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Spare Change - August 2022

The theme for Kids Camp this year is Park It! It's based on the concept of abiding in Christ. So many times we get busy with life, and we forget to slow down and park it with Jesus. The key verse that we talked about is John 15:5 where Jesus uses the example of a vine to teach us about abiding.

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5

Jesus explains our relationship to Himself as a fruit bearing vine, like grapes. When the branches are connected to the vine, they will grow strong and bear much fruit. If a branch becomes disconnected from the main vine then there is no way for it to bear fruit. It is the same with Christians, apart from Christ we can do nothing. We will not bear spiritual fruit if we are not connected to Jesus Christ.  To stay connected to Christ we must abide in Him.

Abide is not a word that we use in modern-day language very often; however, it is a very important spiritual concept. Abide means to remain in a place and dwell or live there. Think about your home, that is where you abide. When we translate this concept to our relationship with Jesus it means we must remain in Jesus. We cannot depart from Him and we cannot move past Him.  Everything the Christian does is marked by their relationship to Jesus. If we hope to bear spiritual fruit, we must remain in Him.

The Bible speaks about different types of spiritual fruits, some are internal and some are external. Growing in our faith as a disciple is bearing internal spiritual fruit. When we walk in the spirit, Galatians 5 tells us that we will bear the spiritual fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These spiritual fruits are so important in how we relate to Jesus on a personal level and how we live out our faith.

External fruits are things like serving others, telling others about Jesus, using our resources for the Lord, etc. This is where we live out our faith in a very practical way. Both types of fruit are important for a Christian to bear. 

We must remember that we cannot bear either type of fruit apart from Jesus. Through the power of the gospel, we are saved into new life. That new life is only found in those that remain in Jesus Christ. This is why we think of Christianity as a relationship and not just a religion. We don't just follow a set of rules. Our Savior lives in us, and we live in Him.

The Kids' Camp pastor used the story of Mary and Martha found in John 10:38-42 as an example. Martha was the one who was distracted with serving and anxious about all that needed to be done. Mary was the one that was sitting at the feet of Jesus listening to His teaching. When Martha tries to get Jesus to rebuke Mary, He tells her that she is doing the necessary thing. 

Mary is abiding with Jesus; she is doing the spiritual thing before engaging in the practical. So many times we run past the spiritually important things in our lives and miss what Jesus wants to teach us. Abiding in Jesus means taking time to know Him. We do that through spending time in God's Word and in prayer.

I know that seems so simple, but it makes such a large difference in our lives. We are all so busy, but we must remember to spend time with Jesus. Martin Luther said, "I have so much to do that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer." He knew how important it was to prioritize the spiritual things before everything else. 

The challenge to you today is to abide in Christ by remembering to put your relationship with Him first. The only way to see God work in your life is to focus on Jesus!  Will you seek to abide in Christ so you can bear much fruit for His glory?

Spare Change - July 2022

Spark Studios VBS has come and gone for another year.  I must say that I really love VBS.  Even with all the craziness of the event, it is still one of the best things we do all year.  This year we had about 150 children each night.  We also did VBS with about 50 kids at the Summer Day Camp.  This means we were able to minister to over 200 kids that week.

VBS or Vacation Bible School is such an amazing program.  For one week we all come together to put on this program full of Bible lessons, games, crafts, snacks, music and more.  The kids love it!  It takes a ton of volunteers to make it all happen.  We had an average of 80 volunteers each night.  The only thing I can say to our volunteers is THANK YOU!  I know it is a sacrifice for everyone serving in VBS.  I hope you know your sacrifice is worth it.  When we serve the Lord in any capacity, we honor Him.  VBS is special because we get to connect with children and families, but we also get to share the life-changing truth of the gospel.  That is why VBS is so important.  That is why I am so grateful to all the volunteers that made it happen. 

We had 22 kids respond to the invitation.  We are currently following up with these children and their parents.  We pray that their decision was real, and they will follow in
baptism soon.

I just wanted to drop a quick word of thanks and an encouragement for all that tirelessly serve in the church in any capacity.  The Bible says in Matthew 5:14-16,

14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

This verse comes very early on in the Sermon on the Mount.  Jesus wants to make sure His followers understand they are like a light.  We learn from 1 John 1:5 that God is light, meaning that He is pure, righteous, and holy. There is no darkness or stain of sin in God.  Believers are given the righteousness of Christ in place of our sin; we are transformed from beings of darkness to beings of light.  Simply by living the Christian life in a way that glorifies God we are displaying God’s light.

Jesus makes the logical argument that no one would light a lamp and put it under a basket.  That would be crazy.  If you take the time to turn on a light it is because you need to see, it is because the surrounding area is dark.  God has set His people ablaze in the darkness of the world.  I am sure no one will argue that the world is very dark.  The sin that runs rampant in the hearts of people knows no end.  The only hope to combat the darkness is the light of the gospel of Jesus.

Jesus calls us the light of the world.  Meaning that we are to stand in this world displaying God’s light by serving in the name of Jesus and sharing the gospel.  Jesus says that people will see what we are doing and how we are living, and they will give glory to God.  The light cannot help but shine bright, it cannot help but illuminate the darkness.  It should be the same for Christians. 

It should be impossible for us to hide our faith.  It should be impossible for us to stop telling people about Jesus.  It should be impossible for us to stop serving others.

I say all of this as an encouragement to all those that serve in the church and in the community.  You are bringing glory to God’s name.  According to Hebrews 6:10, God sees your works.  He knows that you love Him, and you are working for His name.  Keep up the good work!

If you are not serving somewhere and you identify as a Christian, then you need to get going!  Find a place to serve.  God has given you gifts and abilities to use for His kingdom.  Don’t hide your light, let it shine so everyone can see!