who told you that you were naked?

being a parent is very rewarding. for those of you who have kids, you will understand what i am about to say. for those of you who don't, i hope you get the pleasure one day. one very important aspect of being a parent is that it teaches you about God's relationship with us on a daily basis. i'm just glad God is patient with us because i know how frustrated my sons make me.

while spending the fourth of july at my aunt's house and swimming in her pool, my oldest son, 4 year old Gavin, decided that he needed to go "tee-tee", so right there, in front of God and everybody, he drops his shorts to his ankles and procedes to water a shrub. while we all laughed at his innocence (and i took an opportunity to have a daddy-son moment of instruction on the wheres and where-nots of urination) it reminded me of the innocence that was lost at eden. adam and eve, if you recall the story, disobeyed God, ate the fruit, and saw their nakedness. they then proceded to cover themselves with the latest in fig-leaf fashions. when they ran into God that day, He asked them, "who told you that you were naked?" don't get me wrong here, it's not as if God didn't already know, but they gave themselves away with the fig leaves. but i love the way they start making excuses as soon as God asks them the question. "the woman YOU gave me" and "the serpent said". for those of you with kids, does that not sound familiar? they give themselves away by doing dumb things and saying dumb things, and when they are called on it, they begin to back-pedal. this turns into excuses. Gavin's excuses usually start with "but", usually followed by a person. for example, "but Nathan took my monster truck", or my favorite, "but mommy said". it's no wonder God calls us His children. we act just like children.

as for Gavin, i admire his innocence and his naivete' to the world. while his choice of bathrooms may not be socially adept, he knows no difference. maybe some of that innocence that was present in the garden, was given as a gift to us when we were children. as we get older, we lose it. perhaps that's why Jesus said that the attitude of little children was necessary to enter the kingdom of Heaven. once adam knew his sin, he was also told of the consequences of that sin. i heard it said once, that childhood's over the moment you know you are going to die. adam's innocence lost turned to the foreknowledge of physical death, and the impending doom of spiritual death. however, when we are born again, as the Bible calls it, we become as innocent as little children again. oh, to one day regain the innocence permanently and no longer remember what it is like to be separated from God! i look forward to it! so for now, i shall be watching out for Gavin's or Nathan's next reflection of my own relationship with my Heavenly Father!