Toddler Theology

³⁸ Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. ³⁹ David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them. “I cannot go in these,” he said to Saul, “because I am not used to them.” So he took them off. ⁴⁰ Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine. – 1 Samuel 17:38-40

My 3 year old loves to read. His shelves of crammed titles would make a librarian blush. Our favorites, and most often read, typically include a bear or a bulldozer. And while we wait for that elusive “Bear Rides a Bulldozer” classic to be published, we sometimes branch out into other nightstand classics. Occasionally, he likes to grab the one filled with different Bible stories. While I tend to try and share stories we have missed, he always gravitates toward Jonah and David. I don’t blame him. One involves a giant, while the other involves a giant fish. This is literary gold for a toddler with a large imagination.

Times like these give me the rare opportunity to flex my theological muscle. While spending money on a degree in a faith which teaches you to rid yourself of possessions can befuddle, it does come in handy at story time. I like to fill in blanks where I can, using that prestigious (expensive) degree to impress my heir. For the most part, these stories are condensed to quick cliff notes. I appreciate this, not only because it allows me to riff, but also because it reminds me how simple theology and the idea of God should be. If any faith cannot be embraced warmly from a child, then it is perhaps too ridiculous.

While I myself do little Bible reading anymore, these moments with my son give life. The simplicity and even goofiness of the pictures they use, tell me not to take anything all that seriously, especially my own construction of God. No matter how much I have read, or how much I have paid, I have come to the painful realization that my mind is in deficit. The certainties become rarer as I age, while the things I do not know only increase. Truthfully, I am probably overselling that which I think I know. Of this, how much is incorrect or flawed by bias?

While you can take the pastor out of the pulpit, you cannot always take the desire to pastor out of the broken believer. When I read stories with my son, my imagination comes alive and I immediately come up with bullet points, even sharing cleverly turn of phrases to make them stick.

So, forgive me for what I am about to do with the story of David and the Goliath.

You are not their size

In this story Bible, there is a comical picture of teen David in the armor of Saul. This cartoony illustration captures more truth than I realized. How many times do we try to wear the perceptions and expectations of others? Maybe we do it to please them, or maybe we do it because we actually think the armor fits. However, when it comes to the battle, we cannot be ourselves. Any time we are not able to live in our skin – our armor – we will live a lie. Maybe we need to embrace ourselves, flaws and all, in order to heal and thrive.

For David, living within himself meant going unprotected into battle. Can you imagine the fear? Not only for the giant who had undoubtedly killed many before, but of those looking at him with jagged second guesses. To step out in your own identity is a courageous step indeed. As Wilde said, “be yourself, everyone else is already taken”. Don’t try to wear what was meant for someone else.

You don’t know which stone you’re on

After young David peeled off the cumbersome identity of the King, he went for stones. What is interesting is that he grabbed 5. The author would have us believe he faced the giant, put one in his sling, and accomplished a quick and decisive victory. However, we cannot make this conclusion. What if he threw the first one and under the pressure, he shanked it? What if as the giant was approaching, he dropped stones 2 and 3? Knowing what I know about the God of the Bible, it is more than likely He wanted to build the drama as well as teach David humility. It could have very well been the last stone, literally his last hope, that murdered the giant.

It is easy for us to expect success on the first or second stone. However, this is a rare occurrence. The God we commune with is one who often beats our expectations into the ground until we are forced to trust Him alone. In a way, He is the God of the 5th stone. No matter what is in front of you, don’t panic. If you fail, it is okay, for no failure is wasted. You may have not found the right stone yet.

Sometimes you’re the rock

Many sermons have been wasted trying to put the audience into the place of David. Unfortunately, we are not always the hero in the story. Sometimes, we are the vessel for someone else’s success. The life of Christ is one of shrinking shadows. Often, the less we are in the spotlight, the better our spiritual health. The human condition shows us to have more in common with Goliath, than we do with the young protagonist.

But most times, we are the rock. In the stream day to day, we keep it simple and wait for something that may or may not come. Our only task is not to be inflated with ideas of grandeur, but to live and love simply in whatever stream we find ourselves in.