From the Eyes of Innocence

Matthew 19:13-15, "Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” And he laid his hands on them and went away"

In the eyes of a child, everything is simple. Until the world corrupts them, their Love is unconditional, their views are fresh and positive and they have the Heaven sent perspective of Life not death. I wrote a while back that as adults we should try to claim a small portion of our childhood, by learning from our children. Imagine how different we would be and how we would effect the world around us. We are told in the scripture above that "such belongs to the Kingdom of Heaven." The children are after Gods own heart, therefore we should learn a lesson from our children to if nothing else to praise God.

By tapping into our childlike heart we would praise Gods Kingdom so very much. We would no longer be selfish, unkind or harsh. We would be giving, selfless and kind as the is the God given nature of children. God designed us to be His children, so he expects us to model ourselves after the inspiration of a child's Love and their  outlook on life. The see innocence and only WE can corrupt that.

As parents we are commanded as in Proverbs 22:6 ( Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.) to teach our children in the ways of God. In the rest of Proverbs 22 the guidelines are set to teach them humility, giving spirit, moral character and to Love no matter what. We are to help them avoid, treachery, mockery, foolishness and evil. As a father it is my responsibility to do this in my every day actions.

I met two different people this week while writing from my office at McDonalds. The first was a lady who was separated and had two children, a boy and a girl both under 7. During her sharing her testimony she advised that her husband has abandoned the family due to her son needing special attention for medical issues and the comfort of another women. At one point the boy came in and told his mother that he wanted his Daddy back so he could play on the play ground. He went back to playing and she shared her prayers were the same as her sons. She did not care he had abandoned her and her children. She knew they needed him more than she did.

The next the role was reversed and it was a father and a little girl about my daughters age. His wife had been hooked on drugs and then turned to prostitution to support her habit. He also told me he just wanted his wife back, because his daughter needed her mommy. I saw his inner child and his attempt to walk in the light and Love his wife no matter what.

In my case, I have in a sense abandoned my daughter with my actions. I made choices that placed my daughter, who is innocent in all this, in a position she does not deserve. I pray that God will allow her to see past the worldly thoughts and see Love. Around Fathers day, I had to ask my daughter for her forgiveness about an issue and she willingly gave it and didn't even hesitate. She still has that Godly ideal that Love trumps all things (1 Corinthians 16:14, "Let everything you do be done in love"). As in the stories above each one of those parents also tapped into those ideas by watching their children. So as a father I will, from a distance continue to develop this view in my daughter as well as take lessons from her in how to Love others.

God wants us to Love like children (John 13:34, I give you a new commandment: that you should love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you too should love one another.), while walking and growing in His ways. Our children were not here just to teach, but to remind us what how we are required to act if we choose to walk like Christ. We are to promote life, humility, unconditional Love. If we corrupt our child in the ways of the world with our worldly attitudes and views, then we are surely to parish in the fires of Hell. I just pray that given my circumstances I can promote the Godly ways in my daughter and still steer her from the worldly corruption.

Lets Pray: Father God, we come to you today and ask for forgiveness. Lord we come to you with humble hearts Lord and ask you for the wisdom to look at the world from a child's eyes. Lord we beg for you to remove the worldly blinders we have on and replace them with the goggles of Love that a child sees through. Father there are many different circumstances in which the children of our world do not know a parent. Lord we pray you help those children's prayers be answered. Father we know you want us to guide our children as well as learn from them too. Father i implore you to stamp the views of our children into each of our hearts so that we may see the world and those around it as they do. Father we Thank You for all that You do in our lives, in Jesus name...AMEN.