ministry

A Default Setting of Gratitude

November 23, 2017 by Guest Writer

Have you ever had to change your phone back to its default settings? Usually this happens when you’ve used and filled your phone to the point that it begins to malfunction; a reset to default settings often fixes whatever hiccups or problems it may have picked up. Remove all the extra noise and clutter of your customizations, and you restore the phone to a state of greater digital purity.

What if we took time to reset the focus of our hearts—a way to return to a default setting of renewed thinking and greater gratitude?

The Slide into Self-Pity

Left to itself, even a redeemed heart tends to drift towards self-pity and complaining. When it comes to giving thanks, it is easy to rehearse the good things—health, family, provisions. Yet too often we fail to express gratitude because our minds are taken up with the people and situations that trouble us.

To change our default setting to gratitude, we need to begin by thanking God for the things that bother us, not just the ones that we enjoy. Tough situations are often God’s gifts to reveal and change some unsanctified part of our hearts.

Sinking or Swimming?

One summer I was particularly unhappy with God because He prevented me from participating in the Christian camp where I longed to work. Instead, He gave me the opportunity to teach preschoolers how to swim. Day after day, under the scorching Phoenix sun, I was trying to get screaming toddlers to enjoy blowing bubbles and putting their faces in cold water.

Torn between their fear of the water and their desire for independence and control, they would push away, thrash around, or clamp onto me—even pinching me with their little toes. After a lesson or two, they had relaxed a bit and were delighted to let me bounce them around while I made motorboat noises or pretended to be a human washing machine. Eventually they learned that swimming lessons were great fun, that the water would hold them up, and that I would not let them drown.

Week after week, God gave me new students who screamed and cried and pinched. Finally I realized that God was trying to show me what I looked like to Him. I had my heart set on a specific ministry that was not open to me. I could continue my adult version of the toddler tantrum, or I could relax and trust Him to teach me how to stay afloat and actually enjoy the ministry He had given me.

The Bigger Plan

Once I understood that, I was able to identify with the children and thank God for them. They were showing me what I looked like as well as giving me insight into God Himself. I, a relative stranger, wanted to teach these kids the skills they needed to survive, and I wanted them to enjoy themselves too. Would God my Father want any less for me? So I surrendered my anger and went back to a default setting of thankfulness.

During the time I was working in aquatics, I renewed all my certifications as a Red Cross instructor for swimming, lifeguarding, CPR, and first aid. Later, those credentials gained me a place of ministry for the entire next decade at the very camp where I had wanted to work that summer.

God’s ways are above ours. We may never understand His methods, but we can always trust His motives. To reset and refresh our hearts, we have to clear out the clutter of busyness, worry, and self-pity. It’s time to go back and fix our minds on God’s truth and rest in a state of gratitude.

Several Bible studies published by JourneyForth are about topics Esther mentions in this post. Check out No Matter What You Can Rejoice, A Life Surrendered, and Refresh Our Hearts.

The Story Behind Buttercup Hill

June 21, 2016 by Eileen

Almost every fable has a story behind the story. On the surface we see fanciful animal characters engaged in lively action, but the story is carefully crafted to touch on a real-life truth. Buttercup Hill is a fable that tells a deeper story than the surface one. It shares a lesson that I learned somewhat painfully, but a lesson well worth learning.

The lesson began with a few simple statements that I’ve never forgotten. For several years I had worked in a ministry to children in a needy neighborhood. One of the people our group was attempting to serve leveled a rather harsh accusation at our ministry. “You don’t really care about us. You just come out of your fortress to do good deeds and then go running back. You don’t really want to get to know us.” Although I didn’t feel like the accusation was completely accurate, it cut me deeply. I knew that, although I dedicated time each week to the ministry, I hadn’t been doing all I could to really be a friend to these needy families. That comment resulted in a lot of prayerful thought about what else I could be doing for the families I was trying to serve. I could invite a child to be my guest for a special event. I could open my home for cookie baking. I could volunteer at a school. I could drop a pie by a house at Thanksgiving. Or I could just spend a few extra minutes on a front porch, listening and trying to understand. There’s almost always more we can do to be a friend.

And so I decided to explore in a story the idea of what it means to minister to needs through friendship. Hopkin Fleet and his mother want to help their needy neighbors. But until the Flops understand that the Fleets want to be friends, their overtures are not accepted. The Fleets have to leave their comfort zone, inviting the Flops into their personal space, sharing themselves as well as their things. They sacrifice to come alongside their neighbors in a crisis. And when the crisis has passed, the result is a beautiful garden—and a friendship—lovingly planted and cared for.

Read the opening pages of Eileen’s chapter book for young readers, Buttercup Hill.

