What my kindergartener taught me today!

Five years ago today I was indoor skydiving with my oldest son on a field trip!  I had no idea at that time that I was 6 1/2 months pregnant!  On Mother's Day 2008 I discovered that Sarah Grace McKinney was coming into this world, and life hasn't been the same since! Today she went to preschool for the last time.  What a whirlwind these five years have been!

As was the case every school day, I reminded her that the first thing we needed to do in the van was pray for her teachers.  I even said through tears, "Sarah, today is the last day we will get to pray for Mrs. Lisa and your Sonshine Preschool friends."

She was mortified! "Why can't we pray for them even when I go to kindergarten?" she wanted to know.

What a lesson for me, straight from God Himself! So often I pray for a specific request or person for a finite time, but when the winds change or I become frustrated with the amount of time it's taking to see an answer I give up.  Sometimes I even pray until I see an answer but then forget to say thank you to Him.

Simply put, 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says, "...pray continually."  That's what Sarah reminded me to do today.  There are no expiration dates on prayers, thankfully. 

You see, Sarah reminded us of that even five years ago.  We'd prayed for a baby so many years before she came, but honestly we had stopped praying long before she was a reality to us.  Truthfully we'd stopped because we were content and felt that God had already answered our prayers with the wonderful sons He'd given us through adoption.  But just as we are told to pray continually, I've become convinced that God is answering continually.  His idea of time is so far above our human ideas that I believe He's answered long before we've even prayed usually.  It kind of hurts my finite brain to contemplate how He works, but I'm a fan of it even when I can't totally understand it. 

Pray continually.  Don't stop seeking His answers.  Don't stop seeking Him.

Incidentally, right after Sarah Grace prayed for her preschool teachers and friends, she added, "And thank you for my kindergarten teacher, God!  Please help her to be ready for me!"

Amen to that!  Only God could prepare that teacher we have yet to know for this child!

Meet my friend Alyssa!

This is one of my favorite Easter photos this year!  Some of you will say, "I didn't know Gayla had a teenage daughter!"  This is not my daughter, but my sweet and crazy friend Alyssa!  I hope my own daughter will be as fun loving, athletic, and personable as Alyssa!  Not only is this a great photo of both of us (it's rare to see both of us in dresses!), but this photo is also special to me because Alyssa and I had some shared experiences leading up to Easter that made it an even more exciting day!  

Alyssa is part of the group of teenage girls who just finished studying the gospel of Mark.  In fact, we literally read Mark 15 together on the Saturday night before Easter and read the resurrection account in Mark 16 on Easter! Alyssa, however, had already finished the book a few weeks before because she just couldn't put it down!

Before I tell you what she said about it, let me tell you about her.  Alyssa is the finest soccer player you'll ever meet!  She's an athlete through and through, and she works hard!  She's popular at Lee's Summit High School as a freshman.  She sings in women's choir at school and rarely misses youth choir at church!  In fact, she'd only miss youth choir and Girl Talk Bible study if she had a soccer tournament.  I adore her because she will text me both funny stuff and deeply profound stuff.  I also adore her because she's plugged in enough to know what's going on with Justin at Lee's Summit West and is my informant if I need one.  (I'm pretty sure Justin never reads my blogs so we're safe!)  Bottom line:  Alyssa is the cool girl I wish I'd been at her age...who am I kidding, I still wish I was as cool as her!

A few weeks ago Alyssa texted me the following:

"Mark 15 I thought was pretty intense, how it just explained what they did to Jesus before the crucifixion so that made me pretty upset because I never really read what they did to him.  And then Mark 16 was actually happy!  I'm glad I didn't stop after Mark 15 because I'd feel like I would just be depressed knowing that Jesus went through all that torture for me, but then He rose from the dead and went up to the heavens to be with God.  I've never really thought deeply about what they really did to him and once I did, it made me so upset!  It was crazy! I spent all night when I read it just thinking about it and thanking Him for what he did.  I feel like I could never tell Him how thankful I am just because I'm like overjoyed and thankful!  The other girls...they need to make sure and read Mark 16 this week!"  

When I asked her to share her thoughts on the Saturday night before Easter with the other girls she said, "I'd just heard the story, but I'd never read it for myself! It means so much more!  I think I really got it this time.  It's been different this year."

