The Camel and the Eye Hole

I love teaching children!

Ok, so I just love teaching in general, but I REALLY love teaching children.  There is an open-ness of their hearts that is unparalleled in any other age group.  It's what I always imagine Jesus was thinking when he told us that we need to receive the Kingdom of God like a child.

It is also fitting that tonight, when I noticed this difference between adults and children so profoundly, we learned about the Rich Young Ruler, which is the very next story in the book of Luke.

God had tonight's plans already completed, but hadn't shared them with me.  In fact, I started my night with the kids frantically thinking and searching.  But like I said, God had it all taken care of.

We began the evening with our normal routine of reviewing the story video and practicing the Bible Verse and The Point, then went to snack.  I had found a 'game' outline online to try and got it ready, but I was concerned about how it would work out.

The idea behind this game was to have one child 'purchase' various boxes with labels attached, then put them in a backpack and try to get through a tiny space while wearing the backpack, illustrating the Camel and Needle concept.  Well, I didn't have play money AND I wanted to involve all the kids AND I didn't want to wrap all those boxes, so I switched it up a little -

I have 'Tribes' in my class - my group is divided into 4 tribes, each with a tribe leader.  The tribes are small groups.  They always stay the same, and the leaders (older students) are encouraged to get to know more about the kids and really bond with them.  So, each tribe came back from snack to find 5 gold coins in their space. (I use these coins in a variety of ways - they are common items for us)  They were instructed to work as a group to choose 5 items from the room that they would like to purchase or take home with them.  I was concerned about what they would choose and whether it would fill my backpack enough.

I shouldn't have worried.

God took over at this point.

The first item brought to the front of the class was the new 5ft. wooden cross.  The second item was the green butterfly chair.  The third item was our 4ft carnival tiger.  It was going to work out just fine.....  :)

We filled the backpack to the point of barely zipping, then the kids took turns putting it on and attempting to crawl under the chair I was sitting in.  (Actually, my daughter and I were BOTH in the chair to keep it on the floor as they struggled to get through!)

 There were some close calls - two children almost made it through - determined little stinkers!  LOL

But my favorite part was when a girl made the connection to the story before I ever went there through our talk time!  She was so excited about the connection when she got it!

We settled back down and I emptied the backpack and asked if they thought they could put it on and get through this time - of course they could!

"Like the camel and the eye hole!" one young guy blurted.  Yep!  That's exactly it!

There's a camel in the eye-hole, dear Liza, dear Liza
There's a camel in the eye-hole, dear Liza, a camel! - yes, I really sang it!  :)


We talked and we talked.  They stayed close and engaged as they lounged around among all the items they had 'purchased' earlier.  We talked about the things we own.  We talked about toys and video games and tv.

Then we talked about friends and family.

I challenged the kids to identify one item that they use too much and they could put aside so they would have more time to work on their personal relationships.

I even went as far as to talk about how God will let them know what that item is the next time they play with it!  Then we talked about what it 'feels' like when we get a whisper from God - and the kids already knew what it felt like for them, because they had heard from God before!  :)


I am so excited to hear about their weeks this Sunday!  I have some kids who are on fire and I get so psyched hearing about their interactions with God!


But what about you?

What do you have in your life that is getting in the way of building a deeper relationship with those in you family, friends, and neighborhood?  What could YOU put away for a while so that you could detox from it for a while?

I know that God will talk to you about it just like I know He will talk to the kids.

Are you ready to hear what He has to say today?

A Small Gesture Brings Huge Reward

God works in awesome ways.

God also works in some very interesting ways.

I have an 'interesting' story...

To give some back story, we have to go back about 10 years or so to when the Easter teaching product 'Resurrection Eggs' entered the market.  I bought them and loved them and used them a lot - I have 2 sets, even, because they are so awesome!

The one project for Easter that I have always wanted to do was to use egg cartons and plastic eggs to recreate a version of the Resurrection Eggs as a craft project.  If kids were to create it themselves, they would buy into it much more and take the lessons to another level!  But...  the small plastic items found inside are impossible or expensive.  I hadn't found another option for replacing these items, so the project has been tabled - for 10 years!

