Casandra Martin

We are having fun today. A little friend has come over to play. He makes us laugh while we sing, growl like lions, hunt for dinosaurs, and play trains. In loving him, we have been impressed again with the profound truths learned at the feet of a little child.

Several times already this afternoon, our three-year old friend has said, “Let me tell you a story…” Each time he does, we grin. We love his imagination. We delight in the way he tells us what is on his mind. We smile at how our hearts are interconnected. But we grin because he sounds just like his daddy.

Children are amazing recorders of the way we act and speak. It doesn’t take long to discover our attitudes, priorities, and sense of God echoing in the voices of the little ones who share our lives. They teach us that our words and actions have an impact far deeper than we might have imagined. They help us see the world through new eyes as we reexamine what our choices might look like from their perspective.

Our little friend’s penchant for story-telling also reminds us of something else. We want the Father to be recognizable in our words. We want the echo of His voice to be heard in everything we say. We are called to imitate the One who loves us beyond measure, wraps us in His arms, and claims us as His own.

My Jesus Resolution today is to watch a child so I can learn how to be His child. I want to hold hands, forgive with ease, love with abandon, play with joy, and let the time with my Father soak deeply into every part of who I am. I want the family resemblance to be marked and noticeable. I want others to grin when they hear me say something that sounds exactly like something my Abba would say.