Weird Animals

Vacation Bible School

VBS Week is a FUN week and a busy week. Nearly 200 children came to Cross this week to learn about God and His love. This year the VBS material was especially focused on how we can live out that love God gives to us by loving other people. Each day was a different way to share the same love to people in different circumstances.

Axl the Axolotls helped people learn how to love people who might feel left out because they can’t do the things you can do. Axl is a rare salamander found only in one remote place in the world. He taught us that even when you feel left out, Jesus loves you!

Fern the Leafy Sea Dragon helped us learn how to love people who are different. Fern is a Sea Horse but looks like seaweed and is often teased for looking different even though he is the same inside! He taught us that even though you’re different, Jesus loves you!

 

– Milton the Star-nosed Mole helped us learn how to love people we don’t understand. Even though we might try to learn about others sometimes they live and act differently than us. Sometimes we feel like we are in the dark while the world passes us by. Milton taught us that when life seems dark and hard to understand, Jesus loves you!

Shred the Tenric (like a porcupine) helped us learn how to love people that hurt us. This is a great way to remember our own sin and the forgiveness God offers us and to encourage us to forgive one another so His will can be done! Even though you do wrong, Jesus loves you!

Iggy the Frilled Lizard looks normal until he gets scared. His “frill” freaks out and can cause us to be scared, too! Iggy helped us learn how to love people who are scared and acting in fear, even when we are scared ourselves. Even when you are afraid, Jesus loves you!

    “Jesus loves you” is such a simple phrase, and we often think of it as a simple thing. “Yes, Jesus loves me, but His love doesn’t…” The truth is Jesus’ love covers over everything: our fear, our finances, our future, our friendships, our faith. There is nothing that we face that Jesus and His live-saving love hasn’t conquered. Love is not simple; it is a powerful gift given to us so we may know the Creator of Heaven and Earth. By loving one another, the world can know Him through us!

 

His servant and yours,

Pastor Erik Gauss

 

Summer Living

Summer Living

Life in the summer is like life on another planet these days. Yes, it is the same house but that’s about it. The people act different since there is no school, no structure and lots of chaos. There is “less to do” but we are always out of time. Children are EVERYWHERE; ALL THE TIME! It seems when everyone has more flexibility it is more difficult to fit everything in! I find myself running into different people than I normally would on any given day. I shop at different times, neighbors are home at different times. We all sleep at different times (if we sleep at all). It seems like the summer is over before we know it and there’s little to show for it except saying you did it.

In order to take a breath from all the chaos we have had two impromptu fire pits in our back yard. We invited people in our small group or on the staff and invited our neighbors to “rub shoulders” and get to know each other.   Both times we invited way more people than were able to come on such short notice but both times we really appreciated slowing down and reconnecting with people in our lives. Creating space and place for believers and unbelievers to become acquainted.

Take a moment in your busy schedule and pause, ask God what really matters in all of this. See if He does not create an opportunity for you to establish relationships, share His love, or simply have a great time doing life together with unbelievers. It doesn’t take much but if we don’t make an effort it will pass us by!   “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.” 1 Peter 4:10