I didn’t know praise band practice had been cancelled last Thursday, so the nursery caregiver I had arranged arrived early rather than going home only to wait for several hours before realizing what was happening…er, not happening. In my other role, I’m responsible for the church calendar and space reservations.

The children’s moment is presented each week in both services. But I didn’t know something else would be happening at that part of the service. Something else absolutely awesome, and I mean awesome, but I didn’t know. Somehow it didn’t get to me that I’d not be presenting the children’s moment. So I stood prepared with props in hand to come down at that point in the service, just to sit back down in my seat. In my other role, I am responsible for communications and preparing the printed order of worship.

And only one student came to Sunday school. I and our faithful Sunday school team prayed and prepared and only one student was present. Our faithful Sunday school team is made up of grandparents…active, dancing, Lego-building-on-the-floor, faithful, Jesus-following grandparents. Our kid’s parents are amazing people. They’re busy, weary, and committed to so many other amazing and wonderful things. I don’t even know when they have time to do laundry. Sometimes it’s just life.

It is our human tendency to focus on what we don’t have rather than what we do. This is when I realize I don’t spend enough time thinking about how good God is. This is when it’s better to go with what I know rather than how I feel.

This I know:

(1)  God made me and Jesus loves me.

(2)  When I am called to keep pushing the boulder, it isn’t just so the boulder moves, but rather that I will be obedient in the boulder-pushing.

(3)  In the opening words of The Purpose-Driven Life, “It’s not about me.”

(4)  Preparing for one as I’d do if there were 300 is a sign of my trust in a very great God. Jesus did…Nicodemus, the Woman at the well, etc.

(5) According to Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, “Some days are just like that.”

Before you think this is a Debby Downer blogpost, it’s far from it. That evening at CLUB345’s orange night, kids and their families brought bags of fresh orange fruit to share with the residents of Elizabeth Inn Homeless Shelter which operates under the guidance of MUST Ministries.

It’s times like these that cause me to pause…to pray…to love…to rest. The freight train has been running fast and furious. It’s time for a DAWG Day…Day Alone With God. A Day dedicated to the Lord of the Dance and a VBS can in my house clothes. Watching music videos of kids singing and dancing before the Lord. Reading leader guides with fabulous ideas to impress God’s Word upon His children. And that will be today. This is the best part: It’s been scheduled and on the calendar for three weeks.

“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” Matthew 6:26

Last September the North Georgia Annual Conference received a new Bishop, as did several other United Methodist conferences all around the country. Since our new Bishop’s appointment, she has given folks a chance to share their hearts and hear her heart’s message in meet and greet receptions for the laity in each district. Last weekend, she was in our district.

In our district she preached at two churches on Sunday morning, held the meet and greet laity reception on Sunday afternoon, and met with the clergy of our district on Monday afternoon. Attending the laity reception, she gave a message and then essentially opened the floor to anyone who wished to speak. As the host church provided microphones, folks asked questions and shared celebrations as well as challenges in our district and in the global church.

I stood up to make a comment about my heart for children in our community, especially for those who serve the children in our local churches. I shared about the gatherings in every district of our conference of those who serve children in ministry to resource and offer training to engage children in worship, in Sunday school, and in mission at what we called “Done In A Day.” Then I asked about her thoughts and dreams about engaging children in the faith. The Bishop shared about her grandmother and her desire to see more intergenerational faith experiences.

Others asked and spoke about the homeless, the lonely, and how to share Jesus in their workplace. One fellow stood and asked if there were any 20-somethings in the room. One man stood. He was sitting in the back row. He was sitting among several students. This young man had brought his confirmation class. Two of his students were also given the microphone to comment and ask a question of the Bishop.

I had been running invites in the bulletin for six weeks. We made announcements from the pulpit for a month. For the last three weeks, our pastor spoke to say, “DeDe will treat you to lunch or you can meet her here to carpool to gather to meet our Bishop.” No one took me up on it.

Yet, this guy brought his confirmation class. How often will a group of kids get to hear a message from a great communicator like a Bishop? How often do kids get to ask questions of a conference leader? What a great idea!

The guy left before I could speak with him or get his name. He left before I could tell him that his presence and his gesture to invite the young people in his spiritual charge had an impact not just on his kids, but on me. Next time. Next time my invites will be different. I sure hope there is a next time.

“Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.” Exodus 4:12

Every kid wants to be in the kitchen…using the coolest tools…making a huge mess…listening in on the family stories…because it’s in the kitchen where the action of family and food happen. Giving kids a chance to practice life skills that are yummy and easy was the goal for our second WC Academy Class. Housekeeping Basics was our first and we continue to hear from parents how the help at their homes has greatly improved since their kids took the class.

We ordered aprons to use another day and gave them chef hats to take home. No need for name tags since we used a food container to take from station to station with names.

We set up five stations, each with a different skill and different kind of food:

Item: Chocolate covered strawberries & pretzel sticks
Supplies: Microwave, glass bowls, wooden and metal spoons, wax paper
Shopping List: White and brown chocolate bark, strawberries, large pretzel sticks
Tips: Even a drop of water will mess up melted chocolate (which we had an example of).

Item: Punch & Peach Salsa
Supplies: Glass bowls, spoons, ladle, beverage dispenser, ice
Shopping List: Ginger Ale, cranberry juice, salsa, peach fruit cups, tortilla chips (different colors)
Tips: Ginger ale will lose it’s bubble if poured too fast; straining the peaches makes for a better, thicker salsa so let the kids pull back only a little on the fruit cups to strain the juice; using blue and brown chips makes for a more visually appealing plate; most had never seen a ladle before nor knew what it was called; dropping in orange slices or strawberries makes punch look pretty; we used a Styrofoam cup we tore down half-way to make for a dipping cup in the food carrier to keep the salsa from touching everything else.

Item: Fruit kabobs
Supplies: long toothpicks, plastic knives, paper plates
Shopping List: String cheese, green grapes
Tips: Teach to ‘saw’ rather than ‘chop’ food with a plastic knife to cut string cheese into cubes; pre-cut small bunches of grapes for students to wash and dry.

Item: Grilled Cheese Sandwich (gotta have an element of danger, right?!)
Supplies: Electric frying pan, egg turner/pancake flipper, paper plates, metal spoon to spread butter
Shopping List: tub/soft butter, bread, sliced cheese
Tips: Kids were taught altogether at the beginning of class how to make a grilled cheese because of the heat and the time constraints; a lot of my kids couldn’t spread the butter even though the back of a spoon makes it easier, so the ‘beautiful golden bread’ happened for some and not for others (They LOVED it anyway! Who doesn’t like butter and a lot of it?); leave the butter out of the fridge for a bit to get softer and make it easier to spread. Station signs were paper bags in the center of the tables to keep the trash and wrappers at bay. Cleaning up as you go is a life skill in itself, yes?

Item: Pinwheel Sandwich
Supplies: Toothpicks, paper plates, knives to slice roasted peppers, metal teaspoons for spreading cream cheese, vegetable peelers (got from the dollar store for half price after Christmas)
Shopping List: Large head of romaine lettuce, whipped cream cheese, baby spinach leaves, small flour tortillas, slices of oven-roasted deli turkey, provolone cheese, roasted pepper from a jar, carrots, toothpicks
Tips: Using whipped cream cheese (much easier to spread than original cream cheese) instead of mayo keeps the items in the tortillas rather than sliding so cutting the roll-up into pinwheels is much easier; the colors are beautiful from the side of a pinwheel; cut the hard center from a romaine lettuce leaf with a veggie peeler so it’ll roll smoothly; thankfully huge carrots are inexpensive so they could peel to their heart’s content over their own tall garbage can; when ordering the turkey and cheese, ask the deli to place a piece of paper between each slice; plan for 1 slice of turkey and a half slice of cheese for each pinwheel.

In between the 3rd and 4th rotation, we stopped for a beverage (punch) break as I shared the story of how Jesus fed the 5,000: he uses what kids have to offer, he blesses, he multiplies, we gather together, and leftovers. Jesus can and will do mighty things with what a kid brings to Him. Jesus can do anything!

Some students ate as they traveled from station to station. Some students snacked as they went. One student waited until she got home so she could show her parents everything she had made. This same student had her Mom send me a pic last weekend showing a beautifully grilled cheese sandwich she made on her own at home. Certificates were handed out at the end with testimony time with the items, supply and shopping lists printed on the back.

“Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.” Psalm 34:8

When attending a children’s ministry conference, some of the best and most helpful information comes in the carpool to the conference. I don’t drive because I am an awful navigator. So armed with a yellow legal pad and a cellphone (to make online inquiries along the way), I ask questions and take notes of the multiple conversations that follow.  In response to a conversation at our monthly, district networking group, several of us gathered together for a day. The goal was to share a few things and take home a few things to help us in our local church ministries. Think: Carpool to a conference without the conference.

Instructions went out in an email like this:

Hello!

Bring 8 copies of what you have already done with LOTS of details AND ideas that have been simmering.   If you have supplies to share, then bring them too.  Got something you don’t know what to do with? Bring it!  Got a picture of something you’ve seen? Bring it.

We set up our computers, opened in prayer, then each champion answered the question: What do you HAVE to get out of today? What is your “If I don’t get anything else, I’ve GOT to get this”?

We put up big post-it notes with areas of interest and focus, then added what we’re already doing under each area with little post-it notes. We each offered a couple of ‘already doings’ with the prep paperwork and even emailed info to everyone if all we had were electronic copies.

We each walked out filled with at least two new ideas and the prep paperwork to tweak to best fit our contexts. We also walked out with encouragement, fuel for the journey, and memories of laughter and good food. Fruitful table life! These folks are ninja warrior champions when it comes to ministry with children. Some have been doing kidmin for more than 20 years, others just 3 years.  Oh how I love the connection!

“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17