A Child's Heart

Cerys has been asking a lot of questions about God lately. She wonders how he can be everywhere if we can't see or hear him. When we were in California she wasn't allowed out in my aunt Lynn's garden without supervision because of the swimming pool, and one afternoon she asked if I'd go out there with her. I was feeding Macy and said that she would have to wait until I was done. She looked at me and cunningly asked if God was everywhere. Unaware of the trap being laid, and rather proud of her curiosity, I replied that yes, God is everywhere.

"Is he in the back garden?"

Still clueless, I replied, "Yes."

"Well then God can watch me, can't he?"

Taken aback at her utter genius, I tried to back-paddle and not crush a child's very real faith. In the end I just said that God had put me in charge and that though he was in the back garden he wanted me to be out there too.

This week one of her friend's moms was telling me that 4-year-old Jasper had "invited Jesus into his heart" this week. Having never broached that subject with Cerys before, I wondered how she would reply to such an idea. More out of curiosity than an actual desire for Cerys to "become a Christian" I ever-so-carefully began to explain that Jasper had asked Jesus to live in his heart and that meant that Jesus and God would always be with him and help him to make good choices and love other people.

"What do you think of that Cerys? Would you like Jesus to live in your heart?"

With a look of confusion and perhaps even annoyance she clutched her chest and said, "No, that would be very uncomfortable."

Good point, well made.