A couple of months ago, one of our local sister churches, Walnut Lawn, donated large boxes of take-out containers to us.  There were clear plastic square containers, large styrofoam drink cups, lids, and straws.  Awesome gift!  Just after we received them, we did a Shrinky Dink activity and in my research, I found out that those clear plastic containers were made of the same material as sheets of Shrinky Dinks!  Yep!  I gave each kid a container and we experimented and had fun with them!  For some kids it was the first time they had ever experienced Shrinky Dinks.  For others, it was a creative challenge.  It was fun.  First craft I have ever had to stop after 2 hours due to time constraints -
we had to EAT!  LOL

Tracing and Coloring

Going back to how God works, when I revisited the Resurrection Eggs, planning for Easter, I again got the desire to use them as a craft/teaching activity so that they could share the story at home.  Then it hit me - Shrinky Dinks!  We could make 'charms' of the items instead of purchasing the plastic figures!  I stopped for a minute because those sheets of Shrinky Dinks that you buy in the store can be expensive and we were talking about 3 sheets per child.  The Holy Spirit whispered in my ear at this point, "clear plastic containers..." and we were off to the races!  We had so many of those things and we hadn't really had a use for them.  Each container would give 2 charms, so 4 per kid would work....  Yep - we made that craft out    of take-home boxes!

But that's not the end of the story.  We did our activity.  We made the Resurrection Eggs and I sent the kids home.  And you know how it is - some of the kids caught the vision and some didn't, but I had one come back with the greatest story.

A young girl about 4 years old and only attending for a couple of months took her eggs home and was ready to change the world.  She used them to tell the story to her mom, to her grandma, and to all her neighborhood friends.  She took the eggs to daycare and shared the story with all her friends there.  She took it to her grandpa's house and shared it with him, too.  This tiny girl took the story of the last week of Jesus's life and share it and its meaning to all those in her sphere of influence.  Every person she comes in contact with knows the story of the eggs.

Here is one of the students sharing the
Resurrection Eggs with first-time visitors!

All because a church with leftovers listened to the Holy Spirit's prodding to give the extras to a small church plant.

All because those with abundance shared what they had.

God used take-home boxes to spread the gospel.
This little girl used a dozen plastic eggs to share Jesus's story.
If you are reading this, you probably already know the story, and know it well.
          What about YOUR sphere of influence?  Do they all know the story?
                         There's a reason Jesus says that we need to be like little children......

Jungle Jill Is A Big Ol' Meanie!

Last night, to illustrate Ash Wednesday and the beginning of the Lenten season, I put my Jungle kids through an emotional wringer.  We started our evening normally, then I had them all sit down and got serious.  I read Romans 3:23, ...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God - then proceeded to tell them how they have been eternally separated from God with this sin and that I was going to brand them so that they never forgot.  I tied a piece of cloth around each wrist (note to self - make them longer next year) with the word SINNER written on them big and bold.  I tied them so they could not be slipped off and double knotted so they wouldn't untie.  I then went through each of the Ten Commandments and told them how they have broken almost every one of them, and really honed-in on some of the 'easier' ones that kids would recognize.  At the end I just dismissed them - I just stopped and waved them off and said, 'Go to snack - just go to snack - ' like I was writing them off, like I didn't care.  I didn't tell them how to fix it, how to make it better - I just sent them away.

They didn't know what to do.  They had endured the 'mean' part well and were, I think, looking forward to the part where I told them how to make it better, but I didn't.  I didn't fix it.  I didn't tell them how to fix it.  I just sent them away.  When they were all in the other room I shut the door and about died.  I broke character at last.  That was when my daughter, a seventh-grader who helps me with video and sound, turned on me incredulously - 'Wow, mom!  That was intense!' - so I know I did my job.  Even she got caught up in the moment and didn't recognize it as a teaching exercise.  So I encouraged her to go into the next room and watch what they had planned next.

In the next room, they were being guided through a lesson on baptism - both with water and with the Holy Spirit.  They learned that when we make Jesus the leader of their life (which we talk about every week) the Holy Spirit will cleanse us from our sins and then we show our church family what happened on the inside by being baptized with water in front of everyone so they can celebrate how God has made us a new, clean creation!  I had prepared a 'fat quarter' of beige cloth with 'SINNER' on it and written all sorts of sins children are familiar with all over it.  This cloth was dipped in water as the teacher talked and the words began to fade away. (she was interested in how the phrase 'IDOLOTRY - putting other things before God in our lives' was the last one to fade)  The cloth was clean.  Then each child was able to dip his/her bracelet into water and be cleansed of the sin I had marked them with.

