DATE POSTED Thursday, 2022-03-24
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: Luke 18:16-17 
TRANSLATION: The Living Bible (TLB)

BIBLE TEXT: 16-17 Then Jesus called the children over to him and said to the disciples, “Let the little children come to me! Never send them away! For the Kingdom of God belongs to men who have hearts as trusting as these little children’s. And anyone who doesn’t have their kind of faith will never get within the Kingdom’s gates.”

APPLICATION: It is so challenging for a group of adults to sit in a room and come to a unanimous decision. Even more challenging for a group working on a project and agreeing to accomplish the necessary tasks in unity.

• Jesus pointed out a few qualities that He recognized in children that, He felt are necessary even in adults. I believe we need to have a closer look at these:
  • Trust: When our child was very young, we were told that it was the best time to teach her to swim, because she had not built up the fear of the water yet. I believe she had undeniable faith in her mom and the teacher and that they were keeping a very attentive and caring eye on her. Put a child on a wall and tell them to jump to you, and generally they will jump without a second thought, because they trust their mom or dad, who’s asking them to jump. You tell a child about God, and although, like us, they have never seen God, they are convinced that God is always there watching over them. Listening to a child’s prayer will blow you away, because you could easily tell how much trust they have developed in God.
  • Faith: Although very similar to trust, a child’s faith seems to never waiver or fail – until they are old enough to experience the weakness of our faith! Think about this, we tell children about God before they could ever talk back to us, and they have faith to believe it, even though they have never seen Him. We tell them about Santa, and every Christmas they are excited with anticipation about him coming. Adults experience the healing touch of the Master; the safety of His protection; the wisdom of His guidance; and still we waiver in our faith when put to the test. Why?
  • Love: A child’s love is innocent and unconditional. When someone shows love to an adult, we tend to wonder why, or we try to discover what their ulterior motive might be. Jesus loves us in spite of what we may have done, or who we have become. We tend to doubt when we experience that kind of love. How can we possibly humble ourselves to believe that God sent His only Son to die on a cross at Calvary so that our sins might be forgiven?

So many earthly doubts have filled our minds that it is almost impossible to believe that we could, and should, assume the characteristics of a child. But friends, we sing hymns and we hear Bible teachers and preachers say it often: have faith in God. This means that: We should easily believe that God exists, even though we have never seen Him; We should easily believe that heaven is real, even though we have never seen it; We should always believe that God loves us because He said over and over again in His Word that His love has no boundaries and that His very character forms the meaning of’LOVE’. When we approach God with things we think are impossible, we tend to believe that it is impossible with Him also. Friends, my God is the One who parted the waters of the Red Sea and the waters of the Jordan River so that His people could march across on dry land! What is it again that you feel He cannot handle for you? Is your faith where it needs to be? Draw close to God, and He will draw close to you dear friends.

BLESSING(S) NOTED: To accept the love, gifts and miracles of God, just have the faith of a little child! Sounds easy enough, right?

PRAYER: Father God, Creator of heaven and earth, all-powerful and almighty in strength and power, we exalt You and we lift up Your name on high. We come before You with thanksgiving, knowing that we serve an awesome God who loves and cares for His children. Please continue to supply our needs, so that our faith might be strengthened and secure in You Lord. Please help us to do away with adult fears and doubts and assume the characteristics of a child, so that our faith may increase and our relationship with You might be inseparable. There are so many ups and downs in life today, but deep inside we know that all things are possible with God. Lord we need You every day and in every circumstance. We need You every hour dear Lord. Thank You for Your faithfulness and love. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog might indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. You may also visit me on Spotify and listen to Nuggets while you’re out and about. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!