Faith Crisis? Don’t Stop Now. You’re Almost There.

I have many friends who are facing a faith crisis -- some in their health, their finances, their relationships and/or simply fear for what the future holds. After all, if we watched and listened to the news long enough, and believed it – we could all take a tail spin.
It's not that we don't believe in God or believe His Word. It is that our symptoms are speaking louder than our faith. Let's stop and consider that there is nothing too difficult for the great "I AM" Who is our Lord God. Let's strengthen our resolve to truly believe Him for complete restoration in His perfect timing. Let's be strong and immovable! Let's just BREATHE and have FAITH that God is working out everything for the best!

We know that this isn’t the end of our story. It’s a chapter in our story, and there are other chapters to write after this one. Our Savior isn’t a cold-hearted cosmic judge disconnected from our pain. He’s a loving Father and Friend who is walking with us and even carrying us through life’s most difficult times. Jesus said, “Never will I leave you or forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5)

On this side of eternity, we don’t always see how God takes the broken pieces and creates something beautiful with them, but we can have the assurance in knowing that He will redeem the circumstances somehow in His perfect timing. Perhaps some of the good He'll bring is using the pain to bring us closer to Him. At the end of each day, we can still proclaim: "God is good. All the time. And, all the time, God is good!" So don't stop now. Just breathe. Keep having strong FAITH that everything will work out for the best. You're almost to your miracle!

Psalm 107:19-21 "Then they cried out to the Lord because of their problems. And He saved them from their troubles. He gave His command and healed them. He saved them from the grave. Let them give thanks to the Lord for His faithful love. Let them give thanks for the miracles He does for his people."

What is it Like to be You?

We’ve all played “ice breaker” games with a group of people who we may know very little about. It’s a great way to get to know each other in a very open environment. But, instead of the usual questions: “What do you do for fun? What was your most embarrassing moment? What was your favorite vacation?”, what if this question were asked: “What is it like to be you?”

I assure you – it would depend on how we felt physically, mentally, socially, economically, relationally, and spiritually on that given day. If we felt good – no real aches or pains; if we were calm and at peace in our souls; if we were in a happy place with our spouse or friends; loved our job, and if we were in a right place with God, our answer may be something like: “It is great to be me because I am healthy, my family loves me, I have great friends, an awesome job, and God is so good to me!”

Good answer -- on a good day! And, if it were a faith confession of "speaking of things that be not as though they were" (Romans 4:17) -- it would still be a good answer. I may have answered it differently last week after recovering from a minor surgery. I developed an excruciating, painful skin issue. Having cloth of any kind next to my skin hurt beyond explanation (good thing I was alone). If I had been asked “What is it like to be you?”, though I would have tried desperately to describe myself in a faith-filled, upbeat, hallelujah voice, if I were honest to the bone, I would have told you that I felt miserable and in pain like I have never known. Being me would have come down to what I felt in that one season of time. I thought how I have taken my good health for granted. I thought about those who were living their lives without a thought about how good they feel and for those who were in far more pain than I was in. But fast forward to today when there is no more pain and suffering, I’d tell you “My life is like birds singing, bells ringing, blue skies, raindrops on roses, whiskers on kittens, and walking on sunshine.”

This experience made me realize that I don’t want to take God and His blessings for granted in any way. God is good. Really, really, really good…..all the time!" Nothing that comes our way in this one life, is surprising to God. Why He allows us to experience tough times is up to Him – there is always a reason. Whether or not we understand His reasons, we must remember that God is good, just, loving, and merciful. When bad things happen to us that we simply don't understand, instead of doubting God’s goodness, our reaction should be to trust Him. “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5–6). I was saying that scripture a lot last week.

The best news of all is this one life here on earth is short-lived in light of eternity. It is the ensuring that whatever this life looks like here is nothing to be compared to what our lives will look like in heaven. As it has been written: "What no eye has seen, and no ear has heard, and has not entered into heart of man, what God has prepared for those who love Him." 1 Corinthians 2:9

So, in reply to “What is it like to be you?”, I’m saying it is a blessed life of living one day at a time, embracing each and every moment of it, celebrating that I’m a child of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. In sickness and in health, in death, we will never part….because He’s prepared a heavenly place for me……and YOU! And, then, when asked "What is it like to be you?", our answer will always...for eternity be...."HEAVENLY!"

When Life is Sad – God is Good

I just can’t help myself. The inspirations at VBS keep coming so I must keep sharing! This has been a week of watching so many precious children get all caught up in God’s goodness and yesterday was off the charts. We had a departure of wandering in the wilderness with the Israelites to a day that was all about Jesus. Rather than the boisterous exclamation “God is good”, this day our theme was “When life is sad – God is good” so in our Faith Station, we whispered those words. It’s amazing how children respond to the atmosphere they’re in and this day, the atmosphere was created by the wooden cross in front of the sun (how appropriate – the sun was the spotlight for THE SON!), that was enhanced by the little strands of lights and ivy. We were amazed at the somber posture the kids took on as soon as they saw the cross. They respected it.

