JUST
A PEEK
Children
are naturally curious. Even before they begin to crawl, their small
limited world opens up its secrets to their little hands. Suddenly
they are reaching for the unknown, grasping, turning a curious object
in their hands, scrutinizing every detail, putting it in their mouth
to discover its taste. Then, before you know it, they are walking
and their world grows as discovery becomes a new adventure of search
and seizure. What seems uninteresting to adults are marvelous
treasures to young children.
Then
comes Christmas, and curiosity reaches an all new high. Not after
many celebrations of the gift-giving season, children soon learn that
presents are forthcoming. And great anticipation seems to become an
almost endless wait as days seem like weeks to excited young
children.
This
all became a reminder of their curiosity this past week as we made
our way from the store to our van, carrying a big bag that held a
couple of gifts purchased for the children. Kaylea, our
four-year-old, was overcome with the excitement of relentless
curiosity as she made every effort to get a peek into that bag! Can
you relate to that bygone time when you just couldn't wait to know
what your present was going to be? Somewhere along the way, we
learned the patience of waiting, but not until after we experienced
those early years of impatient curiosity.
Maturity
is a good thing. And yet, there is a sad loss that often comes along
with it. We tend to lose a lot of that curiosity and we fail to look
as closely at the minute details of God's creation. The extremely
tiny wild flower, a droplet of water on a leaf as it catches the
sunlight in a rainbow of colors, the dew-covered spider web that
glistens its intricate pattern in the early morning light - these and
so many other little treasures are the objects of children's
curiosity, but go unnoticed by busier adults. As a result, we miss
out on much that is around us until we become indifferent to what the
young find fascinating.
The
greatest loss in our level of curiosity is that which many suffer -
the loss of interest in spiritual matters. How much time do you
spend in the bible? Do you anxiously wait for that time in your day
that you can sit down and open its pages? Are you drawn into its
treasures as a child is drawn to the presents under the tree? Do you
read God's word with the curiosity of a young child who examines
every detail? Are you passionate about knowing more about God and
heaven? If you cannot answer these questions in the affirmative, you
have lost something very valuable. In your loss of that childlike
curiosity, you may have become indifferent to spiritual matters.
Beware! The world has become guilty of this malady of the soul.
We
can rekindle that lost passion, but it takes a deliberate effort at
first. Daily study of God's word should lead to greater interest and
more curiosity to know what He has revealed to us in His word. In
time, if our hearts become tuned heavenward, we will be able to echo
David's sentiments. "Oh, how I love Your law! It is my
meditation all the day...How sweet are Your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!...Your word is a lamp to my feet and
a light to my path...You are my hiding place and my shield; I
hope
in Your word."
(Psm. 119:97, 103, 105, 114) Are these words the words of your own
heart?
When
we can say "I
hope
in Your word",
then we have regained that curiosity that we desperately need. Hope
demands a looking ahead at that which is unseen. That's what
curiosity is. As Paul said, "...hope that is seen is not hope;
for why does one still hope for what he sees. But
if we hope for what we do not see, then we eagerly wait for it with
perseverance."
(Rom. 8:24-25) Notice that there is no "indifference" in
this hope, but that it is a hope whose "waiting" is one of
active
"perseverance."
Read
Rev. 4:1; "After these things I looked, and behold, a door
standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like
a trumpet speaking with me, saying, 'Come up here, and I will show
you things which must take place after this.'" Are you struck
with a sense of curious desire to take a peek with John as he looks
beyond that open door to see with your own eyes what has eluded
mankind from the beginning? Do you find yourself, in the imagination
of your mind, standing there beside John, the discovery of a door
being left ajar causing your heart to leap with excitement and wonder
as you rejoice in the good circumstances of being in the right place
at the right time? Do you picture yourself there, with trembling
hands, gingerly pushing open that door and looking into the majestic
courts of heaven for the first time? But alas, it is your
imagination, running wild for but a moment, as your mind longingly
rushes ahead to see the unknown.
When
you put this article down, do yourself a favor. Pick up your bible
and read Rev. 21:9-22:5. Go on a journey with John and fill up your
eyes with the wonder and beauty of heaven. Experience some of that
childlike curiosity as he walks you through a pearly gate and under a
high massive jasper wall that glistens with its opaque green color
like glass, past the brilliance of an angel posted at its entrance,
down golden streets that shimmer like yellow glass before your feet,
along a pure river of water that glistens clear and blue under a
bright yet sunless sky, then under the spreading boughs of the tree
of life there in the middle of the street, just like the ones that
border both banks of the river, their various manners of fruit
hanging there for the taking. Then looking down the golden street
you see the fountain head of that beautiful stream. It's brilliance
is awe-inspiring as you see God on His throne and Jesus there at His
side. Then, for the first time, you are looking into the face of
your Creator and your Savior. The glory of the moment overwhelms our
senses!
Only
God's word can satisfy the longing of our curious hearts to peek into
that for which we anxiously await. It is His word that must appease
our weary hearts until we in reality can pass beyond heavens' walls
into our new home, leaving behind the cares and trials of this life -
and that childlike curiosity that once captivated us to just take a
peek.
-
Gary V. Womack - December 2003