 It was cleansing not only to their cloths, but also to their hearts.  As one child moved from my room to the snack lesson (his mother teaches it) he was crying, ran to her and clung to her and said, "I don't want to come back here any more!"  But after her lesson he felt much better and said he wasn't mad at me any more!  :)  It was intense.  We have spent the past two weeks touching on what Lent is and what it means and that it started with Ash Wednesday, but I believe I set the stage for a season of preparing for Easter in a way I have never attempted before.  God has lead me to do this with my group.  I believe there is some big growth He has in store for these kids during this season.

And I did wrap all this up at the end of the evening - we talked through the what and why of the lesson and then I showered them all with Valentine's Day gifts to let them know I love them very much.  It was a great night!  :)  And as hard as it was to be such a big meanie, if it means someone makes a step closer to understanding their need to make Jesus the leader of their life, then it was worth it...

Oh - and my teacher helper says she videotaped the whole thing, knowing what I was going to be doing.  Talk about a meanie!  That is one video I do NOT want to watch!

Venue Change?

We are two years into our church plant - two years since our family of 5 parachute-dropped into our little town.  I would love to share with you how we are averaging 200 people in church on Sunday mornings, we are totally self-supporting, that we have savings building for our next church plant in Missouri, and all sorts of other normal numbers 'wins', but that is not the case.  In the past two years, if nothing else, I have learned to count 'wins' by something other than the numbers! (but that's another blog)

So for the past two years I have been church planting.  When I go to the grocery store, I have been constantly aware of those around me - always eager for an opportunity to share God's love.  When I go to a ball game, when I attend a school meeting - always eager for the opportunities that God has been abundant in providing.  Along the way, I also developed a Children's Ministry.  Jeff was a wonderful help, but my work in Children's Ministry was always an 'also'.  I was a church planter and 'also' a children's pastor.

These past couple of weeks, with the second anniversary of our drop, I have noticed a specific shift in my life (yes, life - my ministry IS my life.  There is no 'at work' and 'off work')  I have finally become a Children's Pastor and 'also' a church planter!

Today, for the first time in many months, I woke up, ran an errand with Jeff, then went to the office and STAYED THERE ALL DAY working on nothing but things that were on my 'to do' list!  I actually got started on a project that I have had on my list for over a year!  Almost two, even!

Then, at the end of the day, I came home with NOTHING on my plate to get done ASAP - I was able to play on the internet for fun - to read a few articles on Children's Ministry - to research fun places to eat and play in Florida when we go later this month for a conference.  All unplanned.  All spontaneous.  All simply let by rest and relaxation.

My shoulders haven't been this loose in months!

I feel like I have a new job, when really, I am just more free to do the one I was created to do!  Instead of adults, I can now focus on the kids I see around me.  I can go for a walk in the park and stop to watch the kids play and share some of my 'sharing toys' I keep with me.  I can spend time meeting with school officials about how I can best serve them and the kids.

I am so excited!!!

Thank-you, God for the renewed energy and excitement even with no 'normal' changes.  Usually this kind of excitement and renewal comes with a move or a job change.  Not this time.  So wonderful!!!

What a Wonderful World This Would Be!

It's late on Sunday night/ Monday morning.  I'm working on a project for Bethany's teacher for this week - it's a tough week in most classrooms.  Only a few days left - kids are all excited and worked-up for Christmas - parents are stressed, which puts the kids even more on edge....  so I am cutting and cutting and cutting to help out and do my share.

The other day on Facebook I had a friend make a comment about how busy my schedule is - how there is always something I am working on or responsible for...  That used to be very true, but things are a little slower these days - I'm not working in the schools 40 hours a week on top of everything else like I used to do!  :)  But we still stay pretty busy around here - it's what we do - it's how God made us.

