JOHN KALE

Ok, so this might be the most amazing image I have from my time in Mexico. Take a long look at the picture then I will explain what is going on.

So let me set the scene; it is a Thursday afternoon in Matamoros, Mexico in the Oasis Colonia
(A colonia is similar to a neighborhood within the city)

The picture you just looked at is of a dad and his little girl. I know what you are thinking..."John, what is so amazing/life altering about that?" To fully appreciate the photo, you have to understand a few things. One, the picture was taken during Bible School at the Temple Bethel Church. Two, the Bible School was designed for young children, not adults. (There were a few adults there, all moms except for this one dad.) And three, in the colonia we were in, you rarely found a home where the dad was still present...much less a dad who would leave home to take his daughter to Bible school, help her participate in the activities, and stick around himself and sing the "kiddy" songs and do crafts.

Not only did he sit there and help his daughter, he was engaged in Bible School himself! He was actually enjoying it!! It was such a blessing to watch. I sit here tonight and look at the photo myself. I think about how often I go through the motions of Christianity. I know the stories, I have heard them a thousand times. I sing the songs, I do the crafts and I play the games. But I am missing the joy and the excitement. Why is that? I mean, aren't these the same "stories" that held captive my interest as a child? Are these not the same songs that I danced to as a child in VBS? Am I not learning about the God of the Universe? Can anything be more exciting that that?

The answer to that question is easy: NO! Nothing should excite me more than to hear stories of God's grace. Nothing should bring more joy to my life than to sing His praise; no matter how "childish" the song may be.

I look at this picture of this dad. I don't know if it was his first time hearing about God or his 100th. I don't know if he thought the songs were "hip" or if he thought the crafts were "cool". Maybe he was just excited that his daughter was getting to take part in Bible School and hear about Jesus. But I do know that he had joy. I know he was happy to be there. I watched him play, I watched him sing, and I watched him listen with attentive eyes and the group shared Jesus. And I thought, here is a guy who brought a child to hear about Jesus and he was blessed as well.

It made me think, maybe we receive our greatest blessing when we least expect it. Maybe we see God the most when we bring others to hear about Him. Maybe we need to all be "dads" who bring Children to Jesus! Maybe thats when we will get excited about "childish" things...maybe thats when we will find Joy...Maybe thats when we will understand what Jesus meant when He said it takes the faith of a child.