When we were planning Crossover New Orleans and considering all the various aspects of the Restoration Fests, I knew we would attract a lot of children. Kids are easy to entertain. Give them snowballs to eat, room to run around and inflatables to go crazy in and you've got yourself some sticky yet content kids. The trick is to grab their attention long enough to for them to hear the gospel in a meaningful way. Luckily for us in the New Orleans area, we have Philip and Debbie Smith. They've got more tricks up their sleeves and tools in their bag than I can count, or at least it seems that way. When it comes to working with children, they're two of the best. That's why I knew I wanted them at our Restoration Fests.
In this particular instance, Philip was busy but Debbie was able to attend both the Central City and Westbank Restoration Fests. With the help of some volunteers, Debbie set up a multi-station area designed to creatively share the gospel with kids. Picture a group of loud, hyper and ,yes, sticky kids sitting quietly and listening with full attention to the good news of Jesus Christ. Its one of my favorite sights in all we've done since Katrina. There's just something special about connecting children with a God who loves them.
During one of Debbie's presentations of the gospel, an 8 year old girl asked this profound question, "Do I need to apologizes to Jesus?" That's more than just cute, its dead on accurate. Its the question everyone must ask and give an answer for. By the end of the weekend, Debbie had shared with 138 children and 10 adults and helped them gain a better understanding about Jesus and the fact that, yes, we do need to apologize to Him. Three of them made decisions for Christ and we rejoice with them.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment