Without Hesitation

If you’ve ever been around children, you know they have zero boundaries. I remember vividly one of the first times I served in a children’s class at church. I was sitting at the front, talking to all the kids about the Bible lesson they had just learned. I was in the middle of speaking when one little girl ran up to me, climbed into my lap, and without hesitation said, “I love you.”

Now that I’ve served in children’s ministry for a while, I know that you expect the unexpected from kids. What’s that phrase? “Out of the mouth of babes.” You really never know what they’re about to say, but you just know they often act on their first instinct. Because of that, it’s a lot easier for children to make friends, compliment others, express their feelings, and take risks, than it is for most adults. I mean, seriously—when was the last time you walked up to a stranger, sat down next to them, looked them dead in the eyes, and said, “I love you”?

When we look at Luke, we read about a group of children approaching Jesus. Immediately the disciples, likely men who weren’t around children much, scold the parents for allowing their children to bother Jesus, but Jesus responded.

Then Jesus called for the children and said to the disciples, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.” (Luke 18:16-17 NLT)

When I think about what it looks like for a child to approach their loving and kind father, I think of the child climbing into his lap, giving him a kiss on the cheek, and telling him all about their day, how they’re feeling, and anything else that pops into their mind. That father, to that child, is their safe place. That’s how Jesus tells us to approach our heavenly Father, without hesitation and without fear.

As I grew older, I started reading how David approached God in the Psalms. I realized that he would come to God with every thought, prayer, and emotion, whether it was good or bad. He knew God was his refuge, and he knew He was a loving and kind Father. All throughout the Psalms David pours his heart out to God, and he approaches His throne without hesitation. He cries out to the Lord in agony, then praises His name later in the chapter, showing all his emotions.

“O LORD, why do you stand so far away? Why do you hide when I am in trouble?” (Psalm 10:1)

“The LORD is king forever and ever!” (Psalm 10:16)

David made a lot of mistakes in his life, and was was a very imperfect man, yet 1 Samuel 13:14 tells us that God calls David “a man after His own heart.”

Friend, God just wants you—in the good, in the bad, in the pretty, and even more so, in the ugly. He just wants you, without hesitation or fear. He is a kind and loving Father. Run back to Him. His arms are wide open, waiting for you today.

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Scripture is quoted from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.