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I parked behind a car the other day with the bumper sticker, In God We Trust. Now some people in the U.S. take this as a national commandment, as if we were a modern Hebrew nation, all flying the same religious flag. Prominent preachers play upon this myth when they announce God’s impending judgment upon us for our sins, equating us with the ancient Assyrians of the Old Testament (although, interestingly, God went out of His way to speak to and forgive this group of people).

But trusting in God is an individual thing, and I wonder when we announce, “In God We Trust,” do we, really? Do we trust Him to be someone so wise, powerful, and omniscient that He truly handles the words and thoughts and prayers of billions of people on this planet, and compassionate enough that He cares? Or do we fit Him into the American model, in which it’s up to us to muddle our way through as best we can (praying harder, being faithful smarter, failing because we don’t meet up to His expectations)?

I painted Bold Innocence with the trust and confidence of the young child in mind. Little children know full well they are just that – little children – but this does not stop them from turning to the trusted adults in their lives with their requests (often loudly and repetitively made), confident that those trusted adults can be just that: trusted. A young child’s trust is bold, not from some misplaced confidence in their own ability to get their way if they just figure out the system, but from their humility, their vulnerability, their innocence.

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Bold Innocence by Steve Henderson