Hitting The Pause Button

From The May Newsletter

Abraham, David and about the life, death and resurrection of Jesus are just some of the things that the kids at our church have been learning about this year.  I sat in my office the other day when a student from Pepperdine who was  preparing to write a story about our church asked me, “How did you  help the kids cope with the fire?” 

Sometimes, it feels to me that  church ministry can be like a treadmill, one locked on the “interval”  setting.  There are peaks and inclines, but the continuous motion of  the machine keeps me moving and looking forward.   
I’ve found that, in this season, it has been the reporters and close  friends who have pushed the “pause” button when they walked up to me  and asked, “So...how are you?” and “How are the kids?” 

These moments of pause are important, and I usually find myself in a place of gratitude for all of the things that have transpired since I began working at Malibu Pres. for all of the ways that they have caused me to grow deeper and closer to the Lord and to many of you, my new friends and  church family.

I answered the Pepperdine student’s question honestly when I said,  “Well, the kids are the easiest. They are the most resilient and  adaptable in a situation like this.”  I told the student about art projects the children’s ministry did, discussions we had, and about  contacting a psychologist in the area to help create a “talk sheet”.  
There has also been a parallel between the things we’ve been learning in Sunday school and the life we’re living - I continue to be blown away by how God’s word is always so living and active in our lives when we seek Him. 

We’ve walked alongside Abraham and David and learned from the way that Jesus worked  miracles and healings in the lives of those He encountered. Then we learned about the end of Jesus’ life and His resurrection.  It has been an exciting year, watching our kids grow in their understanding of scripture and in their relationship with Jesus,  and in seeing how those two things apply to their lives in real ways.  

Redemption seems to be the ongoing theme of the Christian life.  God is about redeeming His creation. While the moment when we ask Jesus to  come into our lives is a significant one, I find that it is His day-by- day redemption of the things inside us that takes my breath away.  He  does this in small and large ways, and I think we’re seeing this happen in our church.  We’re seeing God do a deep thing in our midst.  To see families come to know Jesus by participating in a Valentine’s Dance, and to see people walk faithfully with God through such a  difficult time, speaks of God’s ability to make all things new and to  use all things to His glory and good.  

The children of this church are our greatest investment.  There is eternal value in the things we have done this school year through  programs such as Mommy and Me, MOPS, Sunday School, Harvest Festival,  the Valentine Dance and mostly through relationships built over dinner and coffee or sitting in the sandbox at the country mart.
This year has been about living life together on this journey to live in the Kingdom of God.

The story we’ve been living this year has provided opportunities to peek between what’s happening on the surface and what God’s doing inside of us.  God is doing incredible and redeeming things in our midst, and I’m just privileged to watch it and be able to participate in it.