Pauses seem to be heavily frowned upon in our fast-moving society. We feel the need to fill awkward pauses with content instead of allowing them to run their course. Its almost like we are afraid of moments of quiet and reflectiveness during a conversation. As adults, we fight against pauses and try hard to keep conversations flowing. In...
Read more
One of the most amazing parts of being a Christian is having the privilege of sitting in the front row and seeing God work in hearts and lives! At a club I was teaching there was one of those front row moments. I taught a Bible lesson and then gave the children a chance to
Read more
A few months back as I taught the children the song “Silent Night,” I helped them imagine the scene of Jesus’ birth. “do you think it really was silent?” I asked the kids. Later, we reenacted the Christmas story, complete with a choir of angels, children dressed as woolly sheep, and wise men draped in
Read more
It is quite distracting teaching a Bible lesson to pause every sentence while the translator rewords everything into Chinese for these two children who have never heard of Noah, much less his ark. It is also unnerving to wonder exactly what is being translated about sin, God’s love, and the way of salvation. Two of
Read more
While serving his sentence at the local correctional facility Jason was explaining to his 8-year-old sister, Vida, about all the mistakes he had made in his life. He had joined the local gang when he was twelve and had made many other poor life decisions. After hearing her brother complain about how he was beyond
Read more
It was a hot summer day when the teacher who was scheduled to teach the lesson came up to the leader limping saying he had hurt his foot, was in a lot of pain, and could not teach the lesson. So the leader picked up the Bible lesson pictures and grabbed their Bible, then walked
Read more
Written by Angela, a Chicago CEF missionary “My friend and I walked into the Jonquil Hotel to meet with a chaplain. We were so excited to begin working with him to reach out to Chicago’s children on the North Side! But as we approached the building, we saw news vans, video cameras, and microphones. Entering
Read more
He couldn’t sit still, no matter how hard he tried. He couldn’t concentrate on anything except his graphic novels. “I don’t want to believe in Jesus to take away my sins, because I would rather live for 100 years on earth.” “What? That doesn’t really apply, Liam (name changed),” I tried to explain, but Liam
Read more
We are heading into this year’s CYIA training June 20th—30th. Be praying for the teens in this intense training and as they minister throughout the summer. The picture above is the 2016 CYIA group with a few of their testimonies. Female, 14 years old: “I really enjoyed CYIA training and enjoyed overcoming some challenges. This
Read more
When I first noticed Lisa and her younger sister Jenny (names changed), 12-year-old Lisa had seven-year-old Jenny sitting in her lap. Lisa’s hair was windblown, and her jeans looked a size too big. Who is caring for these children? I wondered. I found out later: “Their father is an alcoholic, and the children live with
Read more