I’m rediscovering that life is an adventure. It’s not that I forgot that life is an exciting journey with many twists and turns along the way; it’s just that I’m now able to see the adventure of life through my son’s eyes. Jake is now about 16 months old and it’s incredible to watch him grow and learn. He’s discovering more about life everyday. And everyday, he’s discovering that life is a wonderful adventure. Here are some examples:

The highchair: we got Jake out of his highchair after supper the other day and put him down so he could go play with his toys. Instead of making the trek across the living room to the toy box, something interesting happened. The child who normally doesn’t enjoy the highchair that much was climbing up the front of the highchair. He’s become so proficient at this climb that he now can make it to the top and sit down in his chair. As a fellow male, I immediately wanted to “high-five” him and say “way to go.” As his dad and protector, I just watched with cautious eyes…and a huge smile!

The run: about the same time every night Jake gets the urge to run. He stands in the living room, looks at his mother and me and takes off. He makes the circle through the dining room, kitchen and living room several times and invariably he suffers several falls along the way. Some of the falls are the gentle kind that don’t really affect him and some are the really good “face plant” falls that probably sting a bit. But guess what…he gets up and he keeps running! The falling never seems to concern him for very long. He’s willing to get up and get going again.

The greeting: and now my favorite. Every day when I walk in the door from work I see a little boy running to me with open arms, smiling from ear to ear, screaming “Daddy!” It’s the love in his eyes, the joy in his voice, the unconditional acceptance in his arms that really makes me sense his love for life and his passion for its adventure.

A couple of closing thoughts here: Sure, life is an adventure; but so is the life of faith. Faith is willing to take risks…to climb the highchair with no fear of failure. Faith is willing to run the race with patience and keep going even after a debilitating and devastating fall. Faith always runs to God with an open heart and open arms wanting to feel His love and acceptance. This is the adventure I want to live! This is the kind of faith I want have. Maybe, just maybe, this is what Christ was talking about when He mentioned a “childlike faith.”