No worries

“Be strong and don’t be afraid ‘cause God is with you.” (VBS paraphrase of Isaiah 41:10)

  I’ve spent part of the past week in Vacation Bible School at my mother’s church and seen a whole lot of happy and active children…really active children. Her church is a small church in a rural area of the county, so it doesn’t have a lot of populated areas to draw from, but each year we learn that the numbers don’t matter. For all the large churches that have hundreds of children in VBS, there are many more small churches that may only have a handful of children and dedicated workers. This is my mom’s church. Each class had a teacher and a helper that made sure that each child left each day knowing that God loved them and has a plan for their lives. They left each day knowing that there were teachers and helpers at a church that loves and cares for them. And they learned about God’s plan for them.

  On Friday, each class has the opportunity to share in the final joint service where parents are invited something about their week in VBS. Our third and fourth grade class spent a lot of time learning the books of the New Testament by heart and learning how to do a Bible Drill. Those kids were so excited to learn and could have spent the entire three hours just learning more about their Bible. That is what the school is about. Knowledge of the Bible is great, but you need to know how to use it and to find what you want.

  The most spirited part of the program was from a preschooler. There was only one child all week, but that didn’t deter her teacher from giving her a personal learning experience about her God. This little tiny preschool girl stood up in front of the sanctuary with a voice confident enough to be heard throughout the building and said her memorized Bible verse. “Be strong and don’t be afraid because God is with you!” This must have been her favorite because her voice shouted and her little head and pink beads were jiggling all over.

  The next day, my family and I were involved in a horrific car wreck in Stockbridge. We were rear-ended by someone not paying attention to our stopped car and after several scary moments, we ended up nose down in a ditch. No one in either car was seriously injured, but it was obvious that God and His angels had put a hedge of protection around all of us. My mom was in the back seat and got the worst of the hit, but after a lot of tests at Piedmont Henry ER, we were discharged several hours later. During the time we were being poked, prodded, x-rayed and tested; my mom looked up from her bed and said, “I’ve got a new saying for the family when we get into a mess. Before now, our first responses were usually either ‘boogers’ or ‘well, ain’t this a bunch.’ Now, we need to say ‘Be strong and don’t be afraid ‘cause God is with you.’” Then the smile broke out on her face and I knew we’d all be okay. No more worries.

  It goes without saying that we learned that our community is full of good people this weekend. From all the people rushing to get us out of the car, making sure my mother was taken care of, giving us water and paper towels to clean up while we waited, the Henry County Police, Station Number 9 paramedics and EMTs and the excellent care from the Piedmont Henry Hospital ER staff, we were well taken care of.

  God loves us all and wants the best for us, if we just trust and believe. If we do this, then we will truly have no worries. And for today my friends, this has been the gospel according to Jimmy.