The Garden of Grace: Returning to Childlike Faith in Christ
Once upon a time, there was a little girl who lived in a land bathed in the soft light of Southern California’s suburbs. She was a dreamer—innocent, wide-eyed, and full of hope. She wore that hope like a delicate veil and carried faith like a secret treasure, believing that all things, no matter how impossible, could be made beautiful. She believed in fairy tales and in a kind of wonder that turned ordinary moments into something sacred. She believed in Jesus—her Savior, her friend—with a childlike faith that made everything feel simple, full of light, and good. To her, His love was a gentle truth, and His presence was a quiet, peaceful constant. Life, in all its complexity, felt safe when He was near. That girl was me. Life was simple then, or perhaps it was just that I had not yet learned to complicate it. That innocence was the soil in which my heart grew. As the years have passed and I’ve stepped deeper into adulthood, I’ve learned the harsh rhythms of life: the constant...