There is no age limit on ministry!!!

I fully understand that some churches target their ministry toward certain ages.  Some churches unapologetically attempt to appeal to 20 somethings or 50 somethings or even 80 somethings.  I get that.  I'm not judging anyone's ministry methodology, I'm just here to say that Blake and I have never been called to minister in that way.  We thrive best in a multigenerational church!  We believe our children learn best in a multigenerational church.  We believe that submission is learned best and modeled most in a multigenerational church.

Let's just be honest.  It's not natural for teens and 70 somethings to enjoy the same approach to worship music.  It's not "normal" for stay at home moms to minister alongside young single girls.  It's completely hilarious to watch this 40 something try to be "cool" enough to teach preteen kids in bible study.  It's even less likely to see retired great grandmothers encouraging elementary kids to dance (yes I'm Baptist and I said the "d" word) during VBS worship rally, much less to see them doing it themselves!

A multigenerational approach to church requires submission on everyone's part.  (Yes, I also just used the "s" word.  Wait, isn't that what you call it at your house too?  When McKinney's refer to the "s" word, we really mean submission.  That's how much we LOVE that word!)

I've experienced many sweet moments of multigenerational church in my 23 years of ministry, but none sweeter than what I was a part of this week.  This past week was Vacation Bible School at First Baptist Church in Lee's Summit and I was allowed to direct the preteen class.  It was my third year to direct this class, and as director I get to pick who works with me.  Every year I pick the same two people...Thorville Rygaard and Joan Glowa.

Here's part of our group with Thorville...

And here's part of the group with Joan on the front left...

Thorville is 84 years old, a retired engineer!  I've decided that he's pretty much always been brilliant! And get this, he tells the students to call him "THOR"!  Is that awesome or what?   Joan is 77 years old.  She is a retired teacher, loves to study the bible and travel, and is passionate about leading people to Christ!  She is a spit fire if I've ever known one! Both Joan and Thorville (who are not married to each other!) have traveled to over 100 countries, mostly on mission trips!

I also get to have at least one teenager with the preteens.  This year I was so blessed to have Alyssa Gann!  Alyssa is 15.  She is the best soccer player I've ever known and she is drop dead gorgeous!  She's hilarious and I adore her!  She's learning more and more about the bible every day and it's so exciting to watch! 

Here's Alyssa (in the center) with her friend Sara (who Alyssa brought 2 days this week) with one of our students!

On Tuesday THOR taught the kids about how Paul had to be rescued from Caesarea by being lowered out of the city wall in a basket.  He brought maps and talked history and the students ATE IT UP!!!  On Thursday, Joan will share about Paul and I absolutely guarantee that she will have a story about having traveled to wherever Paul was in her part of the study.  In fact, both she and THOR told the students about how they had both walked on Straight Street on the way to Damascus where Paul's blinding conversion took place.  That kind of experience and wisdom and first person excitement happens only because these multiple generations do life together at FBCLS!  Alyssa and I sat in amazement as we watched 12 year olds talk bible with these older saints!  I'm still over the moon about it!

Not only do we have a boat load of senior adults at FBCLS who, just like THOR and Joan, haven't retired from hands on ministry, we also have tons of adults and teenagers who dive into full on kids' ministry!  We are definitely not a huge church, as these numbers will show, but check out the note Blake passed me yesterday afternoon.

This is a breakdown of our numbers for VBS for the week.  Now obviously we weren't too high tech with this, and again we aren't a mega church, but do you see the leader to kid ratio?!  We had 110 workers and 165 kids!  That's astounding to me!  It's one more reason I love my church, and I'm convinced Jesus is pleased with how we are serving Him together!  Besides, VBS is so much fun, who wants to miss it??

Here are a few more examples of how my church thrives in the middle of multigenerational ministry.

This is Hannah!  I am so privileged to get to hang with Hannah and mentor her!  She has so many talents and is the sweetest teenage girl I know.  She loves Jesus and can play some mean volleyball and cello!  She's also an amazing hair braider!  She texted me Friday to see if Sarah would like for her to braid her hair! Sarah and I arrived a little early and Hannah braided her hair in Dad's office! In this way, Sarah is learning from Hannah!  That's multigenerational!

This is one of my favorite college students, Davis!  He is a serious quarterback who played for the Razorbacks for the past two years and is about to transfer to SBU in Bolivar!  He spent the entire week teaching 3rd graders!  And please check out Joan photobombing!!

