Childlike Trust?

Marilyn Appleby

One of today’s readings will be well known to many people. Jesus said: ’Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven’.

Little children are very trusting aren’t they? For example they trust their parents and other adults in their lives to return for them if they have to be left at nursery, childminder or school. Perhaps it is this trusting nature we could learn from them. In our case to trust in Jesus.

Little children are not only very trusting of others, they also copy, from a very early age, the behaviour of others! So it is in our interest to show them acceptable behaviour and attitudes rather than behaviours we may find difficult to reverse later on. When we are aware of this we can see how easy it could be to corrupt young minds, something we witness in some adults so often these days.

It is up to us to show little ones the ways of Jesus, to pray for them to become life-long followers and to help them to trust in Him always. 

Start children off on the way they should go,
and even when they are old they will not turn from it.
Proverbs 22:6