Dolly herself, originally uploaded by Espen_.
Almost every week, I remind the children at Redwood Kids that God loves them no matter what: what they wear, where they live, what colour their skin is, what they’ve done, etc. I think everyone needs to be reminded of that fact on a consistent basis.
Then I read this blog post from a new friend of mine. I could summarize it for you, but it wouldn’t do it justice. Go read it, and then come back.
It’s OK… I’ll wait. Go and read the blog post.
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Did you read it? If you didn’t, then the rest of this post will be meaningless…
Done? Good! After you’ve wiped the tears that I know are there (hey, even my wife got choked up, and that is saying a lot!), let me ask you this: When was the last time you reminded the kids you minister to that there is nothing they can do to make God love them more? When was the last time you reminded yourself of that fact?
I run into so many Christ followers who are striving for God’s love and acceptance. It’s not that they don’t think God loves them. They think that somehow God will love them more if they are striving. Reading Shah’s post and his daughter’s reflections was a stark reminder that God can’t love me anymore than he already does because he loves me fully!
Does that mean I stop trying to find the best way to follow God? Of course not! But I don’t follow God in order to climb a ladder. I follow him because he loves me and I love him.
So this week, I added to my prayer of thanksgiving to God with the kids, “God, thank you so much that there is nothing I can do to make you love me. You love me because you made me, and there is nothing I can do to make you love me more because you love me ‘all the way.’”
What are your thoughts on Shah’s post? Did you cry? be honest! I made the mistake of reading it aloud to my wife the first time through… yeah… didn’t quite make it through… How are you helping kids to not just know that God love them but loves them fully? I’d really like to hear your stories.
I didn't cry…but I'm a hardened cynic and God is working on me.Thanks for the great reminder about telling the kids we work with how God sees them. I agree that it might be the most important thing I do each week.
Posted by jonathan | February 23, 2009, 10:45 amHa! I'm just a sap… Adventures in Odyssey episodes choke me up… I know, pathetic
Posted by henryjz | February 23, 2009, 12:54 pmYes, well – there was one episode of Odyssey that scared me so bad I couldn't sleep for a week…This post was great! I think we can always do a better job of telling kids that “God loves them no matter what” – and maybe even come up with ways of showing them that truth by how we as leaders interact with them.Further, I know adults (including myself!) that struggle to realize this truth and live confidently in it. I mean, how many times when we mess up do we struggle with forgiving ourselves when God has already forgiven us?!Knowing that I can come to Him, and have him wipe my nose (and more) gives me confidence in what He has called me to do. How easy to get wrapped up in the idea that it's about what we do – it's ALL about Him.I didn't cry either. But, I loved reading it!
Posted by aaron jack bauer | February 23, 2009, 1:54 pmOk, admittedly, I didn't cry. I'm kinda like jonathan in a way because everyone is talking about love right now. (Although I do think it is a big part of the answer.)However, I thought it was a good post. It made me think of the youth group actually because we are still looking for a youth pastor. I was just thinking about how much we want the right person but that they also need someone to love them, since it has been over a year without a pastor. We just met with a couple last night but still not sure how our pastor will decide yet.Anyhow, it made me wonder how all this is affecting them? Do they know they are still loved even though they don't have their pastor yet? Do they understand it isn't because of them that they don't have one yet? How can we portray love even if we have to wait another 4 months?We just went to gen-unleashed with them and it was a great time. I think that helped. We have been doing what we can and trying to keep things going, but I guess my point is this post just put a new light on the “love” I was already thinking about. And I like adding to my thoughts.I know this is CM but but I'm spread out into so many different ages in ministry right now and today my brain is on youth
! Tomorrow it will be 20's/30's, and everyday is on my own kiddos.Anyway, I guess I don't mind talking about love when it is real love, the kind that is hard, the kind that perseveres beyond what we signed up for, or what makes us feel good. It's the kind that the Bible talks about when it says to love each other deeply.
Posted by Desiree | February 23, 2009, 2:55 pmI think one thing that we have a hard time coming to terms with is that God doesn't just love us… he likes us, too.
Posted by henryjz | February 23, 2009, 5:07 pm