And this is Jillian!  Jillian is a 5th grader who played the part of the cool, courageous, Colossal Coaster Kid in worship rally this week!  Sarah adores her and she is loves to be her friend!  Even kids can minister to kids!

So there is absolutely no age limit to ministry! 

This is why PK's are the way they are...

I'm finally getting a chance to post something from last week...I wrote this about a week ago but thought it was just so insightful. (Not really but it's so indicative of us!) Pretend its last week!

So VBS has been going on this week at FBC Lee's Summit.  I point that fact out simply because it should tell you the frame of mind as well as the level of energy we have at our house this week.  Keep that in mind as you read...

Honestly, have you ever wondered why pastor's kids are usually THE WORST kids? 

Now to be honest, I have many friends from college who grew up as pastor's kids and turned out great!  My college suite mate, Robin, was a perfect pastor's daughter.  She was always kind and sweet, Godly, passionate about serving others, and only stayed out past curfew one time that I can recall!  (I love you Robin, but surely you remember that night!)  She did marry that guy anyway!  Robin is probably the reason I, against all PK odds, have higher expectations for my kids.

Something happened today that might explain this "pastor's kid = wild child" phenomenon.

As Blake and I were driving with Sarah on our way back to church from lunch at Jason's Deli after a particularly spiritually charged morning of VBS (because you evidently CAN come to know Jesus on a roller coaster), she asked a profound question.

"How did people get the bible?"

I thought DR. McKinney was about sprout angel wings!  He got that look in his eye that only preachers get when they sense someone in the vicinity has an honest spiritual question. He looked as though his very reason for living had just been identified! I swear I heard the Chariots of Fire theme as I almost literally saw the wheels of his brain turning as to how to explain the divine process of how we have God's very words in our hands!

There was this elaborate explanation of canonization and transmission. He may have even mentioned the Dead Sea scrolls at one point. Sarah, at the tender age of 5 years old, was fortunate enough to get at least 2 weeks worth of Biblical Survey notes in less than 5 minutes! 

Finally I noticed the glazed look in her eyes. Then I realized she was so me! 

"But Dad, where did my teacher buy the pretty Bible she reads from?"

It was a shopping question!!!  Not a theological question!

"Probably Mardel, Honey."

I actually felt sorry for Dr. McKinney.

And I believe that might partially explain why preacher's kids have issues. 

Something just fell into our laps!

I love my church for about a MILLION different reasons.  Here are just a few!

1.  We have the best and cutest pastor!
2.  There is zero ugliness, even when we disagree.
3.  We are not stiff or stuffy!  We don't take ourselves too seriously, but we do make Jesus relevant in everything!
4.  The most amazing youth group is full of unique and friendly kids who let me hang out with them every now and then...and Justin and Caleb have a home there!
5.  For some crazy reason, they let me live out my calling to lead Bible study.  For that matter, they let me just be me!
6.  Most of all, we are a body of believers who don't judge, but really do accept the fact that we are all sinners who've been redeemed.

And in light of that last one, we are getting the ministry opportunity of a lifetime about which I'm stoked.  (See, I've been hanging out with the youth group long enough to pick up some groovy language.  They still use words like "stoked" and "groovy" right?)

FBCLS is getting the opportunity to provide free childcare for the teenage mother's who attend LSR7's Summit Ridge Academy!  That's huge, folks!

We talk about being pro life.  We agonize over how our public schools don't respect Christian beliefs (which we've not necessarily experienced here in LSR7...).  Now we've been given this amazing opportunity to literally BE THE HANDS AND FEET OF JESUS to girls in our public school system who've chosen life!  It's like God just teed it up for us!

Let's just be honest.  Most "christians" would immediately judge these girls and their families.  Most would attempt to disassociate themselves lest Jesus' name be tarnished.  At the very least, most would silently say something like, "What a shame!" and leave it at that.  Not FBCLS!

We will greet these girls every morning at 7:30am when they drop of their precious little ones at the church with a smile!  We will ask them how it's going?  We will pray for them as they have a test or a project due!  We will love on these babies like they are our very own flesh and blood!  We will sing Jesus songs to them and rock them.  Then when those moms come back at 2:30pm, we will give them their clean and rested and safe baby.  We will be a solid and gracious link in their support system.  Eventually we will celebrate with them as they graduate and move on to make the best life for their little family.  We will make sure they know about Jesus and that He's the reason any of us have real life.