While I am working in the house, whether it is on the computer or cutting paper sacks, I like to have videos playing.  Mostly they are background noise - I pick videos I have seen before and use them more like a book on tape or an old-time radio show and listen more than watch.  I am currently into a series called 'Lie to Me'.  (Thanks, Corey....I love it!)  Tonight, while I was watching, the main character said, "You have to realize that your talent doesn't belong to you anymore!!!"  Wow.  I felt as if I had just been blown over - I really believe the Holy Spirit just 'WHOOSHED' right into me to make a point:

MY TALENTS DO NOT BELONG TO ME

I was created by God and given talents to use.  But these talents, these gifts, are not mine - they are God's gifts and talents.  He is just letting me use them..... FOR HIM!

I'm crafty.  I love to make and create.  How often do I use this talent to help someone find their way  back to God.

I tend to be insightful.  I can often 'tell' what a person is thinking or feeling even if their words are the opposite.  How often do I use this gift to help someone find their way back to God?

I have a lot of training for working with children with disabilities.  I have a lot of training for working with parents.  How often do I use this training to help someone find their way back to God?

Isn't that what we are supposed to be doing with the gifts and talents and opportunities God gives us?  We were created by God - we were all once with Him.  Finding our way back to Him is the most precious thing that can happen in our lives.  Are we sharing that goal, that journey, with those around us?  Are we helping others find THEIR way back to God?

I do a little - I like to help out at school because I am drawn to kids - because I have a better chance of finding out ways I can use my gifts and talents to help - because I can cheer and encourage the teachers and staff through small gifts and smiles.

What would it look like if we all used our gifts and talents this way?  What if I kept that goal at the FRONT of my thoughts instead of the back of my mind?  The line of a song is running through my head.... "What a wonderful world this would be...."

God's Beauty Found in a Halloween Costume

Isn't this the most precious thing?!?!  I missed it the first time, but there is even a little dog sitting next to the little girl dressed as a bumblebee!

When I saw this, first I just went, "AWWWWW!"  Then I heard all kinds of thoughts go through my head - how this image just screams out what a wonderful job this couple is doing raising their little girl and how this family costume says it all.

I'm a person who likes to put abstract ideas into concrete images, so let me share what I saw in this picture.

There sits little Violet.  Yes, her name is really Violet!  (hence, the costumes!)  Violet is a fragile, beautiful, precious little thing that God brought into this couple's life.  I know He was thinking of these two beautiful people as He created Violet - He had to have been!

Now, I could go on all day about this family, and I intend to talk about them a lot, but I want to start by talking about flowers - especially violets - and what they need to survive.

Flowers need water - plain and simple.  They cannot survive without it.  It keeps them supple, yet it gives them the strength they need to stand tall and stand strong in the world they face every day.  Without good, clean water a flower cannot process its food.

Flowers need sunlight - they cannot survive without the sun.  Sunlight and water combine within a flower to produce the food it needs to live.  Without the sun a vulnerable flower cannot grow to it's potential - it cannot become the flower God intended for it.  If it survives at all, it would be weak and pale and nothing at all like its intended beauty.

Flowers also need bees.  Yuck!  But it's true.  Bees take bits of the sweet goodness that is within the flower and share it with other flowers so they all can grow and reproduce.  The one flower itself does not need the bee to live and be beautiful, but to be all it was intended, a flower needs a bee.

God provided these things for this beautiful Violet when He sent her to this couple!

Look at mom - a watering can.  I remember when she left the job she loved as a teacher.   Almost overnight, she walked away from her career when God put Violet in their life.  She refocused her life for Violet.  This mom literally is pouring her life into this beautiful little girl.  Every day she spends her time making sure Violet get what she needs.  Mom's whole life is focused on one thing right now:  that Violet is taken care of.

I love how Mom is dressed AS the watering can, not just holding the watering can.  This isn't a role she can put down and walk away from - this is who she is at the moment.  This role she has chosen is one that she doesn't set down when it gets heavy or difficult - it is who she is.  Her role doesn't end when she leaves Violet in others' hands for a while.  She is still Violet's main lifestrength.  What she is pouring into this little one is making her strong and allowing all the wonderfulness in her life to sink down into the core of who she is and who she will become.  Without this wonderful water, Violet could never take what is provided for her to its full use.

Then there is Dad dressed as the sun.  What a wonderful provider he is to be able to allow Mom to stay home with Violet.  He makes sure she has all she needs - shelter, food, and lots of love.  I think I've only met Dad in passing once or twice, but I know that he is doing great things for his family.  His love and care, protection, and hard work are providing the basics necessary for mom to be able to pour all of herself into this beautiful Violet to help her grow into a strong woman.