That very week I'd been studying Job . I read in Job 42:5 what Job said after his unspeakable losses and the subsequent faithfulness of God, "My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you..."  That's essentially what Alyssa was saying without having to lose everything like Job.  She'd opened up the Bible and read it for herself, and Jesus would never be the same after that!  Can you even imagine what God's going to do with Alyssa!  I can't wait to watch her continue to grow!  How overly sweet of God to increase my faith and excitement through getting to experience Easter through her eyes!

My girls!!!

The ministry that lights my fire more than any other is the time I get to spend with some teenage girls at my church on Sunday nights.  Actually, girls' ministry in general just about makes me break into a praise dance...which wouldn't really be pretty but it would be funny.  I was a mess as a teenage girl!  Who am I kidding, I'm still a mess!  I pretended to be interested in Jesus and church, but basically I was all about being popular and having fun. (By the way, if you are reading this, Justin McKinney, I know you'll find it ironic that the thing I hound you the most about is exactly what I struggled with when I was your age.  You are so blessed to have a parent that understands, huh?) I wanted just enough of Jesus for most people to THINK I was a good girl.  I never really read my bible seriously.  That's why I'm amazed so often when I see the girls I get to hang out with not just reading it, but trying to understand the significance and relevance of it!  I'm 43 years old and I'm just now beginning to see the Holy Scripture in a new light every day, so I don't expect the girls to be perfect, but I wish I'd been more like them when I was their age.  Honestly, sometimes I wish I was more like them now.

Last summer I read a great blog on the LifeWay Girls page written by my friend and boss, Mickey McCloud.  Mickey, who is young and single and gorgeous and just barely older than a teenager herself, wrote about her own experience leading in girls' ministry.  She told of times when she would be with a group of girls who were talking about all sorts of literary or film characters but rarely knew much about Jesus. Reading her blog on that day marked me!  I began to actually think that maybe we've underestimated our girls.  Maybe they really would want to know Jesus for real? We have been recognizing, for a few years now, a heightened thirst among women for bible study and true discipleship.  Surely there is some trickle down effect with our girls?  If not, then is our revival among women real and relevant itself? Shouldn't our daughters notice the inevitable difference bible study and discipleship makes in our lives and want that?

So a group of women at my church helped me start a bible study for teenage girls.  We call it Girl Talk.  We try to meet for about an hour and a half every Sunday night after they've just come from other youth activities.  Of course we have schedule conflicts because these girls are INVOLVED!  And our church is INVOLVED!  Let's face it, we are all too busy.  The most interesting thing about this is that I think the girls miss it when we can't meet!  I know we older women miss it!  And did I mention that these girls don't HAVE to come?!  Not every girl in our youth ministry comes, and I love them all, but these girls have continued to come consistently for the entire school year...they come voluntarily!  It blows me away! When I was their age, I voluntarily did very little!

This is what has been working for us.  We chose the Gospel of Mark this year.  We read one chapter a week and we ask the same 5 questions each week, writing them in a simple notebook.  We always ask:
1.  Who are the characters in this chapter?
2.  What did Jesus say in this chapter?
3.  What did Jesus do in this chapter?
4.  What questions do you have about the passage?
5.  Did God speak to you personally about something as you read?

The most fun and hilarious discussions have come out of this time!  Just last week we pondered and laughed about the significance of a naked guy in Mark 14!  We've struggled with that withered fig tree, and we've asked whether the friends lowered the paralyzed guy through the roof vertically or horizontally!  Honestly, nothings off limits!  The teenage girls and us older girls ask all sorts of questions!  My favorite questions often don't necessarily have answers, but they provoke more questions.  When we are asking questions, even seemingly silly ones, we are actually thinking about the stories rather than just glancing over them. Sometimes they will even text me in the middle of the week with observations!  Seriously, I'm a sucker for a text about scripture from one of them!!

We've also tried to share our own personal stories.  Each adult shared her testimony and we've had some of the girls share as well.  Each week we've tried to focus on one person and ask her questions about her life and walk with Christ.  Sometimes this has worked but honestly sometimes we were so anxious to get into our study that we went straight to Jesus. 

Through this unbelievable experience, one I hope will continue, I've come to love the book of Mark and most of all Jesus!  I've learned that I can study the Word on my own without having to have a written study by someone else. (Now don't think I'm going to quit Beth Moore, Priscilla Shirer, Kelly Minter, Lisa Harper, Margaret Feinberg, etc....but sometimes a girl's got to read it for herself!)

 I've also recently come to love a Psalm that speaks to what we are doing.  Psalm 78:1-8 has come alive to me! I particularly love this part...

