Childlike Faith

Elizabeth's cousin had just given her a beautiful wooden yo-yo the night before.  She'd been trying things out to get it to work.  Then suddenly, it split in half.  She wasn't distraught or disappointed when she told me.  I said we'd look into fixing it soon.  Nonchalantly she replied, "It's okay.  Daddy can fix it."

Daddy can fix it.

She had full confidence, without really knowing what it would take, that her daddy could fix that yo-yo for her.

As the wife of that daddy, I was touched by the confidence my daughter has in her father.  History informs her belief that dad can fix things that break, that she can trust him to come through when she needs help.

As a Christian I wondered at my daughter's pure, confident trust.  Do I trust my Heavenly Father in that way?  When I hold broken things in my hands, to I turn to the Lord in faith, knowing

Daddy can fix it?

Um, yeah.  Not as quickly as I should.

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What broken things do you hold in your hands today?  Are you handing them to the Lord, confident as a young child that He alone can fix them for you?  Or are you clinging to them, frantically trying to bind them back together with the weak glue, tape, and staples of logic, worry, and self-sufficiency?

You see, Elizabeth knew the yo-yo was broken and there was nothing she could do to fix it herself.  So she turned to one who she knew could.  Without hesitation.  Without first trying a bunch of options.  Because she knew

Daddy can fix it.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.  Philippians 4:6-7

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Jesus told his disciples and the crowds that coming to the Father like a child was the way to go, the right way to approach God.  Our pride, our I-should-be-able-to-handle-this-by-now attitude, can keep us from running into his arms, curling on up his lap, and pouring out our hearts to him: confessing our sins in that safe place, sharing fears, asking for help ... placing our broken yo-yos in the hands that can fix them.

Friends, Daddy can fix it.

I leave you with Psalm 103 for meditation on the confidence we can have in our Abba Father because of who He is (italics) and how He loves us (bold.)  Praise the Lord, indeed!

¹ Praise the LORD, O my soul;
   all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
² Praise the LORD, O my soul,
   and forget not all his benefits—
³ who forgives all your sins
   and heals all your diseases,
⁴ who redeems your life from the pit
   and crowns you with love and compassion,
⁵ who satisfies your desires with good things
   so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. 

 ⁶ The LORD works righteousness
   and justice for all the oppressed. 

 ⁷ He made known his ways to Moses,
   his deeds to the people of Israel: 
⁸ The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
   slow to anger, abounding in love. 
⁹ He will not always accuse,
   nor will he harbor his anger forever;
¹⁰ he does not treat us as our sins deserve
   or repay us according to our iniquities. 
¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
   so great is his love for those who fear him;
¹² as far as the east is from the west,
   so far has he removed our transgressions from us. 
¹³ As a father has compassion on his children,
   so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; 
¹⁴ for he knows how we are formed,
   he remembers that we are dust.
¹⁵ As for man, his days are like grass,
   he flourishes like a flower of the field;
¹⁶ the wind blows over it and it is gone,
   and its place remembers it no more.
¹⁷ But from everlasting to everlasting
   the LORD’s love is with those who fear him,
   and his righteousness with their children’s children— 
¹⁸ with those who keep his covenant
   and remember to obey his precepts. 

 ¹⁹ The LORD has established his throne in heaven,
   and his kingdom rules over all. 

 ²⁰ Praise the LORD, you his angels,
   you mighty ones who do his bidding,
   who obey his word.
²¹ Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts,
   you his servants who do his will.
²² Praise the LORD, all his works
   everywhere in his dominion. 

   Praise the LORD, O my soul.