Think back to when you
were a child
Your soul was free, your
heart ran wild
Each day was different and
life was a thrill
You knew tomorrow would be
better still
Things have changed,
you’re much older now
You're unhappy and you
don't know how
Why don't you look into
Jesus, He's got the answer
Larry
Norman
Last week a legend
died. Larry Norman forever changed the face of what it means to follow
Jesus. Not only was he the first to combine Christian lyrics with rock
music, he ignited the Jesus Movement in the 60’s. Untold thousands of
people trace their initial exposure to Jesus back to Larry Norman’s
influence. After a long struggle with heart problems, he died at 60 in
Salem, Oregon.
Of his many
contributions to the faith, the one I connect with most was his sense of
wonder about following Jesus. He never seemed to let his faith become
predictable. His simple approach to the Christian faith allowed people
to be individuals while exploring what it meant to love the Lord.
The more you learn
about ministry and church life, the easier it becomes to reduce
everything to a formula. Ten steps, twelve principles, four laws…the
list goes on. Sometimes having truth broken down into small bits helps
spiritual digestion. It can also rob us of something we need for living
out our faith over time: the thrill of walking with a God who has the
capacity to surprise you.
The moment you think
you have God all figured out is the same moment you lose your childlike
sense of wonder. When that happens, you lose your sense of happiness
about life and God.
While the Word of God
explains what He is like and much about how He operates, it also shows
us that we can never assume we have exhausted all there is to
experiencing God . He is still new wine that bursts old wine skins and a
new patch that rips old garments. He never remains stagnant.
The Gospels and the
Book of Acts are filled with “signs and wonders.” Signs are miracles
that point people to Jesus. Wonders are miracles that, well, make you
wonder. We were meant to live with a sense of wonder about God.
The kids you minister
to each week were born with a built-in sense of wonder about God. They
can appreciate that He is a God who is big enough to create the universe
and small enough to be personal. They like it that He has ideas and
dreams for them. They can accept that He weaves their lives into a
master plan. They have no trouble believing that He will communicate
with them. It’s only when we get older that we allow church to beat that
out of us.
Sometimes children’s
ministry is about what we put into kids, and sometimes it is about what
we leave alone that God put in them at birth. Encourage a sense of
wonder. We don’t have anything all figured out. We certainly don’t have
God all figured out.
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