"...we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, his power, and the wonders he has done...so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they would put their trust in God and would not forget his deeds but would keep his commands. They would not be like their ancestors - a stubborn and rebellious generation whose hearts were not loyal to God, whose spirits were not faithful to him." 

Our girls are being told all sorts of stuff from all sorts of people.  Shouldn't we be telling them about the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD?  Shouldn't we be lovingly pointing them toward biblical standards.  After all, the world's standards change daily.  I want my girls to know where to find the biblical standards that are for their good, from their loving and merciful and brilliant God - the God Who both created them and continues to know what's best for them.  I've become acutely aware lately that if we stay quiet and just hope they "get it", they won't. Even in my old age I struggle with being popular as I have often thought, "If I go too far with this Jesus thing they will think I'm radical, crazy, a little kooky!  They will turn me off.  And surely they will feel so sorry for Justin and Caleb who have to live with me!" Guess what?  My girls know I'm kooky, "passionate", and old fashioned because I never cease to make a fool of myself.  They love me anyway, even if they may roll their eyes! That's the thing about teenagers, they are even tolerant of old ladies usually, if they see it's genuine!

In the next few weeks I want to introduce you to my girls!  I hope they will even contribute to this blog so that both they and you will see what God wants to do in the lives of young women.  Oh the possibilities are endless!  I'm so grateful for their influence in my life...maybe I'll eventually grow up too!  I praise Him for the fact that they are not like me at their age.  They are the real things!  These girls will go to seminary and theology school, serve in foreign lands, risk their lives for the gospel, teach their families, and lead the church....I'm convinced of it.  I didn't do anything to cause this, God was already at work in them and He so graciously let me be in close proximity to them.  I'm learning to be more like them.  It actually turns out that what I thought was my ministry to girls has ended up being their ministry to me too! Invest in a girl and your life will be changed!

Ruined for anything else for now!

It's been a busy year that recently climaxed in miraculous ways.  As most of my friends know, I have had the privilege of working with LifeWay Women Events for the past year on a couple of events.  Last year I was part of a team of women in KC that hosted Living Proof Live with Beth Moore downtown.  We hosted 9000 women in Municipal Auditorium for worship with Travis Cottrell and teaching by my hometown gal, Beth herself!  I couldn't possibly explain how I became a part of these events.  God simply orchestrated it miraculously and curiously.  The team of gals I've worked with have become dear dear friends!

Because we all had such a glorious time working on the LPL event, when LifeWay asked us to host Priscilla Shirer in 2013 we jumped on it!  I traveled to Nashville back in August 2012 with our city coordinator, Mary Tostenson, to begin planning for Priscilla.  This would be a smaller event at FBC Raytown with only 1400 women. We planned for months, invited women, introduced them to Priscilla (Dr. Tony Evan's daughter), promoted her studies, and prayed constantly that He would blow us away with a mountain top experience. The event concluded on March 2nd and I can honestly say it was a journey I'll never forget.  People say that all the time, but I mean it!  I'm ruined after this one!  My sweet friend Patricia from LifeWay told me once that I'd be changed more than anyone when I signed on to take this responsibility, and was right of course!  I've never been so disgusted with myself and amazed by my God than during this journey! I'm so grateful that He thought it was time to deal with some stuff in me that had rooted itself so deeply I hadn't even realized it!

For both of these events, I was asked to serve as the prayer coordinator.  For an event like this, LifeWay literally asks you to write a prayer strategy.  Seriously, a STRATEGY...written down...and submitted to people who might actually keep you accountable for what you wrote!  YIKES!  I felt like my name was on the line, and honestly I wanted LifeWay and Priscilla to be blessed by our work. I felt so responsible so I prayed like never before.

I've spent the past year praying for so much in addition to my own family and desires!  I've prayed for minute details and HUGE life changing results.  I've prayed for protection from Satan and I've fasted!  I've prayed thousands of scriptures!  I've prayed alone, with one or two others, and with hundreds.  I've begged and pleaded for women and men to pray with me and I've been awake in the middle of the night praying more than I could've imagined.  Why did I take this so seriously?  I honestly can't explain it without admitting that I'm competitive and selfish and prideful and all sorts of other ugliness.  But I'm also utterly aware of His sovereignty and ability and goodness.  I'm pretty sure I went into this whole thing believing that if I just asked often enough or desperately enough He'd answer.  I mean I knew He was going to do what He was going to do with or without me, but I think I thought I could beg enough to make it all "work out". What I now have come to understand is that He so graciously and sweetly invited me to be involved in what He was already doing.  He was giving me the holy opportunity to see His supernatural activity.  I've often prayed something like this over the last year:  "Lord, I know You call us to walk by faith, but I'm asking You to peel back the curtain and let us see just a glimpse of what You're up to.  I promise I'll walk by faith tomorrow after this event, but today I'm asking You to let me just see a glimpse of what You're doing...see some fruit today."  Boy has He done just that!

