My 6 year old son just has a way of asking questions that make you think.
Of course plenty of them can be nonsense, because who knows what’s going on in that sweet head of his. But about half the time he asks thought-provoking questions that require careful answers. One of my favorites was about a song on the radio and you can read about that here.
His recent question came on our drive home from school. We live in Mennonite country, where horse-drawn buggies are regular occurrences on our roads. As we sat at a stoplight, the question came from the backseat: “Mommy, what are the black things beside the horse’s eyes?”
I took a breath before answering, which I usually do, because I’ve found that some of his questions require me to “translate” what I know into language that he can understand at 6. It’s not unlike fumbling to choose words when you’ve learned another language but aren’t yet fluent enough to just open your mouth and speak them! “Well, buddy, horses have eyes that are set on the sides of their heads,” I explained. “Those black things are called blinders, and they help shield the horse’s eyes so they don’t get distracted by what’s around them and they can focus on pulling the buggy safely.”
“Oh, okay!” And off he went on another tangent about something completely different.
As for me, I was left with a lingering thought about how oftentimes we need spiritual blinders to keep from being distracted on our walk with Jesus.
I’m as guilty of distraction as anyone. In fact, sometimes that’s why I can’t get some of my projects done–because I find new projects I want to start and sometimes I start them… and leave others unfinished. It’s easy to see things out of the corner of our eyes and get side-tracked by them.
Walking with Jesus requires focus, and without choosing to put on blinders so we can block out all the distractions of the world, that walk will become shaky at best.
Here’s what Proverbs, the wisdom book, has to say about this:
Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you.
Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways.
Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.~Proverbs 4:25-27
In so many words, put those blinders on and stay focused!
I’m thankful for reminders that come from an innocent child’s question. God is good at sending reminders at the moment I least expect them and helping to keep me focused in my daily walk with Him. I hope this encourages you too.
Blessings,
~Lynne
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