I'm so excited about this opportunity I could bust!  You see, my sweet Sarah will start to kindergarten this year and I will be able to help on Fridays!  If you live in Lee's Summit or the surrounding area and want to join me, please contact Trish Frevert at trish.frevert@fbcls.com to sign up!  The church will pay for you to have a background check.  We are still looking for 3 people to provide care from 7:30am to 11:30am and 9 people to provide care from 11:30am to 2:30pm.  We start August 14th!

But Jesus called the children to Him and said "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these..."  
Luke 18:16

A few blogs I'm reading lately...

I rarely read actual books lately.  Actually I've never been much more than a beach reader anyway.  I will occasionally get on a kick and read an entire series of books during the summer, but it's not looking promising for the summer of 2013!  I'd like to blame my schedule, because as you know it's hard to read and drive or read and cook or read and do laundry.  Those are the things I do most when I'm not working on LifeWay stuff or selling oil and vinegar or at the pool with Sarah or crafting with Sarah.  And if you believe I'm crafting with Sarah I have some beachfront property right here in the KC metro area I'll sell you before you read my last post.

I digress...

The point is that I'm not much of a reader.  However, I do find time to catch up on my favorite blogs from time to time.  I'd love to start sharing a few of my favorites every week and hear some of yours.  Blogs are such a fun, quick way to keep up with everything from friends and family to trends in fashion or new recipes. I read several blogs weekly, but many I just read whenever the mood strikes or I have an extra minute or two.  Tonight I'll share just a few of my regular reads.

If you are a Southern gal or you know one, please do yourself a favor and check out boomama.net.  Boomama is Sophie Hudson from Alabama, and she's a riot.  I do not know Sophie personally, but I swear she's lived my life. She's one of the best storytellers I've ever read, and her tales of life in the south are just simple hilarity. In fact, her brand new book, A Little Salty to Cut the Sweet, came out this summer.  I read it in two nights.  My best friend and I must have called or texted each other 50 times in that 48 hour period just to say, "I swear that's us!".  If you aren't southern, then you might not totally get it, and you might be even more convinced that all us southern gals are out of control after you read it.  Then again, you might just understand me a little better if you check out Sophie's blog.

A local blog that I keep up with is lessonsfromaisle12.blogspot.com by Angie Wilkinson.  I count Angie as a personal friend even though we rarely see each other.  She is a fellow mom, women's minister, lover of Jesus and Bible study, and KC suburbanite.  I appreciate Angie's honesty and biblical perspective on everyday life as a mom, friend, daughter, and wife.  Angie has helped me with a couple of LifeWay events and I wholeheartedly believe that she will have a great book of her own out soon!  For encouragement in this crazy mom life, head over to Angie's blog!

I can't write about my favorite blogs without mentioning the ONE blog I read EVERY DAY.  If you are involved in any kind of women's ministry at all, you have to subscribe to blog.lifeway.com/womenallaccess. My friends at LifeWay Women update that blog daily with fresh encouragement for your walk with Christ as well as resources for your ministry.  A variety of folks guest blog for them, and I've even written a few things myself.  I retweet, share, text, and email this blog to poor Natalie (my church' s women's team leader) far more than she would like simply because it's so good!  Natalie would probably appreciate it if you all would check out the blog, and tell them Gayla sent you, simply in hopes that I'll stop bugging her!  The funny thing is that I'm pretty sure she subscribes to it but I just keep sending it to her...just in case she missed it.

And lastly, though this isn't a blog, I couldn't end this post without screaming from the rooftops about the best book I've seen in forever.  My brilliant, humble, Godly husband and pastor just had his first book released last week.  Refresh, A Moment with God in the Middle of Your Day, was released on Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/Refresh-Moment-God-Middle-Your/dp/1938514246) and Barnes and Noble (http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/refresh-blake-mckinney/1115757166?ean=2940016798394). Blake's dreamed of writing a book, and we've prayed for this for 20 years.  These devotions have been written brilliantly for the purpose of refocusing you on God's love, mercy, grace, and specific direction during your everyday routine.  I know I'm biased, but it's a great addition to your devotional library.  It's actually trending on Barnes and Noble as one of the hottest moving books so maybe I'm not the only one who thinks it's worth the read!

I'd love to hear what you are reading!  What books or blogs not only entertain you but also make you think or bring you encouragement?  Let me know if you have a blog of your own!

I spy...

