Childlike Faith

I witnessed the following happenstance this week:

A line of preschool children numbering twenty or so.
Three adults: one in front, one in the middle, one in back.
One rope.

Each child held onto the rope with one hand as their leader navigated them through the busy
college campus and across the street.
The rope kept them all together.
The adult at the front kept them on track.

So I stared at this cute situation for a moment, smiling.
It was quite adorable.
I considered simply appreciating its cuteness and going about my day.
But, I could not.
For there was more to what I was looking at than a cute line of children holding onto a rope.

You see, those children represent you and me.
And that leader...is God, our perfect leader.

The thing about the children is that they had no idea where they were going.
A lot of them probably couldn't even see the leader in the front or which direction she was turning.
But they held onto that rope.
And where the leader went, they followed.
It was as simple as that.

If only we made it that simple in our own lives.
Follow where God leads.
That simple.

I didn't see any of the three year olds step out of line saying,
"Now wait a minute, are you sure this is the way we are supposed to be going? I really think that way would be a better choice for all of us."

None of them shouted up to leader,
"Turn left up here! I know what I'm doing! In fact, I probably have a better grasp of this route than you do."

And still, none of the children let go of the rope and went off on their own path, seeing what they could accomplish on their own.

You see, those chidren knew where they needed to be. They needed to stay as close to their leader as possible. They needed to hold onto that rope and go where the leader went. They knew her way was the safest way. They knew that if they wandered from their leader, they could be hurt or lost or killed. They were very aware of the crazy, dangerous things in the world around them that they simply did not have the ability to handle on their own. They trusted that she wasn't going to lead them into anything they wouldn't be able to cross. They had faith that their leader knew exactly where she was going and precisely the path they were going to take.

Now, I doubt they asked her for the road map ahead of time. I don't think they sat at leader's feet and begged her to tell them exactly which roads they were going to cross. It's quite possible they weren't even aware of their destination.
All that mattered was that they were holding onto that rope.
And they knew that at the front of that rope was a leader who was going to take them where they needed to be.
They didn't question it. They didn't take thier own paths. They didn't beg for the directions the entire time.
In fact, they were all quite content hopping along on a beautiful autumn day, enjoying each other's company and loving to see all of the birds and falling leaves and passing students. They were just enjoying life, following the one who knew the way.

And the craziest part was, when one child tripped and fell down, being left behind, the entire line stopped and helped her up to her feet again. They then began skipping along in their line together. I think that's what the Body of Christ is all about. We don't leave anyone behind.
None of those children said, "Oh, you tripped and fell. Good luck getting up and finding us again. You're probably too far gone now for us to help you up anyway."
That would be absurd!

I could go through and explain all of these analogies. But, my guess is that you get it. My guess is that you've gotten it all along.

 "Some people were bringing little children to Him so He might touch them, but His disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw it, He was indignant and said to them, "Let the little children come to Me. Don't stop them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I assure you: Whoever does not welcome the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." After taking them in His arms, He laid His hands on them and blessed them.
Mark 10:13-16

"Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see." Hebrews 11:1