I've seen young women and teenage girls surrender to Christ for the first time.  I've seen young mothers excitedly accept their callings to lead their children first and any circle of influence they may have next toward the one Merciful God!  I've seen depression replaced with hope.  I've seen women of all races and ages worship in a variety of ways that surely is what heaven will look like! I've seen homeless women find stability in Christ alone.  I've seen men praying for the women of this community humbly.  I've seen miracles...sheer miracles!  I've seen shipments arrive at the last minute as we were asking God to send them.  I've seen people come out of the woodwork to attend an event when we thought no one was coming.  I've seen money for ministry appear out of nowhere.  I've literally seen and heard the Holy Spirit sweep through a room until His presence was palpable.  I've seen Him change my heart of stone toward women's ministry to one of willingness to serve women in His name yet again.  I'm even excited about it. Now that's a miracle!  All this because I was invested in prayer and watching for Him to work.  All this because He is so sweet.

So now my question is:  WHY DON'T I PRAY ABOUT THE EVERYDAY THINGS and EVERYTHING LIKE THIS?

I'm ruined for anything less!  I won't ever stand before 1000's and teach.  I won't ever have my own book or write my own Bible study.  I won't ever travel the world to teach or lead worship.  But I will pray like my life and the lives of the women and men I serve depend on it.  Don't misunderstand me.  I know nothing depends on me, but I am ruined for less than living in such a state of dependance on Him alone from now on!  I believe this is why God graciously allowed me to take part in this past year full of women's ministry.  I want to hear Him, see Him, and sense Him so I'm going to ask Him! I'd welcome anyone else who's with me.  

Thank You Father for focusing me on You again in this season!

I'm no Pioneer Woman!

I've recently started following The Pioneer Woman's blog.  I know, I know!  I'm so behind on this since she became wildly popular a few years ago, but better late than never.  Actually, I'm not going to lie...I became interested in her only because she wrote a small introduction in the book "Sparkly Green Earrings" by blogger Melanie Shankle.  If you're a mom who loves Jesus, you really should read it. I admire Melanie and think her story is just pretty crazy! Melanie is a mom who started a blog years ago, and now she's got her own book...crazy and darn near impossible in today's blog heavy world.  Anyway, back to The Pioneer Woman's blog...

So Renee Drummond evidently lives on a cattle ranch in Oklahoma.  She likes to cook and take photographs.  She blogs these amazing looking recipes in the most maddening way...she takes a photo of every single step.  Now I understand that if you have no idea how to cook or read a recipe this might be helpful.  I, however, have the oh so practical degree in home economics.  That was a joke!  It's maybe practical for my current role as mom and chief executive officer of McKinney Estate, but a home ec degree is less than impressive.  It does mean that I should be able to follow a recipe without pictures.  So even though The Pioneer Woman's photographs are gorgeous, I find myself scrolling quickly to the actual recipe...which is always at the very end.  See, here's the deal:  I can either look at the photos or I can make the dish but I don't have time for both these days.  This maddening realization made me think how funny it could be if I blogged about something with photos of the entire process.

On this snow day I decided to blog about finding time for Bible study.  Bible study is both luxury and necessity to me.  Anyone who knows me knows that I believe I will hear God speak so much more clearly every day if I begin with time in His Word.  I live by Hebrews 4:12 that proclaims that His word is alive and active, sharper than any double edged sword!  I teach women's Bible study and girl's Bible study on a weekly basis.  I LOVE God's word more than anything, but my current season on life makes me have to work for it!  I especially had a tough time today as we were in full on blizzard mode here in Kansas City. The entire family is at home...in one house...sometimes all in one room...no school. Get what I mean???

I sat down about 9:30am to do my Bible study.  I'm in the next to last week of a study called Discerning the Voice of God, written by Priscilla Shirer. It's fantastic and I highly recommend it.  I'm doing it to prepare for hosting Priscilla in KC this Friday!  That's a blog for another day I hope.

