Kid's Days

For the last two months I have been doing a program for kids to learn a little English through Bible stories. We only did it for a couple hours in the afternoon every other weekend with four sessions in total. Even that was a lot of work. I was in charge of the program. I came up with lessons, crafts, games, snacks, songs, bible stories, and volunteers to help me. I did get a lot of help and tips from people who had done some of this before, but it was still a little stressful for me and in the end a good learning experience.

The first week we had 17 kids. I was not prepared for that many kids. We did end up running out of papers for every kid. So I planned ahead hoping to have the same numbers, or similar numbers for the next three sessions.  The second session had 14 kids, the third had 10, and at the fourth and final session we had 5 kids. That was a little disappointing for me, watching the numbers going down every week. But, from what I could tell, I think most of the kids had fun. And I still had a few continue coming back, even if it was only 5 in the end.

I have learned that I am somewhat of a perfectionist. I am not an OCD type of perfectionist, at least not all the time. I have learned that I don't like it when things don't turn out the way I expected them to. And when things go wrong, I tend to panic before coming up with a plan. I worry a lot and stress out over tiny details, like the fact that my sample cross craft was not a perfect cross. And if I leave things to get done at the last minute, then I really am a big mess.

But through this, I have been reminded of what God has already told me:
- He tells us not to worry. "Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself." Matthew 6:29
- We are not perfect. "As it is written: 'No one is righteous, no, not one.'" Romans 3:10
- Yet God still loves us. "For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person - thought perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die - but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:6-8
- And nothing can separate us from that love. "Nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:39

I hope you will be as encouraged by this as I am. We are not perfect and we are not in control, but we should not fret or worry about it because God is in control. And even though we are not perfect, we have been made perfect through Jesus who died for us.
"But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ... For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." Ephesians 2:4-9
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the word might be saved through him." John 3:16-17

Happy Easter! He has risen! He has risen indeed!


And here are a few pictures from my Kid's Day events.