On a personal note, I came into yesterday’s VBS Faith Station in prayer for a dear cousin who was having serious brain surgery at the same time. I’ll be honest with you – though I was absolutely in a positive “Do not fear – only believe” mindset, still I thought about the theme “When life is sad – God is good” and wondered if God was giving me that theme just in case the surgery didn’t go as well as expected. But, thanks be to God, at 11:10 am, I heard from his sister who said all went well and heading to recovery..."Praise God!” But I wonder, had it been the other way, I think that I had been so immersed in the goodness of God this week – that I would have still exclaimed: “God is good”!

This day was all about Jesus Who was on the earth to show us God’s goodness and love. We talked to the kids about betrayal and how Jesus knew He was going to be betrayed. We asked them the question: “If you knew that something really bad was going to happen to you at a certain place, would you still go there? What would you do?” The common answer was “Stay at home!” From our script: “But, Jesus went to the garden even though He knew something terrible would happen. He was betrayed, arrested and He knew He’d be beaten and mocked and He knew that after all that, He’d be crucified – nailed to a cross to die. Jesus’ friends and family watched it happen. Can you imagine? They were so upset and sad. Have you ever been sad? We’ve all gone through sad times, but we’re learning about God’s goodness and we’re learning that when ‘Life is sad – God is good’. Jesus was willing to die to take the punishment for our sins, the wrong things we do.”

Here, we gave each child a stone which represented their sins, and said, “You know, this stone kind of reminds me of sin. Stones are usually kind of dirty, aren’t they? That’s like sin. Sin makes our hearts dirty, and if our hearts are dirty, we can’t be close to God. Sin separates us from God. Another thing about a stone is that it’s hard. Is anyone’s stone soft? No? That’s like sin, too. Sin can make our hearts hard. It can make us turn away from God. Remember Pharaoh? His heart was hard, and he turned away from God. What if you had to carry the weight of every sin, every day of your life? Imagine how heavy that would get. But Jesus made a way for us to be forgiven of our sins. When Jesus died on the cross, He took the punishment for our sins. We don’t have to carry them anymore. Jesus overcame the world! Let’s ask Jesus to forgive us for our sins.” Then we invited the children to place their stone in the basket in front of the cross as a symbol of their being forgiven.

The simple message of the cross. In children’s language – young and old. It is the same message no matter what age we are. This blog today is even longer than my usual lengthy blog, but perhaps there are those that need to see how simple it is to turn over a new leaf by receiving Christ into your heart. We walked the children over to the chapel where they sat in adoration of our Savior. I was amazed at the reverence and tenderness of each child. Yesterday, my blog was about the open arms of Jesus to children when He said, “Let the little children come to me and forbid them not,” and I believe He has His arms open wide for you today. Our chapel speaker said these words: “Jesus loves us so much that He was willing to be nailed to a cross so He could forgive our heavy sins. What amazing love! Remember what amazing love He has for you. It was a sad, sad day when Jesus died. But we know that when life is sad…..God is good! And God was very good because that wasn’t the end of the story. On the third day after Jesus died a few of His friends went to the tomb and were amazed. There was an angel in the tomb who said, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead.” Luke 24:5-7

Because of Jesus, we can remember that God is good, even when life is sad. Jesus gives us a reason to celebrate every day! And, that, my friends, is the Gospel message that is as fresh today as it was on the day of Christ’s resurrection. It is so fresh that it is a brand new day that affords a brand new start for children of all ages. If this blog is nudging you toward the cross, you can thank all these precious children for it as scriptures says: “A little child shall lead them…….” Isaiah 11:6

Grumbling, Murmuring, and Whining -- Sound Familiar?

On the way home from VBS yesterday, I called a friend and immediately she began to tell me that she wasn’t in a happy place right now. She wasn't feeling the "sunshine on a cloudy day" at all! Lots of "life" stuff had her in a pinch. On the contrary, I was in a happy place. I was still basking in the “rush” of having been with kindergarten through fifth-grade kids all morning who were learning “When life is unfair; God is good” and “When life is scary; God is good” and “When life changes; God is good”. On top of that, I was still in the afterglow of having been in their presence of joy, often hilarious antics, and, the best part was seeing them grasp the message that no matter what we face in life – GOD IS GOOD”.

So I said to my friend: “You know what – you need to hang out with some kids to get your joy back. Her reply back to me? “Maybe that’s why Jesus kept wanting kids around Him!” WOW! I had an “aha” moment of Mark 10:13-16 which should be in neon lights: “People were bringing little children to Jesus for Him to place His hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, He was indignant. He said to them, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone, who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it’, and He took the children in His arms, placed His hands on them and blessed them.”

