Life as a Child

“Now, O LORD…I am a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in…” 1 Kings 3:7 

This was the response right after God gave Solomon the kingdom over which to reign. It was an overwhelming task for Solomon as he had the responsibility to lead the nation. His calling must have felt like a daunting feat that revealed his lack of trust coupled with his fear of failure. I am not sure I have ever read this verse before, but I know that I have spoken these words to God before.

When I had a daughter walking in deep darkness…'I do not know how to save her, Lord.' When I had to say goodbye to one of my sisters when she was only 42…'I do not know how I will make it through my grief, Lord.' When I mounted tons of secret debt and spent money on things to satisfy my idle heart…'I do not know how I will pay the debt off, Lord.' When I told Bruce about the deceit and the state of our finances, 'I do not know how he will ever trust me again, Lord.'

The list goes on and on for me and maybe also for you. God allows us to experience things that will grow us because He sees us for who He knows we were created to be. He wants us to be children dependent on our Father. He wants us to be trusting in Him instead of ourselves. He wants us to trust that He can accomplish what we need instead of trying to accomplish things in our own strength. Some of the hardships that we must endure are out of our control such as grieving a family member’s death. Other hardships we experience are those brought on by our own weaknesses or sins. Either way, God never intended us to try to save ourselves and figure out our own circumstances. He gave us a path to prayer through the death and resurrection of Jesus which gave us both authority and the invitation to approach God. He assures us that He will never leave us or forsake us. He has promised to equip us with every saving grace that we will need to navigate this life.

What task has the Lord entrusted you with at this point of your life? A new job? A new marriage? A new normal? We are all children in the eyes of our Father, and He desires for us to lean on Him…draw near to Him…trust His will and His way. I am so thankful that we never have to face one single task or assignment in this life without God. We do not have to know how 'to go out or come in' from our adversity because we have a God on the throne who will show us the way.

"Now I lay me down to sleep,I pray the Lord my soul will keep."