Acts 9:3-6 (NET) - As he was going along, approaching Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?" So he said, "Who are you, Lord?" He replied, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting! But stand up and enter the city and you will be told what you must do."
For yet a second time I was asked to don a costume and portray the role of a Biblical figure for the children in our Sunday School at my church.
Although I never considered myself much of an actor, it did provide me with the opportunity of teaching children. The vast majority of the time I teach adults and I enjoy both the challenge and the opportunity to teach young people. Being familiar with the account of Paul, I felt I was capable of delivering a convincing performance.
The Sunday before, the children "met" Saul who told them that he was on a mission. A mission which involved the persecution of the early church.
Now, as the reformed Paul, I was to tell them about the experience on that road to Damascus as well as a few other things designed to make an impression on young minds and hearts.
When Sunday arrived, I found my lines waiting for me and read through them once. I was a bit surprised to discover that I had far more lines in this monologue than I had in my previous one in December.
I then donned my robe and read through my dialogue several times while I awaited my cue.
I must tell you that I gave one of my most convincing performances ever and it appeared that the children were really listening and absorbing what I was telling them.
Along with the direct references to the account found in Scripture, the monologue was written in such a way that "Paul" was having a conversation with the children. I found that conversation quite moving.
(Words that follow in italics © 2004 Abingdon Press. PowerXpress!® Bible Experience Stations®)
"I am sorry you had to hear about all the bad things I did last week, but who I was is a big part of my story. You see, I thought I had everything figured out. I knew exactly what was right and what was wrong. It was my job to tell other people what they should or should not do."
I certainly could relate to that.
I can admit that in the past I have done things which I regret. I also thought I knew everything; knowing what was right and wrong. I also felt it was my job, albeit a self appointed one, to tell people what they should or should not do.
"You know, I didn’t think anyone could stop me or change me. But someone did."
I felt no one could change me. In fact, I could not even see the need for anyone to change me at all.
It was when I finally got know, really know, Jesus Christ that I saw just how much I needed to change.
I am happy to say that He did just that.
I must also admit that I am very much a work in progress. I will be one as long as I continue to draw breath.
"Jesus spoke to me and told me to stop hurting Him and the people who followed Him. He told me to listen to His teachings and asked me to follow Him. Jesus said I should accept His love and forgiveness, and share that same love and forgiveness with other people - including people who aren’t like me."
Again, I found myself relating to these words meant for children. I am so very glad that Jesus loved me so much that He followed His Father’s will even though it meant a painful and humiliating death on a cross. If he was willing to do that for me, what excuse could I possibly use in failing to love or not forgiving others?
"So that is what I did. I changed my ways and began a new life."
That is what was certainly true of me. I turned my life over to Jesus and my life was never the same again.
So that is how I gave the best performance I had within me to give to a young and attentive audience.
I wasn’t trying to transform myself into Paul.
I simply portrayed myself... with a little bit of Paul thrown in.
Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeet.byethost3.com on Friday, July 8, 2011.
Please enjoy the contributions of my fellow Christian bloggers while you are there!
I’ll be back here on Friday, July 15, 2011.
Schedule subject to change.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Friday, June 17, 2011
Growing Spiritually
(Author's Note: I posted this as my contribution to Faith Feet which is a group effort. Due to technical problems only the title is displayed, so I am posting it here as well - Jim)
Last week was really an incredibly challenging week for me. It was a week that kept me very busy but it also provided for my spiritual growth, as well.
Our church hosted its annual Vacation Bible School for five consecutive evenings. With the help of a friend, we alternated teaching the adult class. The other nights, I helped out where needed and took a great many photographs for the church pictorial history I maintain. This allowed me to both document and share in the lessons the children were learning and the activities designed to reinforce them.
On Thursday afternoon, the Sunday School class I teach was invited to an ice cream social at a local assisted living center for senior citizens. This was not an official church function. It was simply a chance to have fellowship with the residents and I read to them some of the devotionals I had written before closing with prayer.
