The Youngest Disciple

When was the last time you took an intentional play day and ventured outside, smelling the flowers and listening to the birds? What if playing was a form of worship? I looked up the origin of the word “play,” and this is what I read: to leap for joy, dance, rejoice and be glad. S. is the picture of play, and I got to spend a Saturday afternoon learning life lessons from an eight-year-old. We headed out into the sunshine to talk and hang around in the magnolia tree where she taught me to relax, enjoy the day, and play a little.

S. explained how she is building her own life story and if you read the Bible, it will tell you how to accomplish this since God gives you everything you need in those stories. He does this because He loves us and if you do the wrong things, you may think it only affects you, but there are consequences for everything. S.’s advice to me was to trust God no matter what, and if you feel something terrible is going to happen, know that God will protect you. She wonders how Jesus could love us so much since we put thorns on His head and a cross on His back. The Easter story is her favorite, and she also likes the stories about Moses.

I asked her what it means to follow Jesus, and she said it’s about how you treat people, it’s standing up for kids who are being bullied, it’s giving someone a helping hand when they need it, it’s working at Kairos Kitchen and being generous with your time. She also said you shouldn’t be afraid of getting baptized, although she did say the water was cold, and that everyone needs to know that God loves them and will be with them always.

When we finished talking and tree climbing, we went back in to greet the Kairos guests, serve them, and clean up. I thought about our conversation and how such a young girl could have so much to teach us. My favorite thing she told me was about kindness, she said if everyone would be kind to just one person, we could change the world. She may be a bubble gum chewing, roller skating, fast runner, who makes straight A’s, and has a dog named Ginger. She is also a disciple of Jesus, well on her way to changing the world.

Story and photo by Michelle Holland

Creating Potential

What do you think about when you hear the word “creative”? Artists, writers, dancers? I used to think the same until I started reading about creativity and spent an evening talking with Robin Snoek. I was looking at creativity-the process, without including God-the creator. If you think about God as the creator and that God dwells inside each of us, it is logical to conclude  that we are all creative, each of us in our own way. Robin can draw, and she can paint, but her creativity runs much deeper than those things. She has found a way to use her creativity to help children in need and along the way has discovered her life’s purpose.    

Have you ever contemplated events in your life and realized that God has been working to lead you, that you are precisely where you need to be, and that you have been preparing for this moment your entire life? What a fantastic thing to realize! Robin can trace that journey and knows God has put her right where He needs her to be. I asked if her job with CPS ever made her doubt the goodness of people, and if it ever discouraged her. What she told me was inspiring.  She believes all people are good, and that it’s the circumstances that are out of control and need to be changed.This is where her understanding of creativity comes to life. Robin relates our innate creativity with potential and therefore her sense of social justice demands that she stand up for those that are currently oppressed and marginalized.

We have been learning about the fruit of the Spirit, and when I think of those nine words, I think of Robin. I listened to the story of how she and Charlie came to Beaumont and how obstacles seemed to leap out of the way as God cleared them one after another to get them here. I heard the joy in her voice as she talked about helping people make changes. I see the peace she has in her life because she knows she is doing what God created her to do. 

Pastor Jon taught us about fig trees and fruit, how they must be grown, cultivated, and nourished. Robin reminds me of a gardener, tending and working, guided by the Holy Spirit, so that others may bear fruit and realize their own potential. Nine simple words to strive for and if you take the first one, “love,” doesn’t that lead to all the others? Spring is here, be happy and cultivate the fruit of the Spirit.

Story and photo by Michelle Holland