One of the happiest moments of parenthood is when your child utters his or her first word. Maybe it's "dada," or "mama," or "no," or "Harley Davidson Heritage Softtail Classic," but sooner or later all children begin to talk with a single, simple word.

At first they mostly use words that to strangers sound only like sounds. But to Dad and Mom, the sounds have meaning. They understand exactly what their child is saying.

"Googoo," elicits the response, "Ahhh, you want to crawl into my lap and let me rock you to sleep." "Booboo," brings forth, "Oh, you hurt yourself. Let me kiss it and make it better." "Moomoo," unmistakably means, "You're hungry, aren't you? Let me get you some yummy milk!" And "Poopoo," causes even the bravest of dads to respond, "Uh-oh, let me get your mother."

It's not long before our children are stringing words together to form whole sentences. But about age two the tables turn. Now the kid that once struggled to communicate a single word won't be quiet. He or she talks all the time. Suddenly this little person is saying hundreds and thousands of words most in the form of questions.

Upon seeing little junior hurl his action figure at Rover, a parent cautions, "Don't throw your toys at the doggie." To which little junior replies, "Why?"

"Because it might hurt him." "Why?" "Because he's smaller than you." "Why?" "Because that's the way God made him." "Why?" "Because that's just the way it is." "Why?" "Because it just is." "Why?" "Just because!" You get the picture.

This nonstop-talkative stage goes on for about 12 years and then another phenomenon takes place when they turn 13 – teenagers actually revert back to single word sentences.

"How was school today?" "Fine." "What did you learn?" "Nothing." "Do you have a lot of homework?" "No." "Can you mow the grass Saturday?" "No." "Do you feel okay?" "Yes." "Is this conversation boring you?" "Yes."

And then around age 15 or 16, kids revert back even farther too once again uttering unintelligible sounds primarily under their breath.

"How was school today?" "urgh." "What do you want for dinner?" "urgh. "Are you doing anything this weekend?" "urgh." "What did you say?" "urgh." "I can't hear you." "URGH!" "Is this conversation boring you?" "urgh."

I can't help but wonder if this is the path our conversations with God take. When we first begin to follow him we won't shut up. We talk to him all the time. Praying, asking, sharing, singing - mainly because we haven't learned different. We relate to God just like we relate to one another.

But the longer we follow him, the more jaded we become, the more we think we know it all, and the less we talk to him. Now we tend to only speak when spoken to and only then if it's convenient. We only initiate conversation when we're in trouble or hurting.

Yet at the heart of what it means to be a Christian is the direct promise from God that we can correspond with him, interact with him, relate to him, talk with him, and hear from him.

The more you listen to God the more you will discover him to be surprisingly talkative – through Scripture, in nature, through wise friends, in circumstances, through his abundant provision, through his Spirit, and in a thousand other ways.

Gothard is Senior Pastor of New Community Church in Elizabeth City and can be reached at 75vette@coastalnet.com