Monday, March 10, 2014

Season endings + How to OVERCOME your enemy


Phew. What a whirl-wind past two months! Over the weekend we had our last Upward game and the award ceremony. It was a jam-packed weekend but we had such a great time with those kiddos.

So many of the parents joked that we were probably glad that the season was over because they understood the time commitment we had given. Eight weeks of three nights of practice, one night of meetings, and a full day of back-to-back games. It was a huge time commitment, but I had to honestly answer those parents that it was a bittersweet ending. KJB and I both get so much joy teaching those little ones and learning the things that are on their hearts, that we would miss this season of life.

We heard a great message last night from Nathan Jorris, an entertainer out of Fort Wayne, IN. We find that it is often difficult for our award ceremony entertainer to reach such a wide age of children, from kindergarten to 6th grade. But Nathan did a great job and I recommend him to anyone looking for someone to creatively share God's word.

I had a super proud wifey moment last night when KJB took the stage to challenge the children and their parents to start a relationship with their biggest bully or enemy. He told them to think of the person that they encounter on a daily basis, the person that makes it difficult to get through your day. And he wanted them to do three things each day. I thought I would share them here, because I think it's a challenge we should all take.


1. Say hi to them everyday. There's a good chance they want attention and the attention they are directing to you is negative. Smile at them and say hi before they have the chance to be negative.

2. Ask them how they are or how their day is going. Give them the chance to talk if they want to. It may take awhile for them to open up, but if you are asking them every day, eventually they will.

3. Pray for them. God knows that you struggle with this person so ask him to help you. Ask him to give you confidence to approach them and the right words to use with them. Pray that their heart will be softened, they feel loved, and that whatever is going on in their life that is hard, that God would place His hand over.

God is still in the business of making miracles. Don't forget that.