 (CSB)
Read Matthew 18:3-4 in context →
The Faith of a Child
Some of the sweetest lessons in life have come not while sitting in a church pew or following an in-depth Bible Study.
Some of the sweetest lessons have come while sitting in a rocking chair with a baby in my arms.
A few weeks ago, I was rocking my baby boy to sleep while he drank his bottle. As I looked down at him, he smiled up at me.
He was perfectly content. He wanted for nothing and had not a worry in the world.
He wasn’t wondering where his next bottle would come from. He knew Mommy would feed him.
He wasn’t worried about his dirty diaper. He knew Mommy would change him.
He wasn’t wondering where he would sleep that night.
He was safe and sound in one of his favorite places.
His mommy’s arms.
And as his tiny fingers wrapped around mine, God spoke something so clearly to my heart:
This is what it means to trust Me.
Jesus tells His disciples in Matthew 18 that they must turn and become like little children.
I’ve read those words before. But holding my son that day made me think about them differently.
My little child is completely dependent upon his mommy and daddy.
Hudson can’t fill his own bottle.
He can’t change his own diaper.
He can’t tuck himself safely into bed.
He doesn’t have a backup plan tucked away somewhere in case Mommy and Daddy don’t come through.
He simply trusts.
And there is something incredibly humbling about realizing how God desires that same posture from us.
Because unlike my baby, I really like having a backup plan.
I like knowing what happens next.
I like knowing where the provision is going to come from, how the problem is going to be solved, and exactly how God plans to work everything out.
And when I can’t see those things?
That’s usually when worry and anxiety become the loudest.
But perhaps childlike faith isn’t having all the answers.
Perhaps it’s simply knowing and trusting the One who does.
In Matthew 6, Jesus speaks directly to our tendency to worry about the things we need.
Food.
Clothing.
Tomorrow.
The ordinary things that can consume an extraordinary amount of our thoughts.
And Jesus points His listeners toward His creation.
Look at the birds.
Look at the flowers.
Your Heavenly Father cares for them.
How much more does He care for you?
God’s provision doesn’t mean our lives will always look the way we expected them to. It doesn’t mean there won’t be seasons when money feels tight, the future feels uncertain, prayers seem unanswered, or we simply don’t understand what God is doing.
Childlike faith doesn’t deny those realities.
It simply refocuses our attention on the One holding us in the middle of them.
That afternoon, as I looked at my little boy, I saw so many reminders of His provision and His care.
He provides.
He comforts.
He gives us His Word.
And throughout ordinary days, He leaves little reminders of His goodness everywhere.
Flowers growing in the cracks of a sidewalk.
The beautifully painted streaks of the early morning sunrise or late evening sunset.
A verse we’ve read a hundred times that suddenly speaks directly into the season we’re walking through.
Little whispers throughout the day:
I see you.
I love you.
I’m here.
And suddenly, the anxiety and worry, the things competing constantly for my focus and my attention, quieted, replaced by His peace, His presence.
Nothing about my circumstances had necessarily changed.
But something in me had.
I don’t have to understand everything my Father is doing behind the scenes to know that He has me.
I can trust the One holding me, just as my infant trusts the one holding him.
And in that moment, as baby Hudsy smiled up at his mommy, I found myself smiling up at my Heavenly Father.
Because I remembered:
I am held, too.
Quiet Reflection:
What are you carrying today because you’re trying to figure out how God is going to provide instead of resting in Who God is?
Is there something you can place back into your Father’s hands today?
You don’t need to have tomorrow figured out. You can simply bring today to Him.
Let’s Pray:
Father,
Thank You for loving me as Your child. Thank You for the countless ways You care for me—both the ones I recognize and the ones I never even see.
Forgive me for the times I become so focused on figuring out what happens next that I forget Who is holding me right now.
Teach me to have childlike faith.
When I worry about provision, remind me that You are my Provider. When I feel uncertain about tomorrow, remind me that You are already there. And when I am tempted to carry everything myself, help me rest in Your arms instead.
Open my eyes to the little reminders of Your love all around me. And give me the kind of faith that looks up at You and says,
“I don’t know exactly what happens next, Father. But I know You. And I trust You.”
Amen.
CONTINUE IN SCRIPTURE:
Want to spend a little more time in God’s Word?
Become Like Little Children
Matthew 18:1–5 (CSB)
Do Not Worry
Matthew 6:25–34 (CSB)
Pull up a chair & stay awhile. ☕
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