It was God’s delightful idea to make miniature people and send them to bigger people to raise, a phenomenal plan. And he intends for us big people to learn a great deal from the little ones.

To be a child is to be something spectacular, a person who exhibits innocence, submission, trustfulness. These characteristics are especially true in one-year-olds. I’m privileged to have two of them among my grandchildren, Nicholas, from England, and Skylar, from Florida. And it’s been my joy for the last couple of weeks to have Skylar staying at my address (with her family).

I’ve never known a more enthusiastic person than this one-year-old. She’s up for anything, which includes trying strange foods, meeting new people, petting any animal or swimming in Lake Michigan. When others are hesitant, Skylar is eager.

After she leaves on Monday, I’ll miss her toddler voice and the many clever things she says. Today as I helped her out of her car seat, she cooed at me and said, “Hi, precious Midgee.” How can you beat that?

There are unnumbered good things about Skylar that she shares with all one-year-olds, and having 100% trust in those around her is one of the best. This is a significant charge for the rest of us, to make sure we’re 100% trustworthy in our relationships with them.

The other day Klaus was enjoying Skylar at the beach, asking her if she wanted “to fly.” Of course she was up for it, and he began throwing her as high as his arms could fling her. She squealed with laughter, never doubting for an instant that he’d catch her securely every time. Klaus ran out of energy long before Skylar ran out of wanting to be tossed.

The picture we snapped that day exemplifies perfect trust. Skylar’s face is devoid of worry, and she’s able to take pleasure in an event that actually has the potential to turn out badly for her. She knows how it feels to get splashed in the face or get water up her nose but isn’t thinking of those “what ifs.” Instead she’s trusting all things will work together for good. Haven’t we heard that someplace before?

I am one of God’s children. Hopefully you are, too. The Christian’s relationship to him is based on trusting that he knows what’s best for us, without injecting doubt by unnecessary “what ifs.” We trust the Gospel to be true (see John 3:16) and strive to base our lives on trusting God the Father and Jesus the Son, one-on-one. But there’s the rub: we strive.

We think, “What if he looks away and doesn’t catch me? What if I plunge under water? What if he doesn’t rescue me in time? What if he catches me but the landing hurts? What if I’m too heavy for him to hold me tight?”

The “what if” going through my mind at the moment is, “What if we could all trust God like one-year-olds trust us?”

We’d probably all know how to fly.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)