Kids ask hard questions.
“Mommy, what if God is not real?”
To date, this is the hardest question I have been asked.
These words hurt. I felt a weight hit the pit of my stomach.It felt personal.
If MY children doubt God, then I must be doing something wrong.
Right?
Have I not shown them enough about Him?
I began to panic as if her moment of doubt was an indicator of my parental failure and a foreshadowing of her spiritual future.
I needed a response because I needed to feel better. I needed her to believe because well, I hate to say it… but I needed her to believe because I told her so.
But I knew that this wasn’t enough. This was much bigger than my need for assurance or approval of my leadership.
She needed this journey to be her own.
She’s 11. She needs to believe that God is real because she has personally experienced His existence. Not because I told her so.
Some things are out of my control.
Lord. Help. Me.
Thankfully, I was reminded that nestled in this moment of doubt rests an invitation.. for her from her Creator.
I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me. Proverbs 8:17
God’s not afraid of our doubt. He is real, and at any moment He’s ready for personal encounters.
Aren’t you grateful for a God that meets us where we are and uses our moments of weakness to draw us into His Love?
Now if I know anything about 11-year-old girls, I know they like to handle things themselves! So that’s exactly what I challenged her to do. Seek Him. I told her what I know to be true and that is, “doubt can’t live where truth resides.” So, after assuring her that she was not alone, I challenged her to seek truth.
Realizing that this is her journey and not my personal evaluation, I am trusting that if she seeks The Lord, He will prove Himself to us both.
