Okay, God

What I've been learning/teaching about:  I've been working at the church for a month and half now.  Some days are quiet where I sit and answer e-mails, send out newsletters, and meet with coworkers.  Other days are crazy where I don't even have time to eat lunch.  I run around like a madwoman gathering food and games for youth group, retype a script for VBS, work on website content, create brochures and postcards, all in 5 hours.  As vacation Bible school gets closer, there are more and more crazy days.  

Last week at youth group we were going to play volleyball with a giant inflatable ball.  I kept trying to think about what Bible story to share and discuss with the middle schoolers.  The big volleyball kept making me this about the story of David and Goliath.  If I was about to face a giant, I would want a huge cannon or weapon like the volleyball to defeat it.  Instead, David chose five little stones.

As I was thinking about the story God placed on my heart, I kept fighting with God.  "They already know the story."  "The story is too long to share."  "What are the middle schoolers even going to say after hearing a story from Sunday school year after year?"  But God persistently kept encouraging me to read it.  So I said, "Okay, God."

I was thinking about battles in life.  I prepared a few questions to ask the youth after I finished reading it.  One of the questions was, what battles do you have in your life?  I brainstormed a list of battles I had when I was in middle school that I wanted to share with them.

When I was in middle school, I hated riding the bus.  I constantly worried the bus would get to the school early and I would have to wait by myself.  This was before the era of cellphones at 5 years old, so I had no way to know if my friends would be there.  It was a legitimate fear and battle I faced every day in middle school.

As I was sharing this with them, I realized that being alone is a battle I still face today.  The other weekend I went to a wedding alone.  I was so nervous and anxious because I did not know any other friends my age going to the wedding.  I stood outside in the shade by myself texting my mom freaking out for twenty minutes.

After sharing, I put the question back on the middle schoolers: what battles do you face?  They opened up...they shared about their own personal lives... I couldn't believe it!  Leading a youth group that is mostly boys typically has led to surface level conversations full of jokes.  I was so excited because they have begun to go deeper.

Join me in praying for these middle schoolers.  That God would remind them the battle is always His.  What battle do you need to hand to the Lord today?

Con mucho amor.