Usually I would be studying at 6:45am which is after the boys leave for school but before Sarah awakens.Today was a snow day so honestly I slept in with the rest of the family.

Here's what the scene looked like when I initially sat down to begin. 

Notice something is missing?  Who can do Bible study without the coffee? And here's where it gets crazy!

I went to find my favorite coffee mug, Disney Princesses of course, and noticed that my coffee K cup dispenser was out of my favorite caramel drizzle flavor. That box is stored in the space above the dryer.  Wouldn't you know it but I needed to fold a load of laundry that was in the dryer!  I stopped to fold laundry.

Where was I?  Oh yes, Bible study!  Oh wait, coffee!

 After getting coffee, I sat down to do Bible study again. Does anyone notice that I never actually got the coffee to the table.  Twenty minutes later I realized my coffee was sitting at the Keurig, and it was cold.  I had to microwave it.  Sadly, when I put the cup into the microwave I realized that the microwave desperately needed to be cleaned.  You know what happened next, don't you?

!  

Look how clean it is! But wait, I was doing bible study!  Forget the coffee! 

 After 20 more minutes or so, this adorable little thing came up and asked to play in the snow!

How can you say no to that face?  Jesus Himself would have taken time to play with her, right?? Actually the brothers were already outside so I didn't even have to go out with her.  I sat back down to finish my 

Bible study. Of course she came back in 15 minutes later because she was cold.  I fixed her lunch, which isn't pictured because it was a sad little lunch of leftover spaghetti, a banana, and tortilla chips.  That's how we roll on snow days.  You really should thank me for not taking photos anyway because I was still folding laundry and you didn't want  all to see our underwear.

After lunch I wanted to do just a little more Bible study so I asked Sarah to play quietly in the living room.  Here's what happened 5 minutes later:

I gave up and played Pop the Pig!  I think my Bible study was about how we each have spiritual gifts and are important in the body of Christ.  I'll try again tomorrow.  

So take that Pioneer Woman!  One day I'll have time for fancy recipes and uninterrupted Bible study, but not today.  I'm glad His mercies are new every morning!

Most Romantic McKinney Moments...

My husband wrote on our marriage blog today about how he once gave me a very unromantic Valentine's gift.  While the memory of that one has yet to fade, he's done far more "very romantic" gestures than "unromantic guffaws" I assure you.  I thought I'd spend some time giving him credit for some of my favorites.

10.  Just before Sarah was born, Blake gave me a rocking chair for her nursery.  I'm pretty sure he knew it was a safe purchase not only because it would be wonderful to rock Sarah in, but also because old people sit in rocking chairs...and we were too OLD for a new baby! 

9.  Last year Blake asked me to help him with a sermon on marriage.  I'm not the scholar nor am I particularly the most eloquent public speaker, so it communicated to me that he both trusted and valued my take on the subject.  I almost threw up over the whole ordeal, but it was sweet of him to include me.

8.  Every year on my birthday (December 22nd) Blake finds an overtly romantic restaurant for us to celebrate together amidst the normal holiday hustle and bustle.  He even arranges the baby sitter!  That earns him bonus points in the romance department!

7.  As much as he makes fun of me for watching it, it's romantic to me that he would rather read a book sitting right beside me in bed while I watch Downton Abbey after the kids go to bed.  He could easily go downstairs and watch NCIS on the other television, but he chooses to stay in the same room with me. 

6.  Speaking of reading, early on in our marriage before we had children, we would go shopping together.  Blake HATES to shop, but he would take a book and contently follow me from shop to shop with his book.  He would sit on a bench outside and just wait for me to shop til I dropped.  He never complained one bit! 

5.  He bought me my first IPhone for Valentine's Day a few years back.  Seriously, that was romantic to me because he hates to spend money!

4.  Since he bought my phone for Valentine's Day originally, my upgrades are due around Valentine's Day.  This year Blake upgraded my phone for my birthday...that's 2 months early!!  Love that man!

3.  Years ago, to celebrate my first job, Blake did one of those cutesy scavenger hunts that ended with ice cream.  I've never forgotten that!  We were about 12 back then and newlyweds. We had just moved to seminary, and I was scared to death!  I fell in love with him for the thousandth time that day!

