Page 10 - RiseUpWarrior

9 Chapter 2 the end, one of the girls gave me a fsh as a gift. This friend of mine had used an entire weekend with those children to entertain the adults! The students Years later, I was sharing this story with Pastor Gary Duckworth, the children’s pastor at our church, and he didn’t learn anything new, except how to stand in a shocked me with his comment! He said, “You think you straight line and sing better. These things they are al- were actually making a difference with that outreach?” ready learning in public school! I said, “Of course we were!” He continued to argue with I didn’t have the heart to tell her what Gary had told me, saying that really all I had done was given those me. I just felt tears stinging my eyes. He was right. Real kids something to do for an evening. He said, “You children’s ministry is not entertaining the kids, so that were really ministering to those parents, taking away the adults can go to church without interruption. Nei- their children for an hour or two so that they could hear ther is it putting on a nice concert so that that the adults the gospel.” are more entertained. That’s adult ministry, using the children as puppets. I got angry, and couldn’t accept his words to me. Af- ter all, I had now been doing children’s ministry for 10 If we really are at war, a concert isn’t going to cut it. years! I knew that I was making a difference in chil- Those kids could have spent the weekend learning how dren’s lives! On that day, I couldn’t hear what Gary to pray! Or they could have been told the truth about was saying to me. It took more time, but one day much, church and Christianity. They could have been minis- much later, his words fnally sunk in. tered to. I was visiting with a children’s ministry director over If we really are at war, coloring pages and memorizing a large section, in a specifc denomination in Mexico. the right “church” answers are not going to cut it. She shared with me about an event their denomination We are at war, and we must not forget it. had, where she was responsible for the entire children’s ministry for the weekend. With glee she described how I’m striving to become a General in God’s army. Do she organized the whole event in detail, and how it went you want to join me? off without any problems. She had planned a fabulous concert for the closing event with the adults, and had spent the whole weekend practicing with the kids the If we really are at war, different parts of the concert. coloring pages and When the event was fnished, she shared how the high- est ranking leader there had approached her and con- memorizing the right gratulated her on a job well done. He had even said that he would keep her in mind for future projects higher up “church” answers are in the denomination! But all of a sudden, talking with her, I remembered Pas- not going to cut it. tor Gary’s words to me from years earlier. I fnally un- derstood.