Born into Wonder
“Unless you turn and become like children”
What does it take to be like a child? To be like a kid? In truth, it’s easy to romanticize children. When you think of the children that Jesus picks up, it’s very bucolic - a perfect child on the perfect lap of a perfect Lord. But kids aren’t like that most of the time.
Most of the time, kids are rowdy and rambunctious and creative and messy. Sometimes they’re teachable, sometimes they’re not. Sometimes they’re sweet, sometimes they’re not. They lie when it suits them, and they are blunt - sometimes even rude.
Kids are… well… Kids.
They expect to be scolded. They expect to be taught. They expect to encounter boundaries when they push the limits. And if there’s one thing that you can expect when you’re around kids, it’s QUESTIONS. Kids are great at asking questions.
Kids LOVE questions. The tougher, the better - Why did that dog bark? What does that word mean? How long til we get there? Where do babies come from? How come she gets the front seat? Did you see that? Why does their house smell funny? How come he got new legos? Can I have new legos? Why not? Why does your face look like that? I could list the questions I’ve heard for WEEKS. Here’s the crux:
Kids aren’t afraid to admit that they don’t have answers.
They don’t expect to know everything. They’re totally comfortable being curious. They ask for help, and they expect someone to help them.
While it’s probably impossible to grasp all that Jesus infuses into this Gospel, I think He’s inviting us to ask Him questions like kids do - and to wonder like kids do. Kids love to ask questions because they love to learn - and so do we. It’s infused into our humanity.
We’re meant to wonder.
We were born into wonder. We’re meant to live both expressions of wonder - both the noun and the verb: to be curious and to allow ourselves to experience the feeling of surprise and admiration at something beautiful, unexpected, unfamiliar, or inexplicable.
We’re meant to ask, “Lord, what are You up to?” “What are you trying to teach me?” “Where are you going with that?” “What do You want from me in this moment?” “How can I love You better?” “Where do I need to grow?” “What’s around the next corner?” And then, we’re meant to wonder at His responses.
We’re meant to be fascinated by God.
God is so infinite, so vast, so good - there’s always something new in Him. There’s always something new to discover, a new revelation around every corner. Our God doesn’t change, but our understanding of Him does. His mercies are new every morning, and His love is fresh in every moment.
We can truly wonder at His beauty - the beauty of His heart, the beauty of His goodness, the beauty of His love, the beauty of His victory. All of it. It’s too wonderful to comprehend. All that He’s done for me. All that He’s done for us. May we never lose our wonder, Lord.
Father,
We love You. Thank You for welcoming us into Your family.
Father, I ask that You would teach us how to wonder - how to stand in awe of You, to be mystified by Your goodness and Your crazy love. Teach us to be children before You. Teach us how to ask good questions and hear Your voice.
Remind us to expect Your power to show.
You are so good to us. Thank You for generous love. Thank You for Your beauty and Your goodness.
We love You, God.