KidMin Stories & Inspiration Archives - Page 3 of 7

Choose to Speak Life!

05/08/201405/08/2014 Kathie Phillips 2 Comments

A month ago, my daughter and I began a weekly one-on-one Bible study. We are working our way through Elizabeth George’s book A Young Woman After God’s Own Heart. The conversations that have come out during our time together has far exceeded my expectations. I get to hear her share more of her tender heart, her struggles, what matters to her more than I have by just asking her to tell me about her day. Our time together gives me the opportunity to speak life into her, to encourage her, to pray over her and with her. My time with her account for some of the most precious minutes of my entire week.

Yesterday I was reminded that some girls don’t have a female at home who cares for them and invests time speaking life into them. One of my leaders came into my office, deeply burdened by something that a little girl in her small group asked this past Sunday. Her question: “What if your Mom says you’re worthless?”

The girl’s leader expressed to me how speechless she was. She (the leader) found it hard to believe that a child so young had ‘worthless’ as a part of her vocabulary. As only God could orchestrate, I was able to look my heartbroken leader in the face and remind her that this is why we minister each and every week. It’s more than just preparing and teaching a lesson. We are building relationships with children from broken homes; children who are struggling to know that they matter and have worth because God created them for a purpose.

We have the opportunity to speak life into people in our circle of influence. Whether we lead a staff, teams of volunteers, a small group of children at church or are parenting our own children, we have an opportunity to speak life.

What might that look like?

**Take time to listen – really listen. Listen with your ears and your heart.

**Remind them of their worth in Christ.

He created them in a special way (Psalm 139:13-18).
He delights in them (Zephaniah 3:7).
He has a purpose for them (Jeremiah 29:11, Ephesians 2:10).

**Tell them how important they are to you – and do this regularly.

What special traits/gifts/talents do they possess?
What do they do well?
How are you seeing God work in their life?
What do they bring to the group? How would the group be different if they were not a part of it?

I am so thankful to serve in a church that places a high value on Children’s Ministry. I am thankful to serve alongside volunteers whose hearts break for hurting children. Children today need to hear positive messages from the adults in their lives. Our words have power. They need us to pray regularly for them and with them. They need us to speak life into them.

What child needs an encouraging word from you today? Ask God to reveal that to you and then act. Speak life!

{From the Archives}: Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room: Jesus, Simply Jesus

12/23/201312/23/2013 Kathie Phillips

“Let every heart prepare Him room…”

Today concludes our Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room series, posts dedicated to Christmas reflections. Each Monday in December, through Christmas, we’ve looked at different ways that you can make room for Jesus this Christmas. You can find past posts here, here and here.

“In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, ‘Greetings, you who are highly favored! the Lord is with you.'”

“Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. you will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”

“‘How will this be,’ Mary asked the angel, ‘since I am a virgin?'”

“The angel answered, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.'”

“‘I am the Lord’s servant,’ Mary answered. ‘May it be to me as you have said.'” Then the angel left her.

(Luke 1:26-38)

“In those days, Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. [This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.] And everyone went to his own town to register.”

“So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”

(Luke 2:1-7)

Jesus, Simply Jesus

Merry Christmas!

{From the Archives} Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room: Preparing Your Heart for Christmas

12/10/201312/10/2013 Kathie Phillips

“Let every heart prepare Him room…”

Last year I introduced our Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room series, posts dedicated to Christmas reflections. Each Monday in December, through Christmas, we looked at different ways that you can make room for Jesus at Christmas. Today’s guest post was written by Kathy R. Bruce, my beloved Mom. Please visit her blog, The Looking Glass.

One year, a friend of mine wanted me to add more commitments to my already hectic schedule at Christmas. I told her that I could not squeeze anything else on my plate, to which she replied, “You need a bigger plate!”

Are others’ expectations of and for you crowding out the true meaning of Christmas? Are you so busy that you are forgetting what Christmas is all about? Is busyness stealing your joy? How can you prepare your heart to receive the Christ for Christmas?

I love Christmas. It’s one of my favorite times of year. Approximately a month before the big day, I begin to prepare my house by making room for all my treasured Christmas items. I pack up my photos, everyday dishes, mantel clock, and loads of trinkets to make room for my decorations, trees, gifts and cards. All of these things are carefully put in the perfect places where they can be beautifully displayed. I want everyone who visits our home to enjoy them as much as I do.

In all the preparations making room for my things, I can easily forget to make room for the main reason for the season. Yes, Christmas is for giving, loving, fellowship and glad tidings. But the main reason for this season is to celebrate the coming of The Lord Jesus Christ.

My desire is to celebrate His great love for me. To worship the One who put skin on and came to earth (via a humble birth) just to save me. That’s worth celebrating! So this and every Christmas going forward, I want to be intentional about preparing my heart for Christmas. I want to receive ALL He has for me. I want to be intentional about recognizing that He is The Lord of Lords and The King of Kings. No more stumbling over the manger on my way to embracing the good but not the best.

If you want to be intentional too, here are some ways to prepare your heart for the Christ of Christmas:

1. Tell God how much you desire to focus on Him.

2. Confess that you can become easily distracted and caught up in the ‘hoopla’ of the holidays.

3. Ask Him to speak to your heart and show you what making room for Him would look like in your life.

4. Listen to His voice. Is He asking you to stop the frenetic pace of life so that you can spend time with Him? Is He desiring that you spend your days in His Word rather than devouring latest Christmas magazines searching for ways to make your Christmas festive and meaningful?

5. Intentionally set time aside to be with the One whose birth you’re celebrating. How about the first moments of your day? Offer the day and its schedule to Him.

6. Go and offer the Hope of the World (and the real reason for Christmas) to everyone you meet. Offer Jesus.

In all your preparations to make this the merriest Christmas ever, remember that Jesus is the reason for the season. Jesus, Simply Jesus.

Kathy R. Bruce answered the call from God to ‘come to Me’ on Monday, June 23, 1980. Her journey with God so far has been transformational, to say the least. She has seen God enlarge her borders in many leadership capacities. In 2008, Kathy earned a certificate in Leadership from the Women’s Leadership Development Institute. Kathy is married to her biggest cheerleader, her husband John. They are parents to 4 grown children and grandparents to 7 grandchildren. She blogs regularly at The Looking Glass. You can also follow her on Twitter.