So often we want to be like Jonah – to run away from things that are hard, to hide from God. But Jonah couldn’t run far enough for God to be unable to find him, for God to be unable to hear him, for God to be unable to correct him, for God to be unable to save him, and neither can we. We learned in VBS this week that God made you (thank you God), God listens to you, God watches over you, God loves you no matter what, and God gives good gifts. So we can’t run away from God.
On the day that we were talking about God watching over us, about God seeing us even in darkness, one of the children near me asked if God could see us when we hide in the closet. Another asked if God could see us if we were under the bed or far away. And there were more such adorable questions. The answer to each one was the same: of course; God can see you anywhere. That led one of our wee ones to proclaim that he sees you when you’re sleeping and knows when you’re awake. Of course another followed that up with God knowing if we’re bad or good…. Of course when you talk to really little ones about gifts (aka presents), they are going to make some connection between God and Santa Claus….But here’s the really cool thing about that discussion: they got it. They may not have all gotten it on a deep theological level, but they got the basic message – God sees everything we do.
Now for those of you who don’t know, I had the great privilege of leading our four-year-old preschool group. Only fair since I kind of pushed for there to be one. And I am serious when I say it was a privilege. In addition to being a human jungle gym, I got to see little ones learning that not only does God love them, but a whole bunch of adults and big kids love them, too. I got to hear little Justin be the one who remembered the theme for the day. I got to laugh as Ryan recounted the story of Jonah in his own special way. I laughed as tiny Allie beat up on big Thomas Zebrowski with a pool noodle and my eyes watered as Alivia, who didn’t speak at all when she first arrived at Little Lambs last fall, got up to dance up front by the end of the week. The parents of these little ones could not stop praising the love and joy their children expressed about being part of VBS at MIPC. Your outpouring of love and energy and enthusiasm and spiritual nurture is truly a good gift from God.
And that same enthusiasm for this church’s VBS program endures all the way through all ages of VBS kids and Adventure Club and Cool Teen years. One mom and daughter I met up with in the parking lot told me how sad they were that the young lady had aged out of VBS and how much she misses getting to see her VBS friends – kids she has grown up with each summer since she was five. I, of course, encouraged them to get involved in volunteering and Adventure Club next year and they left with giant smiles. The big kids, even those challenging monkeys, had some of us near tears as they came through on the last day and not only learned the dances but participated with enthusiasm and no small amount of skill. Our Cool Teens, who are all way cooler than I was as a teen, use every ounce of energy, popping back up to run around in gym even after being trampled under 15 or so not as little as they seem children who pile on them with the force of NFL linebackers. They stick it out even when their groups prove to be just as challenging now as they were at that age. Our young people step up and lead, taking responsibility for even the least popular areas, like, music, and they come out rock stars. At least one of our music team was actually asked for autographs this year!
The big kids go out on adventures, sure, but this year they also spent a hot morning packing bags of food for people who are less fortunate. And even before they packed bags, they shared stories and questions and thoughts about what it means to help our neighbors, about what it can be like to be homeless or poor. They really put a great deal of thought and love into their discussion and their bags and they shared some truly deep and meaningful insights. Afterwards they put a lot of work into making their own ice cream!
Then there are the adults. Adults from this congregation and others who give generously of time, talent, and treasure. They allow their bodies to be abused by heat, grabbed by grubby little hands, and they give up sleep and rest to build sets, decorate rooms, work out schedules and curriculum and name tags and tables and mailings and picnics and so much more. They come back year after year and are the biggest kids at Adventure Club and during the annual post-picnic singing of JC. They come from different churches and even different states because there is just something really special about VBS here at MIPC. It’s not like anywhere else.
But it doesn’t even end with our VBS volunteers. This year, a true God sighting was missed by many who just didn’t happen to be in the right place at the right time. Becky Mayr decided to gather some troops to pack up the food for the food pantry into Judi’s trunk late Friday morning. As I walked across the driveway to speak with her, she pointed out the God sighting: teams of mommies who had really just come to collect their children were carrying heavy boxes and bags all the way from the manse garage to Judi’s car, parked not too far from the stop sign in the parking lot. Even the ones we are trying to reach out to are giving back in big ways.
And this year it just keeps going. Talk about food! Not only did we take in 1234 items of food, many of which went or are going to Riverhead Food Pantry, and $467 on Saturday afternoon, a group of weary but happy folks gathered to take the 45 bags of particular foods over to our neighbors around the corner. We had talked in the Mission Committee about what would go in the bags so there would be complete meals, and talked about how to pack them and who would distribute. We had discussed the logistics of the actual distribution, but it was all a little sketchy because none of us had done this before. We really didn’t know what was going to happen. The neighborhood we went to isn’t known for its pleasant demeanor. Even pizza delivery folks don’t go there after dark anymore. And here we were a bunch of church folks with limited offerings and even more limited guidance. It could have turned out badly, but it was beautiful. We sent teams of two knocking on doors and speaking to random strangers. The message changed a little as the day went on – one volunteer suggested we put a little emphasis on the fact that the VBS kids collected the food – and we probably didn’t manage to get to every needy family, but the difference it made was best summed up for me by the lady at the first door I knocked on. She looked at me with wonder and said they’d just been trying to figure out how they were going to be able to eat that day. Several people asked how much it cost, many had a hard time believing we were just there to give them food. Some people thanked us but said they were doing okay and didn’t want to take from those who really needed it most. I don’t think there was a single one among our group who didn’t tear up at least a bit at some point. And as with all mission, we received as much as we gave and so much more.
So here’s the thing: all this is really impossible. Just as impossible as living in the belly of a fish for three days. We’re a small church with a tight budget. We have folks who are struggling themselves and we’re all not just regular world busy, but Long Island busy. We don’t have hundreds of kids who are here every week and who know each other. We don’t know how many are coming when we order supplies or plan volunteers. We hadn’t done preschool VBS since Abby led it at the manse. It’s not possible to have so many kids in one place for a whole week led by teenagers and not have serious problems. We certainly can’t randomly show up to just give away food to people we’ve never met who have no reason to trust us and who don’t know we’re coming. It’s just not possible for a small church to keep hosting wildly successful VBS for years without burning out or to touch the hearts of children and parents in a way that keeps them coming back year after year.
It’s not possible for a prophet to be, as Ryan recounted, swallowed by a whale who swims to the beach and blah and he lives.
It’s not possible for us. But with God, all things are possible.
With God, there really ain’t no mountain high enough, or valley low enough or river wide enough or darkness dark enough or anything else in all of creation to separate us from the God who loves us completely and perfectly in Christ Jesus.