When the week ended, I reflected on the fact that I had, to one degree or another, been involved with Christian education that covered the entire spectrum of ages from toddlers to senior citizens. I realized how truly blessed I was to have had such an opportunity,
The fourth night of Vacation Bible School focused the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus and what it means to Christians as a whole as well as to individuals. These events are central to the Christian experience, yet this topic presents particular challenges to teachers who must factor in the age of the students in his or her presentation in order that they get the most out of it.
I am not able to go into any great detail about how this was presented to the children as I was occupied teaching the adult class at the time. I am confident that those involved teaching the children did so in a way appropriate for the age groups for which they were responsible. They clearly demonstrated this ability with other topics on other nights.
For the senior citizens, I chose to begin with two of my devotionals that had introductions with which I thought they could relate.
In my first, I began talking about my fondness for freshly baked bread. This devotional then concluded with the reminder that Jesus is the "Bread of Life".
John 6:35 (KJV) - And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to Me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.
For my second, I read to them a devotional I wrote about a picture no one wanted to buy. I found it in a second hand store covered with numerous price tags that clearly showed the history of its devaluation. I bought the picture and cleaned it because I knew its real beauty was hidden from view. I then gently reminded them that even when others fail to see our real value, the blood of Jesus cleanses us completely of all our layers of self doubt.
Revelation 1:5 (KJV) - And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood.
By far the biggest challenge I faced was composing an hour long class on this topic for the adults I taught that evening. I wrestled with the lesson plan provided in the guide that came as part of the package we had purchased for Vacation Bible School. In the end, I opted to completely forego the introduction as I felt it was not adequately serious enough for a lesson of this magnitude.
Instead, I took my adult students straight into the five sections of scripture called for beginning in Luke chapter 22 and concluding in chapter 24.
I paused between sections to field questions and comments and there were far fewer than I anticipated.
With the time remaining, I asked my students to turn to Isaiah 53. As they turned the pages I reminded them that the words God inspired Isaiah to write were written 700 to 800 years before Luke’s account and asked them to notice how similar the two were. I reminded them that God intended to provide for our salvation all along and in in the only way possible.
Jesus had to pay the price we could not pay ourselves.
I then read them Isaiah 53 in its entirety.
After a few closing questions and comments we closed with prayer.
I said at the beginning that I felt both truly challenged and truly blessed by the events of last week and I honestly feel that I have grown spiritually as a result.
Young minds, I am certain, were presented a simplified view of God’s love for us and absorbed it quickly.
It was gratifying to take senior citizens on a journey that began with things with which they could either remember or relate. From there I led them down the road that ultimately leads to Jesus and what He did for us all.
It was particularly challenging to present the heart of the Christian experience to adults in a very serious and straightforward manner.
Young children, adults, and senior citizens have nutritional needs like vitamins, carbohydrates and protein. Yet the ways in which they obtain these nutrients vary through time.
It is the same way with spiritual nutrition.
To be fully absorbed, it must be presented in a way that can be comprehended.
Its truth, however, must never be compromised.
Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
http://otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com
Last week was really an incredibly challenging week for me. It was a week that kept me very busy but it also provided for my spiritual growth, as well.
Our church hosted its annual Vacation Bible School for five consecutive evenings. With the help of a friend, we alternated teaching the adult class. The other nights, I helped out where needed and took a great many photographs for the church pictorial history I maintain. This allowed me to both document and share in the lessons the children were learning and the activities designed to reinforce them.
On Thursday afternoon, the Sunday School class I teach was invited to an ice cream social at a local assisted living center for senior citizens. This was not an official church function. It was simply a chance to have fellowship with the residents and I read to them some of the devotionals I had written before closing with prayer.
When the week ended, I reflected on the fact that I had, to one degree or another, been involved with Christian education that covered the entire spectrum of ages from toddlers to senior citizens. I realized how truly blessed I was to have had such an opportunity,
The fourth night of Vacation Bible School focused the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus and what it means to Christians as a whole as well as to individuals. These events are central to the Christian experience, yet this topic presents particular challenges to teachers who must factor in the age of the students in his or her presentation in order that they get the most out of it.