Can’t you just imagine, in the company of all the misfit disciples, the self-righteous religious folks, the demon-possessed, mean, mean, angry people, along with those who were very sick and even dead – that Jesus would jump at the chance to hang out with precious little children when they came to Him? I can almost see Him putting out His arms to push everyone else back and open His arms up with gratitude for the breath of fresh air that those children brought to Him. So, no wonder I write this blog and impress upon those who are down, weary, and worn to spend some time with care-free, joy-filled children. Let their care-free hearts and joy-filled spirits rub off on you.

Yesterday’s VBS theme was “When change comes, God is good!” The Israelites met up with many changes – escaping Egypt, the miracle of the Red Sea parting and walking through on dry ground. But just three days into their journey and without water, they were murmuring, grumbling and whining. Then they came upon the Oasis of Marah, but the water was so bitter that it was “yucky”! So they complained even more. God told Moses to throw a stick in the water and it was pure and refreshing. Another miracle. Then they were so hungry and God sent manna to them overnight. Another miracle. The kids loved the action of tasting the water and the manna (we used potato flakes). Another miracle. One little girl raised her hand and said “It tastes like the Body of Christ!” Oh, my heart was full.

Just think about Jesus rebuking His disciples when they wanted the children to go away. It was no small rebuke: when Mark relayed the story, he said that *Jesus was indignant…” He wasn’t simply annoyed, or just slightly bothered. He was incensed that His disciples came to a conclusion that sought to exclude children from His presence! Why? Because all of us matter to Him. No matter their age or status (or lack thereof), He is not too important, too busy, too taxed, or too powerful, even for children. In fact, it’s just the opposite: He values and loves children, and seeks to bless them.

The last verse of that scripture says: Jesus took the little children “in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.” I like to think that God is smiling down BIG on those of us who are being Jesus hands and feet at VBS this week. Maybe it would be in your best interest to look for ways to be around sweet children, too! I promise you – you will be far more blessed than you can imagine. God specializes in child-care and I’m thinking…..so do I.

ROAR -- When Life is Wild -- God is Good!

Last year I heard about the exciting and fun-filled times that were had by the kids and the adult and teen volunteers at Vacation Bible School at my church. With all that enthusiasm, I didn’t want to miss out this year so early on, I enlisted! And, I am so glad I did. Today is the third day and, I’ll be honest, I think I'm getting as much out of this week as the kids are. I am on a “Faith Station” team with another adult volunteer and three teen volunteers who make up the narrators, actors and prop crew. There are four other Faith Station teams who also teach individual groups of kindergarteners through 5th grade. So altogether, we work with about 400 kids a day and then pre-school has another group of children.

There are 440 kids, 158 teen volunteers, and 155 adults. The VBS theme is ROAR and we are having a ROAR-ing great time. If you went to VBS as a kid, you’ll probably remember some of the fun, and most importantly, you probably remember the impact of hearing the messages of faith and overcoming life’s challenges. Like me, you were probably left with an indelible imprint of a time when your life-course pointed in the direction of following Christ the rest of your life.

We all have said, at one time or another, “God is good – all the time! All the time – God is good!” The theme of this VBS is built around those words. Some times we mindlessly say those words – but this week, I’m seeing those words go to a whole new level as we declare: “When life is wild – God is good!” And, as we all know – YES, life can get pretty wild! The building is covered in wild African animal prints and cut-outs, waterfalls, grass, skies, sun, and African jungle music is being played and relatable songs are sung with lots of hilarious shenanigan moments.

Monday, our Wild Bible Adventure theme was “When life is unfair – God is good!” It took us back to a time when the Israelites were enslaved by the Egyptians. After 400 years of horrific slavery, Moses was trying to work to make things better for them, but his efforts made Pharaoh really angry! So he punished God’s chosen people even more! It was so unfair! I loved it when a 3rd-grade boy raised his hand and asked "Why didn't they move to America?"

The words, “When life is unfair – God is good”, were repeated through the morning assembly, the faith station, imagination station, music station, and the outdoor station. This is not my VBS from years ago – when flannel board figures were the highlight, as well as kool-aid and cookies. But, even in that “ancient” time, this little girl was impacted so much that here I am wanting to pass along the message. I would say that’s “seed time and harvest” – especially as I see these precious children soaking in the message of the goodness of God.

Yesterday’s theme was “When life is scary – God is good!” This day was about Moses continuing to beg Pharaoh to let God’s people go and each time he refused, another plague fell on the Egyptians. We meticulously, and hilariously led the kids through each of the ten plagues from the river turning into blood, to the last plague of the death of the firstborn Egyptian sons and the remarkable protection over all of the Israelites throughout each plague and the Passover.

This is just a brief overview of our first couple of days of pouring into these precious children the goodness of God in whatever situation they may be in. How’s that for empowering our kids during summer break for the next school year when they’ll come into plenty of opportunities to remember that God is so good no matter what they may face? It's a work-out, no doubt, but the rewards we reap, in the light of eternity, in focused training and disciple role modeling carries on from generation to generation. "We will tell the next generation about the Lord’s power and great deeds and the miraculous things he has done.” (Psalm 78:4)