And Violet needs her dad.  More and more, research is showing how important a dad is to a child's life.  Dads are the ones who instill modesty into a young girl.  Dads are the backbone.  Dads bring the morals.  Moms grow them and refine them, but those basics are actually brought in by the dads.  Dads are lifeshapers!  Just as the sun is needed to make a flower all that it was intended to be, so a dad will bring out all a child is intended to be. 

Then we bring in the little bee... what a cute little thing.  And what an awesome first friend for Violet.  This little dog will help teach Violet how to be a good friend - how to spread her love for her family and her love for God to others around her.  As Violet grows she will learn to be gentle, to sometimes give space to those around her when they need it, to spend time with, and to care for others in her life.  This little dog will help her learn to look outside of herself to see others and how she can help care for them. 

Then there is just the overall beauty of the picture.  All these elements working together to not only create a beautiful flower, but also a beautiful picture of life.  This is a family working to create beauty in their child and those around them.  As this mom and dad work to raise Violet, their care will spill over into their neighborhood and town, making it healthier and better.  It makes me want to live next door!

Oh, if only God guided the hands of all those around us, what a beautiful world we would life in!  That just challenges me all the more to shine strong and water abundantly - to do what God has asked me to do in such a way that I strengthen those in my care, spill over into the world around me, and choke out the weeds around me through His love!

I challenge you, moms and dads, to take a moment to ponder your role in the lives of your children.  None of us is perfect, but how are you doing, really, being sunlight and water for your kids?  Allow God to speak to you.  He may give you a big 'Well Done!" or he may give you a nudge.  Listen to Him.  And remember - the lives you are pouring into right now will shape the world in the future.  Love on those kiddos - it makes all the world a better place! 

In the Beginning

It has been an amazing few weeks - giving definite confirmation that God is behind RFamily and leading the way!
Let me take you back to June last year when we first came to Republic to pray over God's leading.  During our visit, God led us to an empty storefront on the north end of town and clearly led us to housing on the north end.  When final decisions had been made, Jeff made another trip down with new eyes.  The empty site had been rented, which was a disappointment, but we both knew God was in control.  Sure enough - as we searched, visited, and prayed over sites, we kept returning to that original storefront.  Then one day last week Jeff noticed that the current renter was moving out and made the important phone call - sure enough - it was available.  We knew it was a gift from God so we jumped on it!  Last Wednesday evening we began moving in.  Then the REAL whirlwind began!
When we moved-in, I noticed that the next-door business had a dog grooming as a side, so I went to check it out and met a great lady who owns the place - she has been awesome about encouraging us and has introduced us to several potential people we can help and reach!  So through her we have added 8 new contacts into our database - with more to come as we get contact information!
THEN - we went looking for office panels - you know the ones... the cubicle walls.  Jeff thought he had a lead, but it fell through, so we went searching again and found SUCH a deal!  A used place had a lot of older walls they wanted to get rid of, so we grabbed it!  $100 for what ended up being 34 panels!  Quite a deal considering that most used panels are running around that much just for ONE!
Oh - and I forgot the deal of 4 matching chairs (just need some paint on wood to match colors) for just $20!
Then we went to Lowe's to buy paint and were able to purchase upper-grade premium paint for the cost of the lower-grade paint!  Because it is so deep in color, it is taking 2 coats, but I can't even imagine how many coats the other paint would have taken!!!
Then today, when we went to church at a sister church in Springfield, the people were so absolutely welcoming!  The leadership team of the church had been informed that we were coming, so it was much easier than it could have been.  Many people seem to believe that their members who live in Republic will switch, but we tried to make it very clear that we weren't going to try or expect that.  We also got the name of a family (from the grandma) to pursue LOL  AND the youth team is expecting us on Wednesday nights - they want to 'be' our youth group while we get going.
I am just so overwhelmed by the blessings God is sending our way - I feel so absolutely wonderful and special to be able to be a part of His plans!
Please continue to pray for us - the hard work is just getting going.  We will haul the kids up to Springfield for Youth and Kids groups on Wednesday night and we will begin our Family Groups this Sunday night.  Here we go!  Time to hang on for the ride!