Faith like a Child

Matthew 18:3
And He [Jesus] said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."

My daughter, Violet, is almost two years old and for the past week, we have been taking walks around the neighborhood first thing in the morning. As we are putting her shoes on, she gets excited when I remind of the things we may see outside. She especially loves trucks, big rocks, airplanes, hot air balloons, helicopters, waterfalls, and trains. We have seen all these things on our walks, and everyday, we see trucks, big rocks, a waterfall (someone has this in their yard as a lawn ornament), and airplanes. She is filled with joy when she sees some of her favorite things and after nearly a week of walks, her excitement has not waned even though we see trucks, big rocks, a waterfall, and airplanes everyday. I am reminded of Jesus' words that unless we become like children, we will not enter the kingdom of heaven. I think it is all too easy for our faith to become stale and routine. We can have a tendency of reading Scripture without the intent of hearing from God, we can pray without expecting great things, and we are not overjoyed when someone begins their new found spiritual faith in Christ. My daughter reminded me that I need to continually come to Jesus with a child-like faith; to expect a fresh encounter with the Lord every single day, to pray with faith that could mountains, and the excitement of knowing someone who comes to know the Lord in an intimate way. I am thankful for my daughter's perspective and pray that she never loses the excitement she receives when seeing an airplane flying above.