Shake It Up Cafe

Sorry for the delay in updates.  It's been a crazy couple of weeks with VBS, subbing at Top Flight Gymnastics, and saying very tough goodbyes to very dear friends in the Cincinnati area.  Though I will miss them all dearly, I know their support can and will (because it has before) stretch across land and ocean, reaching to and comforting my heart within the coming year's adventure on which God is taking me.

These past 2 weeks I traveled to Cincinnati to be the missionary at a Vacation Bible School at a church in the area.  The VBS was called Shake It Up Cafe where the children learned the secret ingredients for the recipe God has for our lives.  Full of energy and tasty treats, the preschool through fourth graders helped raid their parents' pockets, coin purses, and couch cushions to bring in a total of $210.67 during the penny war we were having to raise money for the work in N. Ireland!  My friend, Katy Havran, is the Director of Children's Education and brought together one of the best VBS weeks the church has seen.  Her creativity to see a cafe while walking around the hallways and raiding the rooms of the church building brought together a cafe full of life, delicious aromas, and fun-filled events.

I was given 20 minutes with each group (Preschool, Kinders, 1st & 2nd, and 3rd & 4th) to tell stories of N. Ireland, as well as bring experiences and tastes of Ireland to the cafe.  During these mission moments the youngsters got to hear about St. Patrick's life story, the legend of Giant's Causeway, color shamrocks and place them in our pretend Tollymore Forest, and taste a bit of blackcurrant squash (the Irish equivalent to our Koolaid).  The older ones not only got to hear stories of St. Patrick and Giant's Causeway, but also learned about the ministry The Kairos Centre does, games they play in N. Ireland, and had a bit of taste testing of tea and biscuits from the other side of the pond.  The enthusiasm was brought to a climax for me when one of they young leaders (probably 5th or 6th grade) gave me a piece of paper and told me it was for the youth over in N. Ireland.  On it he wrote that they should come to the church's VBS next year, and not because they don't have one.  Now to clarify, something that I was telling them is that over in N. Ireland, they don't always have someone like Ms. Katy to put together something like Shake It Up Cafe, so teams from different churches in America come and put VBS type activities on for the youth in the area.  When I asked the young-ins if they wanted kids like them who live in N. Ireland to get to have VBS and such activities, they started screaming "YEA!"  After that, the pennies started rolling in and clanging into the buckets we had set up in the front of the sanctuary for them. 

The best part of them raising money was that the group that raised the most were the preschoolers.  It reminds me of the passage where Christ is questioned on who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven:

¹At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" ²And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them ³and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 18:1-4 ESV)

These preschoolers were the youngest, but they gave earnestly, seeing the importance that all children their age, no matter their location, needed the chance to know Christ.  They may not have realized the impact of their actions; for all I know they only raised that much so their leader could pie me in the face, but one thing is for sure, they gave enthusiastically and gave from anywhere and everywhere they possibly could.  And because of their enthusiastic offering we are $210.67 closer to the total funds needed to raise.  Children have always been an inspiration to me as I have been blessed to work with them throughout the years as a gymnastics instructor, camp team member, and youth sponsor.  They continually teach us about selfless living and breaking down barriers we adults tend to put up.  I challenge you to allow yourself to be taught by a child today.  It may be something small or monumental, it may be realized right away or something that dawns on you hours later, but just as much as you teach and influence children to become who God calls them to be, don't think he won't use the little ones to teach us big lessons.  Give a kid a high five today (and if you're lucky, give them a foot five <<--they love those!)

In Christ Alone