My summer routine pretty much consists of driving 3 kids to various activities from 9 am to 5 pm. I know! You are probably thinking that it's a shame our poor children are so busy with little time to enjoy summer. You are probably having an urge to give me the address for some of those better mommy blogs where they write about their precious ones running through the sprinklers or playing with chalk or making crafts. Speaking of crafts, you probably  want to suggest I do some with my four year old as we talk about Bible stories. Trust me, she did some two weeks ago with her wonderful grandmother. Here is a photo of sweet Sarah when I picked her up from what we call "Camp McKinney" which is actually a week with Blake's parents. She couldn't wait to show me the paper mache' pig she made!

I've pinned about a million craft ideas on Pinterest, but here are the ones she did with Grammy last week so I'm thinking she's crafted out for awhile anyway. Aren't they adorable?!

And by the way, she even cooked with Grammy AND ran through their sprinklers!  See, my kids really are having a perfectly lovely summer!

I did recently get super creative with breakfast...notice the frozen waffle and paper plate.

As much as I try, I'm not that kind of mom usually, and we aren't that kind of family. I'm okay with it, really! It's how we thrive honestly. I mean, seriously...this crazy family will choose the vacation to a crazy big city over a leisurely mountain cabin any day. I'll spare you all the pictures of our recent trip to Washington DC. Even when we are in nature, my husband and sons prefer to live on the edge!

Suffice it to say that we really do enjoy being busy.

Please don't judge us! It's not that we don't talk about Bible stories or appreciate some quiet time. We really do! It's just that we find ourselves in the high school, middle school, and kindergarten stages all at the same time. All three of our kids are active because they want to be. They each have their own activities, so we have some really great opportunities to meet other families in our community. We have dinner together around the table almost every night. During the school year we have breakfast together every school day and morning devotions.  

But one of my favorite things about all the busyness is that we have captive moments in the car to talk about Jesus. We also try to spend the beginning parts of our drive praying for others. We pray for teachers, coaches, church staff, neighbors, even strangers in ambulances as they rush by. When several of us are waiting in the car for a sibling to finish summer school, voice lessons, drum lessons, ballet, gymnastics, church orchestra, or pool time we have the best conversations about how we see God at work in the world! (Here we are waiting for Justin to finish a voice lesson. You'd be surprised how much you can learn about God's love for us as you see hints of redemption even in Disney stories on the ipad!)

Because we are in the car a lot, we play several car games. One of our favorites is "I Spy".  

A funny thing happened this week as we pulled out of the garage. I reminded Sarah that we needed to pray for Coach Jana as we headed to gymnastics. Sarah volunteered to go first and started, "I spy with my little eye..." before we both started to laugh! Sometimes we don't think before we speak.  Sometimes we just "phone in" our prayers. We did pray for Coach Jana and talk about how we have to take that seriously. Sarah honestly just said what came very naturally to her in the car...she wasn't trying to be funny, but I was reminded by Sarah that prayer really is an invitation from God to spy Him!

I believe that He is always at work, but when I'm consciously praying about something or someone I'm compelled to watch for an answer. Honestly, it's sometimes easy to go for hours in the day without acknowledging His presence or speaking to Him. I know i should be praying, but I just get busy. I don't know if my prayers change God's mind necessarily, but I do know that prayer changes me. It focuses me. It reminds me that He is doing something so big that I'd hate to miss it! It's an invitation to play "I SPY GOD!"

Do you spy God at work in your busyness. Prayer is the best way to make yourself spy God! If you are talking with Him, asking Him to reveal Himself, then looking hard for Him, you will spy Him! God spoke to the rebellious nation of Israel through the prophet Jeremiah and even said, "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you..." (Jeremiah 29:13-14a)

My challenge to you, to myself too, is to play "I spy" with God! Talk to Him! Ask Him to reveal Himself to you in new and surprising ways. Beg Him to move in your life and your circumstances. Plead with Him to move in your friends' lives. Even tell Him and others where you've "spied" Him lately! I'll just bet that when you pray about some things and then watch for His answers, you'll spy Him in all sorts of places!

This week I'm hoping to spy Him at the gym!

I'm betting He'll turn me upside down in the process!  (Sorry, I couldn't resist!)

Happy Father's Day!

I just love that so many of my friends are posting photos of their fathers on Facebook!  I've enjoyed seeing many pictures of men who were dear to me as beloved friends' dads!  I wish I had a photo of my own dad, but he passed away almost 15 years ago.  Dad and I had a weird relationship, not exactly what I wanted, but he most certainly loved me in the ways he thought were important.  I've thankfully had several other father figures throughout the years and each of them gave me love in their own way.