I am not able to go into any great detail about how this was presented to the children as I was occupied teaching the adult class at the time. I am confident that those involved teaching the children did so in a way appropriate for the age groups for which they were responsible. They clearly demonstrated this ability with other topics on other nights.
For the senior citizens, I chose to begin with two of my devotionals that had introductions with which I thought they could relate.
In my first, I began talking about my fondness for freshly baked bread. This devotional then concluded with the reminder that Jesus is the "Bread of Life".
John 6:35 (KJV) - And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to Me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.
For my second, I read to them a devotional I wrote about a picture no one wanted to buy. I found it in a second hand store covered with numerous price tags that clearly showed the history of its devaluation. I bought the picture and cleaned it because I knew its real beauty was hidden from view. I then gently reminded them that even when others fail to see our real value, the blood of Jesus cleanses us completely of all our layers of self doubt.
Revelation 1:5 (KJV) - And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood.
By far the biggest challenge I faced was composing an hour long class on this topic for the adults I taught that evening. I wrestled with the lesson plan provided in the guide that came as part of the package we had purchased for Vacation Bible School. In the end, I opted to completely forego the introduction as I felt it was not adequately serious enough for a lesson of this magnitude.
Instead, I took my adult students straight into the five sections of scripture called for beginning in Luke chapter 22 and concluding in chapter 24.
I paused between sections to field questions and comments and there were far fewer than I anticipated.
With the time remaining, I asked my students to turn to Isaiah 53. As they turned the pages I reminded them that the words God inspired Isaiah to write were written 700 to 800 years before Luke’s account and asked them to notice how similar the two were. I reminded them that God intended to provide for our salvation all along and in in the only way possible.
Jesus had to pay the price we could not pay ourselves.
I then read them Isaiah 53 in its entirety.
After a few closing questions and comments we closed with prayer.
I said at the beginning that I felt both truly challenged and truly blessed by the events of last week and I honestly feel that I have grown spiritually as a result.
Young minds, I am certain, were presented a simplified view of God’s love for us and absorbed it quickly.
It was gratifying to take senior citizens on a journey that began with things with which they could either remember or relate. From there I led them down the road that ultimately leads to Jesus and what He did for us all.
It was particularly challenging to present the heart of the Christian experience to adults in a very serious and straightforward manner.
Young children, adults, and senior citizens have nutritional needs like vitamins, carbohydrates and protein. Yet the ways in which they obtain these nutrients vary through time.
It is the same way with spiritual nutrition.
To be fully absorbed, it must be presented in a way that can be comprehended.
Its truth, however, must never be compromised.
Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
http://otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com
Friday, June 10, 2011
No Laughing Matter
This has been both a very spiritually rewarding and spiritually challenging week.
For two nights this week I had the opportunity to teach the adult class at my church‘s Vacation Bible School.
My second night was particularly challenging.
The curriculum we had purchased called for us to focus on the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
I read through the materials provided, and the adult class guide included a rather lighthearted introduction before moving into the account of what Jesus experienced on our behalf.
As a Sunday School Teacher, I had a real problem with that.
The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus is the hub around which Christianity revolves. In my opinion, a humorous introduction was simply not an appropriate way to lead into a discussion of this nature.
There was simply no way I could consider using an iron when clearly a scalpel was in order.
I opted to completely jettison the introduction and go right into the heart of the matter.
To do that meant I was going to come up about 15 minutes short of material.
I wrestled with this for hours while the clock ticked steadily onward.
Finally, with God’s help the solution came to me.
When the time came, I read to my students the suggested passages from the book of Luke pausing between sections to give additional information and take questions. There were very few questions as everyone was really feeling the emotional weight of what Jesus went through for us.
We finished the final passage and as I expected we had about fifteen minutes left.
I asked if there were any questions and as I looked each in turn they simply shook their heads,
"Before we conclude, I have one more question for you," I stated.
"I know many of you are parents," I added. "If you have ever made sacrifices for your children, please raise your hand." Of course, every hand was raised.
