The Wisdom of Little Ones
Table Talk
Setting the Table
You are welcome here. Come just as you are, bringing whatever is on your heart today. Take a few moments and allow yourself to just be. Take a couple deep breaths, grab yourself a cup of coffee, light a candle, do something that brings you comfort. Allow yourself to be present in this moment.
What if the wisdom of God’s kingdom has been sitting right beside us all along? Sometimes the smallest voices ask the questions that echo the longest.
Children are not a distraction from more important work. They are the most important work.
— C.S. Lewis
We must remain as close to the child we were as we can be.
— Madeleine L’Engle
Matthew 19.13-14
Then children were being brought to him in order that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples spoke sternly to those who brought them, but Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.”
Food for Thought
As a parent, I learned early on that children are paying attention. They are curious, deeply creative, and often hold a wisdom we adults are quick to overlook.
I remember when my grandmother died, my oldest child—who was not yet three—looked into my heartbroken eyes and said, “She’s with Jesus now, and she’s okay.” Another time, during a Sunday service, she quietly slipped down from my lap, crossed the room, and sat beside a grieving member of our church whose partner had just passed away. At another time, she drew a picture of her fish that had died and announced, “Zoe Sharkfin now swims with God.” And when she grew a little older, she even started a petition in our church to “ban strong language” and to encourage more positive words.
Anyone who has children, works with children, or simply pays attention to them can tell similar stories. From the time they are very young, children are contemplating their world and their place in it. They are already thinking about God, wrestling with questions of fairness, morality, and justice, sorting out what is good and what is not. Their wisdom may not always sound sophisticated, but it is real and it is worth our attention.
And yet, we often dismiss it. Too often, we assume wisdom must be polished, erudite, or packaged in the way adults communicate. But in doing so, we miss the very insights that Jesus told us to look for.
As a new school year begins and classrooms fill again with students and teachers, I keep hearing Jesus’ words: “Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the Kingdom of Heaven belongs. Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.”
Jesus did not simply bless children for their innocence; he pointed to them as teachers. The kingdom of God, he said, belongs to those who can receive it as a child—open, curious, unguarded, and willing to be shaped.
The values we hope to see in God’s kingdom—empathy, kindness, humility, gratitude, wonder, love—are not traits we suddenly pick up in adulthood. They are qualities formed in us from the beginning. They are also fragile and malleable, shaped by the choices we make, the experiences we encounter, and the examples we witness.
That is why intention matters. If compassion and empathy are not encouraged, if wonder and gratitude are not nurtured, then other forces—fear, selfishness, cynicism—can just as easily take root.
The people of Jesus’ day often thought about God’s kingdom in terms of rules, hierarchy, and reward—something to be earned, much like wealth, privilege, or power. We recognize the same mindset in our world today: the temptation to make God’s kingdom about individual achievement or personal gain. But as someone once reminded me, “God made us a people, not a person.” The kingdom is not for one or for some, but for all.
That means we have to learn—and relearn—how to live into God’s kingdom together. We do that by watching our children, learning from them, and modeling for them what it means to be God’s people.
Of course, it is harder when we are older. By adulthood, our assumptions and habits are cemented. We cling to the familiar: “We’ve always done it that way.” But children remind us that change, growth, and new ways of seeing are always possible. They invite us into wonder and curiosity, into empathy and imagination.
And if we want our children to embody the kingdom of God, then we must be intentional in shaping them toward it. We must foster humility, compassion, and wonder in them—and model those same qualities in ourselves. Children are always watching. They notice how we treat one another, how we respond to those in need, how we talk about people who are different from us. They are learning what love looks like by how we live it out.
At the same time, we too are still children of God—always growing, always becoming. The invitation Jesus gives to receive the kingdom like a child is not only for the very young, but for all of us. It is a call to remain open to new understanding, to continue learning, to let ourselves be shaped by love, empathy, and wonder.
If we take that seriously, we just might discover that the wisdom of our children is not childish at all—it is the very doorway into God’s kingdom.
In your interactions this week, listen closely to the children around you (or recall your own younger self). What questions are they asking—directly or indirectly?
Read a children’s book—alone or with someone else—and pay attention not just to the story, but to the values and questions it raises. Notice what themes of kindness, fairness, or wonder are woven through it, and reflect on what the book might have to teach you about God’s kingdom.
For a printable version of today's reflection Click Here!
Blessing
Loving God,
Teach us to listen closely to the young among us—
to their honesty, their questions, their wonder.
Help us model compassion, humility, and love—
and make us people who notice, who welcome,
and who keep learning from the youngest in our midst.
Amen.
A little Table Talk for your table...
What do you think Jesus meant when he said we must “receive the kingdom like a child”?
What do you remember about your own childhood faith—your questions, prayers, or images of God?
How could we, as a community, make space for children’s voices to be heard and valued?
Try taking it to the Kids Table...
What is something you wonder about God or the world right now?
How do you show kindness, love, or care to people around you?
What does it mean to you to be part of God’s kingdom?
Meet This WEek’s Writer...
Rev. Daryn Stylianopoulos is originally from North Carolina, but has called Boston, MA home for nearly twenty years. Daryn is an advocate for the marginalized and works against injustices in her community. She believes in creatively cultivating a spirit of cohesion, welcome, and healing in the world. A lover of art, music, gardening, and, most of all, family, she often looks to these for inspiration in her work and ministry. Daryn is on staff with American Baptist Home Mission Societies serving as Program Director for the Nurturing Children Initiative, and also serves as a Baptist pastor in the Boston area. She is a graduate of Wake Forest University and Boston University School of Theology.
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