Listen:
“When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things.” (1 Corinthians 13:11 NLT)
Reflect:
There are many references in this passage to how we see or know things only partially and this verse reflects the lack of vision we have as children, immature in life and faith. We didn’t know everything and we acted as children do, making mistakes. Oh, if only we saw the whole picture and embraced it fully as we become ‘mature’!
We’re loved throughout our life, imperfectly through our family and friends and perfectly by God. But we don’t reach the full knowledge of God during our lives. And although this verse says, ‘now I’m an adult, I’ve put childish things behind me’, I don’t believe we do completely. We can still behave immaturely. We can be childish in our response to what happens in life. When things seem unfair, we can get angry or sad, and lose control of our emotions or ‘act out’. God knows us inside out and He still loves us, despite our imperfections and childish ways.
But Jesus has also said we should be like a child and come to Him with innocent faith, because then we will completely trust Jesus as little children do and we will also see how fully loved we are.
I think about my son who’s not fully matured yet, but has lived through so much in his young life and gained a lot of knowledge and experience. He says things that surprise and delight me at times and I imagine God’s delight when we turn to Him because we’ve learned another wonderful thing about mercy or justice or grace, or His amazing love. So yes, let’s put away the childish things that are unhelpful, but let’s love God as young children love their parents, wholeheartedly and with complete trust.
Prayer of Response:
Father God, thank you that You loved us first, completely and forever. Forgive us for our childish ways, help us put them behind us and help us grasp the fullness of Your love with all our being. Grant us childlike faith that enables us to fully embrace Your love and trust You with our whole life. Amen.
Questions to Ponder:
- Can I believe that God loves me completely, despite my childish ways?
- Can I believe that nothing I do will make Him love me less, or more?
- Am I able to look at my heavenly Father through childlike eyes, believing I am His precious child, deeply loved?
Breath Prayers:
Join us in praying breath prayers each day. We invite you to write your own as well.
Inhale(Breathe in): : I trust in Him
Exhale(Breathe out): as He fully loves me.
(Repeat)
—Submitted by: Lis Ho
Lis lives in Lyon, France, an empty nester and a recent widow, transitioning a new season of life. Lis attended her first Lifesprings retreat in 2010 and has been involved in local Lifesprings events over the years. She is involved in the prayer ministry team at her church and has a heart for getting alongside women and healthy ageing. She is a pilates instructor and loves praying peace over her students. Her ‘word’ for 2026 is the very challenging ‘trust’ and Psalm 23 is accompanying her on her journey this year.