"Why did you make sacrifices for your children?", I asked.
From the back someone said, "Love."
"Exactly!" I exclaimed. "You made sacrifices for your children because you love them. That is why God sacrificed His only Son for us! He did this because He loved us!"
I then asked them to turn in their Bibles to Isaiah chapter 53.
As my students turned the pages in their Bibles, I asked them to bear in mind that Isaiah wrote the words we were about to read some 700 to 800 years BEFORE the events in Luke‘s account.
I also asked them to notice how closely the prophet Isaiah's language matched up with the account in Luke.
I read through Isaiah 53 as they followed along. Here is a but a portion...
Isaiah 53:7-9 (NET) - He was treated harshly and afflicted, but he did not even open his mouth. Like a lamb led to the slaughtering block, like a sheep silent before her shearers, he did not even open his mouth. He was led away after an unjust trial - but who even cared? Indeed, he was cut off from the land of the living; because of the rebellion of his people he was wounded. They intended to bury him with criminals, but he ended up in a rich man’s tomb, because he had committed no violent deeds, nor had he spoken deceitfully.
The death, burial and resurrection should not be taken lightly. This is what our salvation depends on.
Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeet.byethost3.com on Friday, June 17, 2011.
Please enjoy the contributions of my fellow Christian bloggers while you are there!
I’ll be back here on Friday, June 24, 2011.
For two nights this week I had the opportunity to teach the adult class at my church‘s Vacation Bible School.
My second night was particularly challenging.
The curriculum we had purchased called for us to focus on the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
I read through the materials provided, and the adult class guide included a rather lighthearted introduction before moving into the account of what Jesus experienced on our behalf.
As a Sunday School Teacher, I had a real problem with that.
The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus is the hub around which Christianity revolves. In my opinion, a humorous introduction was simply not an appropriate way to lead into a discussion of this nature.
There was simply no way I could consider using an iron when clearly a scalpel was in order.
I opted to completely jettison the introduction and go right into the heart of the matter.
To do that meant I was going to come up about 15 minutes short of material.
I wrestled with this for hours while the clock ticked steadily onward.
Finally, with God’s help the solution came to me.
When the time came, I read to my students the suggested passages from the book of Luke pausing between sections to give additional information and take questions. There were very few questions as everyone was really feeling the emotional weight of what Jesus went through for us.
We finished the final passage and as I expected we had about fifteen minutes left.
I asked if there were any questions and as I looked each in turn they simply shook their heads,
"Before we conclude, I have one more question for you," I stated.
"I know many of you are parents," I added. "If you have ever made sacrifices for your children, please raise your hand." Of course, every hand was raised.
"Why did you make sacrifices for your children?", I asked.
From the back someone said, "Love."
"Exactly!" I exclaimed. "You made sacrifices for your children because you love them. That is why God sacrificed His only Son for us! He did this because He loved us!"
I then asked them to turn in their Bibles to Isaiah chapter 53.
As my students turned the pages in their Bibles, I asked them to bear in mind that Isaiah wrote the words we were about to read some 700 to 800 years BEFORE the events in Luke‘s account.
I also asked them to notice how closely the prophet Isaiah's language matched up with the account in Luke.
I read through Isaiah 53 as they followed along. Here is a but a portion...
Isaiah 53:7-9 (NET) - He was treated harshly and afflicted, but he did not even open his mouth. Like a lamb led to the slaughtering block, like a sheep silent before her shearers, he did not even open his mouth. He was led away after an unjust trial - but who even cared? Indeed, he was cut off from the land of the living; because of the rebellion of his people he was wounded. They intended to bury him with criminals, but he ended up in a rich man’s tomb, because he had committed no violent deeds, nor had he spoken deceitfully.
The death, burial and resurrection should not be taken lightly. This is what our salvation depends on.
Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeet.byethost3.com on Friday, June 17, 2011.
Please enjoy the contributions of my fellow Christian bloggers while you are there!
I’ll be back here on Friday, June 24, 2011.
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