Bobby Graves was my father.  He was born in 1920, and was almost 50 when I came along.  Now that I'm almost 50 with a preschooler I completely understand why he wasn't always warm and fuzzy with me!  He was exhausted by then, having already raised two boys and daughter.  My sister was his princess who came along 10 years after the boys, and when I came 10 years after that he must have been tired!  Even though he wasn't exactly an overly involved dad, he did have extremely high expectations.  I'm forever grateful that, even though he never graduated from high school, he INSISTED that I finish college.  He bought this small town girl a blue Chevy truck when I was 16 and then made sure I could drive anywhere!  He never missed a basketball game or a football game if I was cheering. He never made much money, in fact I remember that he made $13,000 the year he retired from the US Forrest Service when I was in high school, but somehow I had more than I needed and was allowed to travel more than most kids in my small town.  Most importantly, he made sure I NEVER EVER missed church, and I used manners.  The best memory with him was when he took Mom and me to Germany when I was in college to visit where he had walked and fought in WWII.  I'll never forget watching that hard man sob at the site of the Remagen Bridge, where he fought bravely and lost so many friends.  I was changed by that experience and learned so much about him during that visit.  He died when Justin was only 6 months old, and I wish my children could have known him.

My brother Ronny Graves was the father figure for me for much of my teenage and early twenty years.  He is 20 years older than me and has two daughters, Kristal and Karmen, who were so much more than nieces!  His girls were like sisters to me so he treated my more like a daughter than a little sister!   Though Ronny was always stationed far from home in the Army, we visited him and his family every summer.  He and my sister in law, Nancy, always treated my like their very own!  They took me to see my first movie.  They were cool parents!!  Going to the pool with them on base at Ft. Hood was like visiting the Hawaiian Islands to me!  Ronny is a teacher, and I can't tell you how much I still learn from him!  He's patiently taught me everything from German, cake decorating, horsemanship, and scripture.  He's the father figure that hugged me and told me he was proud of me as a teenager. He even rented a sports car for us to drive one time in college, and I've never forgotten it! I always wanted to marry a smart man because Ronny was smart and could converse about any topic!  It's been fun to watch Ronny and my husband, who is also smart, talk about everything from religion to politics to family.  I love my brother Ronny so much!

Larry Graves is my OLDEST brother.  I love to say that to him!  He's actually the closest thing to a father I have today. Though Larry and I hardly spent time together as I was growing up, we're making up for lost time now.  Larry and I talk almost every Sunday night.  What means the most to me is that he really keeps up with what's going on with my children and my everyday life.  Honestly, Larry is exactly what I need  in a father figure these days: he knows what I'm involved in and he keeps up with what I'm accomplishing.  He says words like, "I'm so proud of you" and "You're doing a great job."  He and my sister in law, Milly, drove all the way from Houston to Kansas City to visit us, and that means the world to me!  He gives me great advice when I need it, but he realizes I'm an adult!  I honestly wish that we lived closer to each other  because not only do I think he's the best, but my children really love him.  He's the closest thing they will ever have to a grandfather on my side of the family, and I love it when my children get to spend time with him!   I love my OLDEST brother Larry so much too!

JV McKinney is my father in law.  I knew I was in for it when we first met because he interrogated me about all sorts of things.  I assumed the interrogation came from his desire to not waste his son's time with a dingbat, but after 25 years I've decided that he just enjoys conversations about issues,  And though we don't often agree on the big issues to him, I'd just bet that he at least appreciates that I have opinions.  JV is the absolute best photographer I've ever known.  Any great photo I have of my children was taken by him.  He's also generous beyond imagination.  He never charges anyone to take photos because it's just his passion.  And speaking of passion, the man is 100% passionate about whatever he's doing.  I like that...and I'd like to say that I've developed some of my passion about life watching JV.  Since he and Blake are SO MUCH alike, I guess I'm most thankful to JV for creating the atmosphere in which my amazing husband matured.  The single best thing about me is my husband, and JV did much of the work raising Blake!  I love JV!

Of course my favorite dad in the world is my husband.  Blake is the absolute dream of what I always thought a dad should be!  He's patient, kind, affectionate, and gentle.  He has extremely high expectations and is a wonderful motivator for the kids.  He's warm and fuzzy, smart and passionate, full of wisdom, and more humble than anyone I've ever met!  He accurately portrays our Heavenly Father to our children, to me, to our church, and to anyone he meets.  Now that we have Sarah, I see so much of his relationship with her as exactly what I wanted and needed as a little girl!  I realize that my own father lived in a different generation and he just didn't have anything else to give...but I'm so thankful that I get to relive that dream by watching Sarah and Blake!

