Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.

Jesus says that the kingdom of heaven belongs to those like children, so What does it mean to be like a child? First I would suggest it is trusting. A child depends totally on its parents for everything. If they are good parents then the child will trust completely in their authority, and word. Well god is the best parent ever, and as such his authority and word should be trusted completely.

Second I would argue that it means to be innocent. To be not distracted by the lure of worldly things, but instead to marvel at gods creation. If you give a small boy an expensive video game system versus a large cardboard box, which of the two will likely give more hours of play time. A child’s imagination is boundless, and thus it revels in the beauty and goodness of the world around us. Adults tend to focus on their bills, and the news, and the terrible things of this world and get bogged down by it. If you allow a happy child to just play, you will see a truly wonderful thing, and that is what god wants for us all, to revel in the creation that god has given us, and to not worry about the sinners and sin around us.

Finally I think (being a child) means to love (and feel love) without reserve. Children want to hug, and give kisses, and they want to feel that love in return. Adults tend to be very reserved, and guarded in whom they love, God wants us to love each other without reserve, and to bask in the love He has for us and what we share with each other.

To be a child is so foreign to so many of us adults, that we often forget, that there is so much good in the world, and that the lord is so good that all he really wants for us its to revel in that, and to feel the love, and then to give love back to all those in return. I feel like this is the plan that god has waiting for us in heaven, and I for one cant wait.

But we have so much work to do before then. We have to stop sinning, we have to love our neighbors, even when they drive us nuts, and we have to stay close to the sacraments, ask for forgiveness, and then as Jesus said, go and sin no more. It is a simple formula, but it is so very, very hard to live out. But with God’s grace it can be done through trust, love and an innocent faith. It is truly a miracle that the God of the universe loves us this much, the least we can do is to behave in the way that He wants us to.

Oh, lord, give me the grace to love you like a child, to trust in our goodness, and to innocently revel, in the gifts and wonder you have bestowed on us and this world. We do not deserve you, but we are so very, very grateful for you.