Being Child Like

Do you remember the old children's tune "Following the Leader"? Made famous by Peter Pan. Take a moment to read the lyrics here:

Following the leader, the leader, the leader
We're following the leader wherever he may go
We won't be home till morning, till morning
We won't be home till morning
Because he told us so
Tee dum, tee dee
A teedle ee do tee day
We're out for fun
And this is the game we play:
Come on, join in
And sing your troubles away
With a teedle ee dum
A teedle do tee day
We're following the leader, the leader, the leader
We're following the leader wherever he may go
We won't be home till morning, till morning
We won't be home till morning
Because he told us so
Tee dum, tee dee
A teedle ee do tee day
We march along and
These are the words we say:
Tee dum, tee dee,
A teedle deelde deeay
Oh, a teedle ee dum
A teedle ee do tee day
Oh, a teedle ee dum
A teedle ee do tee day

This song emits an attitude that I think we ought to replicate when we are following our God. It's joyous and worry free. "We're following the leader wherever he may go." As a child of God, I desire to follow him wherever he may lead me. Did you know that in order for someone to lead you, they must go there before you? When we say "God is leading me to ___" do we realize that God is going there ahead of us? He's preparing the way. What a wonderful thought! God will never lead us somewhere truly dangerous. Sometimes he might take us real close to a ledge so we can experience the view, but we should rest in the knowledge that he is a good leader and will not lead us astray. Trust is the main idea here.

It is also sung "We won't be home till morning, because he told us so." This parallels the truth that Jesus will be returning at an appointed time and we will all go home. We can rest in the thought that eventually we will be lead back home. God has promised us this. This thrills me! A morning will come seeming just like any other, but it will in fact be the dawning of a new era! When my Saviour comes to lead me home! To a place he has prepared for me! A place he has gone to first!

We ought to be able to then go about our daily lives with a joyous song on our lips! "Tee dee, tee dum." If we truly trust in our Leader, we should fear not following his steps. It should offer us freedom from worry! It is only when we stop following and try to find our own way that we begin to stumble and become fearful. Sometimes we feel that we need to be the one in front, so we can see, because we'd rather trust our own eyes, than the leadership of our God.

To tell the truth, I like to be in front so I can see what's coming ahead. But when I do that, I am most worried and fearful. To see the obstacle way before it's time creates a stress that would otherwise be avoided if we only saw the obstacle when it was time to cross it. Especially because God will show us how to cross it, but only once we get there.

So, go ahead.... follow the Leader, and sing a happy song.......