Living in Childlike Joy & Wonder

Lord, when did I lose the wonder and curiosity of a child?
How did this “I can’t do it all” attitude take over my brain?

When did sarcasm, doubt, fear and anger invade my every cell squeezing out trust, faith and the ability to marvel at the ordinary?

Lord I ask you for the eyes of a child:
To giggle at silly noises and pay attention to the whispers beneath the clamor
To peer deeply into the eyes of someone who cares
To squeal with delight with daily discoveries
To see the ordinary from a different point of view
To crawl on the floor exploring whatever is right in front of me
To learn something new each week and savor that moment
To feel the thrill of the quest in spying a desired object across the room and concentrating to use my entire body to reach it.
To smack my lips with new tastes and celebrate the miracle of each moment.
Lord pour into my heart refreshing waters of curiosity from your well of life, hope, and delight.

Touch my eyes to your marvels and heal my grown up blindness.
Connect me once again with your divine curiosity and sacred surprises.

Living in Childlike Joy & Wonder

My definition of joy is this: The childlike wonder and excitement of working with God instead of working for God. This attitude and philosophy is in keeping with what Jesus said in Matthew 18:3. “Unless you are converted and become as little children, you will not enter the kingdom . . . ”

It impossible under a religious mindset to have true joy because religion only becomes joyful with perfection, while family celebrates and becomes joyful with progress. Performance-based living blocks the cheerful heart, as do negative mindsets (such as slave, servant, and orphan mindsets), but as we embrace the heart of a son or daughter to our Father, we also embrace walking in greater joy.