2.  He's planned and executed about a thousand fun couple and family trips!  Our first anniversary he took me to a bed and breakfast on a sheep farm in Kentucky. We spent our 5th anniversary on a cruise!  We spent our 15th anniversary in NYC!  And we spent almost two weeks in a crazy romantic beachside bed and breakfast for our 20th anniversary!  The man can plan a seriously romantic getaway and he spares no expense! 

1.  He picked me!  Seriously, sometimes I still can't believe it!  If you know us then surely you've figured out we are pretty different.  He's brilliant and quiet and calm and content and a city boy.  I'm...well, I'm none of those things!  He deserves someone who has it as together as he does, but chooses me again every day!  He completes me...yes I know I stole that line but it's true!  I adore him!

What's it like being the mother of the pastor's kids?

I am a pastor's wife.  I've always been a pastor's wife, so I can't honestly compare it to being the wife of anyone else, but in my opinion it can't be that different from being a plumber's wife.  My husband has a full time job that is often way more than full time, but then lot's of jobs are like that.  I'd like to think that my desire to serve people in Jesus' name and study God's Word would be no different if Blake was something other than a minister.  I can assure you my bent toward teaching would be evident even if Blake was a doctor or lawyer or truck driver. (Funny thought!)  Sweet friends often try to empathize and acknowledge that being the spouse of a minister must be hard.  Honestly, it's not.  It's all I know and what I love.  Blake and I often say that even if we wanted out of ministry, we have no other marketable skills!

However, being the mom of minister's children is often hard.  I know what you are thinking.  The stereotypical pastor's kid is rambunctious, breaks all the rules, embarrasses the family, and makes the deacon's kids blush.  We've had moments like that and likely will in the future, but that's not even the hardest part.  The really hard parts are watching my children struggle with pleasing people versus being themselves.  It's also helping them own their relationship with Christ instead of it being the habit of just going to church.  It's watching them leave friends and familiar when we move to a new church.  It's agonizing with them as they search for friends that share their beliefs while also trying to be light to those friends who do not share their beliefs or at least their moral standards. Sometimes it's trying to explain to them why some people say harsh things about Dad when they disagree with his leadership or sermon when the kids know Dad listened very carefully to what God wanted him to do or say.  It's been awhile since they've seen this, but the scars are there from times they've thought people who loved them were actually quite mean to Dad. Hardest of all, I'd say, is trying to help them understand that they are a part of this ministry team.  I want them to believe that God placed them in this ministry family with their own talents and gifts that, if yielded to Him, will minister to those in our spheres of influence.  

For this reason, one could never thrill me more than when they genuinely love and encourage my children.  Want to bless your pastor's family?  Love their children!

I have a dear friend who is a pastor's kid and was my college suite mate.  I remember very few times Robin felt devastated by her father's congregation, but I remember many times she would tell of their sweet and generous acts of compassion toward her and her brother.  As a bridesmaid in her wedding, I watched her church shower her with not only gifts, but service as they joyously helped with all parts of that ceremony.  It has always impressed me that she loved being a pastor's kid so much that she not only married one, but is now raising her own pastor's kids!  In fact, long before I knew Robin I knew her grandfather because he was my pastor growing up.  Now that's a legacy!  Three generations of ministry means not only God's calling was honored in that family, but also that the people they ministered to were kind and encouraging and compassionate enough that the next generation longed to serve Him in full time ministry!  

This morning I watched Justin be the recipient of this sort of encouragement.  A sweet lady in our church sent him a simple thank you card.  She thanked him for playing the drums at church with enthusiasm and commitment.  Honestly, some people would have probably said, "That pastor's kid needs a haircut and should not be playing those drums in church."  We've known times when congregants would have asserted that Blake has no control over his children or has worldly parenting ideas just because Justin is a normal teenager.  But today, Justin saw from someone other than Mom and Dad that his ministry is vital and blessed by God.  We preach to our children that we are all on the same team, but this morning Justin got it from another source that he's much more likely to remember.  Thank you, Marilyn West!  

In our church this is not an isolated incident.  My kids are accepted as normal kids who have their own talents and personalities and quirks.  In fact, at FBCLS, every child seems to be appreciated and urged to use their unique gifts and personalities to lead in worship, service, and study.  I'm blessed beyond measure to be a part of this church.  My kids have their own fan clubs I think.  It reminds me of a time when we were interviewing with a pastor search team in Georgia and my friend Judy asked, "What questions do you have for us, Gayla?"  I replied, "Will someone love my children?"  

That's really all this pastor's wife wants...for someone to love my children.  Want to bless the socks off of your minister's family?  Love their children!