This past weekend we wrestled with Jesus' words in Matthew 18:3:
I can guarantee this truth: Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.Looking at a story of two people who go to pray in Luke 18:10-14, we discussed 3 changes we might need to make if we are going to approach God more like kids:
- Changing our POSTURE: Focusing more on God than ourselves
- Changing our WORDS: Acknowledging our sin and weakness
- Changing our REQUESTS: Asking God for help & mercy
Which of these feels most challenging for you & why?
What else did you hear God say to you through the words of Jesus this weekend?
4 comments:
Although I need to grow in all of these areas, I often struggle most with asking God for help.
Yes, I know God is available to me and that He is smarter and stronger than I am- BUT I still find myself trying to figure and work things out for myself.
Definitely changing the requests. I've got down the part where I am thankful in prayer, but like the Pharisee, I tend to forget to ask for help (unless there's something pressing I know I have no control over) More often I feel like I'm "unloading" my burden on God by telling him the problem, then going forth to figure it out for myself. DUH! Ask for nothing and receive nothing.
I tend to be like this in real life too. I hate to ask for help from anyone, even my husband, although I do so when it becomes apparent I am really not supermom :) It is something I have really tried to work on in recent years but this message will definitely make me more conscious of reaching out for help in prayer.
Like you two, remembering to ask for help is a task, but my posture is what spoke to me this weekend. If you've ever tried it, you'll probably agree that praying from your face or knees is more humble than from a chair or in the car. If you haven't tried it, get rid of the ridiculous notions about it and try it. I need to take a little of my own medicine... ;)
ok... I have to be honest here. I've always struggled with this scripture because as the father of 4 who now has the child-rearing somewhat behind him, I tend to see children in non-rose colored glasses.
Take things on faith? Anyone ever had their kid ask 'why' for the nth time? Anyone ever had a kid test out what you told them just to see if it was true?
Innocent? Sorry... kids have to be taught to share, tell the truth, etc.
Loving? Yes, sometimes, but kids can also be very cruel. Just spend some time on the playground and listen to what they say to each other.
But when Fred brought Colston on stage, I finally saw characteristics that I couldn't argue with... helplessness, dependence. These are qualities that resonated with me as the true child-like essence that we must strive for. The more we depend on God and less on ourselves, the more we will be in relationship with Him.
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