The Prayers of Children

I am often amazed at my children and their grasp of matters of faith. Their prayers and requests for prayers are simple, simplistic, trusting, genuine. Often I'm met with requests such as, "Mummy, I'm afraid of the dark, can you pray for me?" Or "Mummy, I hurt myself, will you pray for me?" Then there are their prayers for others. One of Kieran's friends broke his arm, and Kieran prayed for The Lord to bless him. If I'm having a bad day, the kids pray for me.

While obviously their prayers won't, and shouldn't, remain simplistic, I do hope they retain the simple, child-like nature of their prayers. I often hesitate to bring the little things to God in prayer, but my children teach me that I shouldn't hesitate. Nothing is too small or too big for Him, and my children's absolute trust in Him is found in their prayers. True, they don't have bigger worries right now, but I hope they continue to pray about every little thing. Of course, this doesn't mean we just sit and do nothing while waiting for God to act, as sometimes the answer is just to give us the grace we need to do it ourselves. But that grace is sorely needed, and if I can learn one thing from my children, I hope it's to completely trust in God and bring Him my everything.