Remember this! Whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it (Luke 18:17).

As a preschool teacher, I'm in a position to give, receive and observe many lessons. Often these lessons are universal and apply to adults just as aptly as to children. Here are some examples I've discovered over the years:

Rejoice in learning new things. It takes time and effort to learn to pump yourself on a swing; but how freeing it is to soar independently, without having to cajole someone into pushing you.

Revisit the familiar. Children love to sing songs and hear stories they know over and over. Treasured memories resonate for adults as we sing favorite hymns and hear familiar Bible stories with mature understanding.

Forgive quickly and thoroughly. One girl was bossing another too much, and the second girl blurted, "You're not my friend any more!" After a teacherly nudge, both said "I'm sorry," and skipped off arm-in-arm, laughing. (Their story HAS repeated itself a few times.)

Sometimes we have to do things we don't want to do (like cleaning up our own messes). After putting dozens of tiny blocks back into the container repeatedly, the children have gradually learned not to dump toys out unless they actually want to use them. They are also learning that it is easier to clean up one mess at a time, rather than facing a tangled pile of messes.

We can stay in the game even if we aren't perfect. After acting out the Christmas story with costumes during "Bible Time," several children kept the skit going into free time. Tori's star-tinsel halo slipped and tilted on her head, but she kept going and fulfilled her angel role to the end.

Keep an open mind. Braelyn was proud of being able to write her name. Sometimes she would write "BRAELYN," but just as often she would write "NYLEARB." Left to right, right to left, when you're five either way works. Considering problems in flexible, open-minded ways may result in unexpected solutions.

Find joy in creating and imagining. One morning Caleb said, "We're sky walkers. We need to watch out for people shooting fireworks!" As Christians are we, indeed, "skywalkers" and not of this world?

Let go of small disappointments. One boy used 20 minutes of play time fussing that he wasn't the FIRST driver of the child-sized ice cream truck. Suddenly free play ended and he'd lost his chance to play anything at all.

Even fairy princesses need practical skills. During a dress-up play session, one girl wore the fairy princess costume, complete with iridescent wings and a tiara, yet played with the "business" props, efficiently folding papers into envelopes.

Thank God for ordinary, yet profound blessings. When making individual prayer books, one boy dictated, "Thank you, God, for the ABC's." As a literal thinker, he may have been referring to the plastic alphabet set that sits on the school windowsill. Yet his words reminded me how precious these letters are, whether they are preserving wisdom from the past, or letting us email distant friends.

Another child dictated, "Thank you, God, that I can love you." How many hundred times have we said, "Thank you, God, for loving me?" What a humble insight, to be thankful that God allows us to love HIM. Perhaps this is the child-like humility that can receive the Kingdom of God.