Watching kids at a friends wedding yesterday reminded me again how we are all wired from a young age to wonder. It makes sense really. If we are created in the image of a Creator, then we must have incredible potential to imagine.

We long to dream the impossible.
We search for something to amaze us,
something to incite wonder.

Regardless of your perspectives on God, religion, or faith, you have to admit that your imagination is drawn to what seems to be miraculous or magical.

Consider the following scenes that have intrigued millions:

Lucy pushes aside a row of winter coats in an old wardrobe and discovers herself on a starlit, snowy night in Narnia.

E.T. and Elliott lift off on a bicycle and soar through the moonlit night, past the reaching treetops.

Harry discovers the home he never had as the twisting towers and welcoming lights of Hogwarts Castle rise high on the mountain above him.

Our instinct to wonder is part of the way we are designed.
We are wired to believe, to marvel,
to put our faith in what we can’t see or explain.

As Christians we are moved by
the majesty of a magnificent creation
the miraculous stories contained in an ancient manuscript
the mysterious redemptive work of an infinite God.

Wonder suggests we are created to gravitate
toward an authentic relationship with our Creator.

An instinct woven deep into our souls tells us over and over again:
This universe has an architect.
Our existence is not an accident.
There really is a Creator.

If people believe there is a God,
it affects their view of the world.
There is an origin.
Life has value.
We have hope.

Everything is moving somewhere.

If people don’t believe there is a God then
There is no beginning.
Life is empty.
We only have now.
Everything is moving nowhere.

Some say we shouldn’t believe because there is too much that can’t be explained, while others are intrigued with a God who is beyond explanation.

If you can understand everything about God,
you will never have a God who’s bigger than your understanding.
Who wants a God that small?

Isn’t it logical to think that:
The finite will never completely explain what is infinite?
The physical will never fully comprehend what is spiritual?
The limited will never accurately define the unlimited?

Sometimes in your zeal to be
right
correct
true
you can actually inhibit the instinct to wonder.

If you are not careful you can
define God too narrowly
give pat answers too quickly
push your kids to conclude too prematurely.

But when you incite wonder you
give kids permission to wrestle with their doubts
invite them to take a spiritual journey
allow them the process they need to own their own faith.

Wonder is a fascination with the idea that the Creator of the universe
desires an intimate and personal relationship with us.

Wonder is a catalyst that moves us to embrace faith
in a God who is bigger than our imagination.

So here is the question for this week:

How do you continue to incite WONDER in the heart of a child? How do you make sure when kids grow up they don’t grow out of their imagination, and maybe even their faith? Any ideas?