Happy Father's Day to these dads in my life!

What's old is new again...

So I was up particularly early this summer morning to watch LifeWay author Jen Hatmaker on the Today Show.  Now honestly, it wasn't really early, but it's summer.  And I'm home alone.  And I didn't go to bed til 1:30am because (did I mention?) I'm home alone this week.  Just in case you don't know me, I need you to understand that it's a big deal that I'm home alone!  I haven't had an extended "home alone" time in 15 years so my plan was to sleep late, stay up late, work at the store during the evenings, and write.  Up at 7:45am was not on the to do list, but anything for LifeWay I guess.  Oh wait, I'm home alone so I'll just take a nap this afternoon!  Sweet bliss!

Jen did a great job, of course.  Her funny but sarcasticly insightful blog post about being the worst end of the school year mom ever hits the nail on the head in so many ways. Read it here: http://bit.ly/JenHatmaker, but promise me you'll come back and finish this post!!

As I snuggled onto the couch with my coffee in anticipation of Jen's segment I turned on the show only to see about a bazillion teenage girls "on the Plaza" there in NYC screaming bloody murder over some young pop star.  I consider myself fairly "with it" when it comes to pop teenage culture, though the use of the term "with it" probably means I'm not actually.  Believe it or not, I had never heard of the young man Austin Mahone.  Cut me some slack here though because my daughter is only four years old and she thinks Phineas and Ferb are cutting edge.  So, like any "with it" adult, I googled the cutie pie!  I even went to Itunes and sampled a song.  I'm cool like that.

Turns out, cutie pie Austin Malone remade that old Biz Markie song, "Just a Friend".  See I told you I was "with it".  You remember it if you are a child of 80's, otherwise known as best decade ever!  I'm singing it right now out loud in my kitchen because, did I mention, I'm home alone!!!

         "Oh baby you, you got what I need!  But you say he's just a friend, you say he's just a friend.

I'm not saying you should necessarily download it but it's a catch little ditty, huh?  In fact, I can't wait to show it to my teenage sons.  I'm sure they'll immediately love it and download it because I'm the role model for them when it comes to music.  I'm pretty sure our Ipods have identical music, right?  Surely they have all of the Travis Cottrell albums.

Then it hit me, I was one of those screaming girls about 30 years ago.  My mom took me to the Hot Springs Mall to see Bo from Days of our Lives at the apex of "Bo and Hope" Days!  We waited in long lines, took a bazillion photos with our Polaroid, and made the exact kind of posters those sweet little girls made for Austin!  Oh, and there was a lot of screaming and crying and promising to never wash that hand Bo touched again!

My mom tried to act like she didn't enjoy it, but I think she did.

And honestly, I think I've been a part of a group or two like this at a LifeWay Women's event. Haven't you stood in a long line to get great seats at Living Proof Live, just hoping Beth Moore will get close enough to bless your heart or at least figure out where she bought that cute jacket? My BFF and I have a system when we go.  She gets in one line and I get in another.  Our strategy is whoever gets in first RUNS down to the floor and saves two seats.  It's not pretty (or very Christlike) but it works. And if I've rudely elbowed you at some point in one of those lines, I'm sorry, but a girls gotta do what she's gotta do to see Beth's jacket up close.

And then I remembered Psalm 78, an unforgettable Psalm about learning from the past.
     
"...for I will speak to you in a parable.  I will teach you hidden lessons from our past...so each generation should set its hope anew on God, not forgetting His glorious miracles and obeying His commands."
Psalm 78:2, 7  (NLT)

So much about life doesn't change at the core. There will probably always be teenage girls screaming over cutie pie boy heart throbs.  So much about me doesn't change.  I will probably always have to ask God to give me right motives and completely pure desires even at a women's conference.

But HE never changes.  We will always be enamored with the world, it's trends, it's promises, it's fleeting fun. We can even engage culture to teach our children about the faithful love of our Father in Heaven.

James 1:17 says it so well...
Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens.  HE NEVER CHANGES, or casts a shifting shadow.

Thanks Jen, for getting me up this morning to experience some encouragement in my ministry as a mom and some fun music!  I'm cool like that!  Now I'm taking a nap.