I saw the light

We have been attending a new church the past few weeks http://roswellchurch.org/ and came to find out about a ministry there where they rent a condo in an economically depressed neighborhood in our city.   During the summer they have been feeding the neighborhood families lunch during the week, and doing activities and games with the children.  Since I have been praying for a couple of years about ministering to the poor in my own city, this seemed like an answered prayer, so I started volunteering there the first week we went to church and I have fallen in love with them.

A few weeks passed, and through a friend, God provided us with dozens of loaves of free bread and other baked goods for a community event and for this ministry (Thank you Jesus!!).   When I went to pick up the loaves of bread, I was speaking to a lady from another ministry who was loading bread into her car.  She asked me if I was sure that the new church I was attending was filled with people who genuinely followed Jesus.  I said I was sure it was.  Then she asked me about this ministry and what the bread would be used for.  I told her how much I enjoyed serving there but I wanted somehow to find a way for us to tell the kids more about God while we were there.  I told her the woman that was in charge was so busy cooking and running everything she couldn't possibly do it.  This lady looks right at me with a stone cold serious face and says "Of course, she's too busy.  Cooking is her job.  Teaching is your job!"  She repeated it again.. "It's your job!" (just in case I didn't hear her the first time).  Her words hit me like a ton of bricks.  Fear crept into my heart.  How can I do this?  Will they pay attention?  Why me?  Is this from God?  Then I thought about it and it made sense that I would be the one to do it. By His grace, I ran the children's ministry and taught at our old church.  I prepared bible lessons for the kids at our weekly bible study.  He has given me an opportunity to teach children every time we do an outreach in our neighborhood.  God prepared me to do this.   Perfect love casts out all fear.  And His love compels me to share with these people who need Him.

So from that day on I began praying for God to show me what to teach the children each day, something simple that I could share with small groups of children as they were eating or doing other activities.  And He has been faithful to provide lessons, and the words to speak, and to help me overcome my fear, and I have shared what He has given me, hoping that in some small way these children's lives could be touched for the Kingdom of God.  I leave the results in His hands.