Crafting the Names of Christ

December 10, 2015 by Megan

A couple of years ago, my family got involved in a weekly children’s Bible club. We started helping because we wanted an opportunity to serve together as a family and to teach our children how to minister to other people. Since then, Bible club has become much more than a Saturday morning ministry opportunity. We have come to love the dozen or so children that hop on the bus to come every week. We bake them treats. We pray for them. We spend time trying to figure out how to teach them more effectively.

All of the children in our Bible club have been raised in poverty. Most of them don’t come from intact families. Few have ever attended a church service. Some of them come because they like seeing their friends. Others come because they sense the club leaders care for them. Some of them come because they like to play games and eat brownies. Whatever the reason, we’re glad whenever they show up.

Shortly after we started this ministry, we noticed that some of the girls who came rarely wanted to participate in the organized game time. In order to better connect with them, we started having a craft time. They love doing crafts, and we’ve found that it’s a great time to teach basic Bible truths and reinforce some of the things my husband is teaching in our Bible lesson time.

This Christmas season, we’re decorating small Christmas trees with a dozen ornaments centered around one theme—the names of Christ. It is our hope that this craft will not only help them understand who Jesus Christ is but that they’ll be able to use it to tell their families about Christ.

You can use this craft in your own ministry setting or even with your own children. Make one ornament every day or make several at once—the pacing is really up to you. But before you make each ornament, take the time to read the associated Scripture passage and talk about the significance of the title. The goal is not just to have pretty ornaments; the goal is to better understand our Savior.

Jesus is the Word

John 1: 1–3
Materials needed: foam craft sheets (black, white, and green), red ribbon, hole punch, scissors, tacky glue

Jesus is the Light of the World

John 8:12
Materials needed: foam craft sheets (black, yellow, orange, red, white), glitter glue, scissors, hole punch, ribbon, tacky glue

Jesus is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah

Revelation 5:5
Materials needed: foam craft sheets (yellow, orange), googly eyes, scissors, tacky glue, hole punch, ribbon
Jesus is the Way

John 14:6
Materials needed: foam craft sheets (blue, green, brown), gold glitter glue, cotton balls, scissors, tacky glue

Jesus is the Good Shepherd

John 10:11
Materials needed: pipe cleaners, beads, ribbon
Jesus is the Lamb of God

John 1:29
Materials needed: assortment of white and black buttons, white card stock or craft foam, scissors, string or ribbon, tacky glue
Jesus is the Vine

John 15:1
Materials needed: purple paper, green pipe cleaners, pencil (to curl paper around), scissors, hot glue gun, ribbon, tacky glue
Jesus is the Bread of Life

John 6:35

Materials needed: salt, flour, lukewarm water, wax paper, plastic straw, knife, ribbon
Directions:
(1) In a medium bowl, mix ½ cup salt, 1 cup flour, and ½ lukewarm water.
(2) Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 3–5 minutes.
(3) Form “French bread” shapes, using a knife to add detail.
(4) Poke a hole in the top using a plastic straw.
(5) Place on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper (or parchment paper).
(6) Bake at 200 degrees for 2–5 hours, depending on thickness (or you can let them air dry for several days).
Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life

John 11:25
Materials needed: salt, flour, lukewarm water, wax paper, plastic straw, ribbon
Directions:
(1) Make salt dough (see steps 1 and 2 under for ornament #8).
(2) Shape dough into one large ball and another smaller one.
(3) Place large ball on cookie sheet covered with wax paper, and use thumb to make a “cave” indent.
(4) Place smaller ball off to the side of the “cave.”
(5) Poke a hole in the top using a plastic straw.
(6) Bake at 200 degrees for 2–5 hours, depending on thickness (or you can let them air dry for several days).
Jesus is the King of Kings

Revelation 19:16
Materials needed: empty toilet paper or paper towel tube, scissors, sequins or jewels, tacky glue, ribbon
Jesus is the Alpha and Omega

Revelation 22:13
Materials needed: craft popsicle sticks, paint, paintbrushes, foam craft sheets (any color ), sticker letters, hot glue gun, ribbon
Jesus is the Savior

1 John 4:14; Matthew 1:21; Luke 2:11
Materials needed: applesauce, cinnamon (4 oz. container), plastic wrap, rolling pin, cross-shaped cookie cutter, wax paper, plastic straw, ribbon
Directions:
(1) Mix 1/3 cup applesauce with container of cinnamon.
(2) Roll out dough between 2 sheets of plastic wrap until ¼ inch thick.
(3) Remove top sheet of plastic wrap.
(4) Use cookie cutters to cut out shapes.
(5) Peel shapes away from bottom layer of plastic wrap and place them on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper.
(6) Poke a hole in the top using a plastic straw.
(7) Bake at 250 degrees for 1–3 hours, depending on thickness.