Children’s Letters to God
I had the pleasure to serve as Deacon in the Family Table service a few weeks ago. I enjoyed watching the many children attending with their families. It was a reminder of a treasured book of mine called "Children’s Letters to God," complied by Stuart Hample and Eric Marshall. These letters show the interesting understanding (or not) about how children see God and what He does.
Their letters show something about their innocence and trust in the power of God at work in their everyday lives. Children’s prayers are simple, unpretentious and candid. What they lack in flowery language, they make up with authenticity. Here are some examples:
“Dear God, thank you for the baby brother. But what I prayed for was a puppy. – Jayce”
“In Sunday School they told us what you do. Who does it when you are on vacation? – Jane”
“Dear God, of all the people that work for you, I like Peter and John the best. –Rob”
“Dear God, I don’t ever feel alone since I found out about you. – Nora”
“Dear God, I am doing the best I can. – Frank”
These prayers, in their honesty, are reminiscent of Jesus’ words: “Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise for yourself.” (Matthew 21:16) As we think about our own prayer life, there is much to learn from the way children pray to God. Like a child’s prayer, our prayers should also be honest and unpretentious. God is, after all, our loving Father. He wants to hear from us. So, say your prayers and stay in touch with Him. He wants to hear from you.
P.S. He does answer prayers!
