As I posted the other day this week we have had Vacation Bible School at our church. It has been really fun for the kids and so rewarding for all of us who have helped out. The joy the kids have is absolutely infectious and you can't help but love watching them have so much fun learning about God and His love for us.
Every year we have kids who come who are not a part of our church family. We welcome anyone who wants to come and participate no matter what their background or beliefs. It's neat to see kids who know nothing about God learn of his love and it's neat to see kids who go to other churches see how much alike we all are in our beliefs about God's love.
This year a little boy named Connor came to VBS. He came with a friend of his mom. When he walked in you knew something was different about him. He had a full mohawk, he was loud and rambunctious and full of life. He was super friendly to all the kids and while none of the kids knew him he made friends very easily. My kids were talking about him from day one telling me how much they liked him and how nice he was.
There was something else about him that was different as well. He had never been exposed to anything Christian (which in itself wasn't out of the ordinary as many kids are there for the first time ever too) but even moreso was the fact that his mother is a practicing Wiccan. Her friend had asked her if she would allow them to take him to church to go to vacation bible school and she agreed. What happened to Connor was amazing.
Garrett's job during VBS was to help out in the drama room. In this room they acted out bible stories for the kids. Garrett was the lead in most of the stories, portraying Jesus on several occasions and Moses on others. Connor was very moved by these stories and these plays. Yesterday Garrett portrayed Jesus and showed how he was willing to take on all our sins so that we could be saved. He did this by having the kids bring small bags of "trash" and attaching them to him as he stood with his arms outstretched (the trash signifying sin and his outstretched arms signifying the cross). The kids then pinned their sins to him and the visual was amazing... Jesus with all their sins covering him and yet he never complained and he accepted all that was put on him.
At the end of this day and this presentation, Connor went to Carol, the adult leader of the drama group and said,
"Miss Carol, is there really a God and did he really have a son named Jesus?" Carol answered that yes, it was true. Connor thought for a moment and then said,
"That makes me so happy and because of what Jesus does for us, I really want to be a Christian too!" I have to wonder if the mom was aware that something like this might happen. Surely she knew he was going to be exposed to Christian teachings. I wondered what she might say when Connor tells her that he wants to be a Christian. His story touched my heart and I thought that even though all of us were tired from the long hard week that just this one child was worth all the work, stress and fatigue we had been through to make VBS amazing. But isn't that how God is too? Doesn't he work hard for every single one of us and if just one turns toward him then all he had done is worth it?
I hope and pray that Connor's mom lets him explore his new found faith. I know if my child came to me and said he wanted to be a Wiccan I would be devastated. It would bother me. I can only wonder if she will feel the same way. My faith is so important to me that I hope that it will be equally important to my children. I'm sure the mom has to feel the same way about her beliefs. Will she allow him to go further? My thought though is that even if she doesn't allow him to explore that interest that the seed has been planted that God loves him and does exist! Hopefully one day that seed will begin to sprout and will take hold, blooming into the most amazing flower that will show God's beauty and love for others to see.
What an amazing week!