Live It Out!

I LOVE teaching kindergartners in VBS (and Sunday School, too)! It’s fun adding new children during VBS to the ones I get to teach every week. The year we did Boomerang Express my room was filled not only with the “regulars” I see every Sunday, but with grandchildren, neighborhood friends, cousins, and even a number of children from a nearby day home for low-income families. Kemya came to my room from that latter group. She had a hard time connecting with the other children and teachers. Some of the children were even afraid of her. She was just one of those “hard to love” kids.
One day during Rec I saw Kemya sitting off to the side while the group played a game. I watched as Blair (one of my Sunday School “regulars”) walked over and sat with Kemya. Though I couldn’t hear what they said, they both returned to the group holding hands. An incredible change came over Kemya from that moment on. She had a new friend and a new perspective. Blair had taken what she knew about Jesus’ love and put it into action. She showed us all how to love one another.
Does faith have any place in the real world or is it just for Sunday mornings? Does your faith impact your life? Does it impact those around you? The answer is so simple that even a preschooler gets it. Blair did it without questioning… without even thinking. She just naturally connected faith and real life.
I thought about that memory often during the production of Big Apple Adventure: Where Faith and Life Connect. You know, the Bible has a lot to say about the role of faith in real life. James puts it this way: “I will show you my faith by my works” (James 2:18). John said we are to show Christ’s love to others “because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19). And Paul summed it up saying: “so faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the message about Christ” (Romans 10:17).
So the question is, have you connected with Jesus in a way that has changed your life? Will you reach out and help others connect with Him, too?  That’s what you get a chance to do through VBS this summer. In fact, we’ll be praying for you! So get out there and start spreadin’ the News!