More new faces...

We had a great crowd last night for Campaigners (small group Bible Study)! It was fun to have many of our 'regulars' as well as several new faces. It is fun to be a part of the kids' growing excitement for Life, Fellowship and How Not to Waste their Life.

We talked on Mark 3:7-12 about the crowds following Jesus. Why were crowds always following Jesus? And it was all types of people! The healthy. The sick. The Religious. The non-religious. The rich. The poor. The 'normal.' The Demon Possessed. The Disciples.

Why do you follow Jesus? Or not? Seriously? What spurs you on to follow Jesus? Or do you just 'act' like you follow Him? It is easy to put on the Religious Mask? Go to church. Do the Sunday Deal. Yet you treat your family, neighbors, co-workers different than Jesus would treat them. You say you have Love. But you don't. And Why is it SO EASY to be 'ugly' to people??? It almost seems like it is woven into the fabric of who we are. Well, I guess it is. This is our sinful nature. This is what makes us like this.

I think people followed Jesus for all types of reasons. But I REALLY think people followed Him because of the Love He had / has for them. Unconditional Love. I think about the Woman at the Well. Zaccheus. The Blind. The Lame. The Dead. He loved with no regard. And as one of the YL girls said two weeks ago.... 'The Religious people didn't like Jesus because JESUS CAN'T BE CONTROLLED!'

Maybe this ugliness towards others comes from our lack of control over them or us trying to gain a sense of control over them. I don't know. It hurts my heart to see people being mean to others. I struggle with this. It is just as easy for me to be mean to others as well. I think of Jesus' prayer on the Cross...'Lord, forgive them for they don't know what they are doing!'

Kids love to share. Kids love to be honest. Many of them don't feel like they can even speak to their parents. They said that they love coming over the because we treat / speak to them like adults and not children. Because we talk about 'real life.' And Life Issues. Struggles. Temptation. And because I have lots of random and personal stories. None of us are perfect ... we all have a past ... so why do we act like we are perfect and have never done anything wrong? Now THAT'S a joke...

Here are some pics from last night. If you want to see the picture on a larger scale, just click on the picture.

Enjoy...

We do this because of all of the faces seen below ... and the thousands of others we have yet to meet, hang out with and tell about Jesus!






Because Their Worth It...