As a teacher of preschoolers and kindergartners, I often do not get to see "results." My friends who teach older children and youth often talk about the spiritual growth they see in the lives of kids and teens. They see a child ask Jesus to be her Savior. They hear a teenager talk about something God spoke to him during his personal Bible reading time. I don't see these "tangible" examples of spiritual growth in the preschoolers or kindergartners I teach. I know it's happening concept by concept, brick by brick. But I often do not get confirmation of what is happening deep inside those lives.
Recently God has been showing me that He is working in lives of children I have taught. These results have not come from the group I'm teaching now but the groups I taught a couple of years ago. During our recent VBS and after, I have watched boys and girls publicly show that they have asked Jesus to be their Savior. I saw two more just last week stand at the front of the church. My heart brimmed and God spoke. I was part of that conversion.
I wasn't there to trowel that particular brick, but that decision rested on what I (and many other preschool and children's teachers) had done in years past. As the boy and girl stood by our pastor, my mind drifted back. I saw him pouring sand through a funnel. I saw him tossing a beanbag onto a Bible story picture and talking about what he saw. I heard him laugh and call me "Silly Mr. Scott." I thought about her carefully sorting dishes by color and working a wooden puzzle of the temple. I saw her drawing precise pictures and printing precise words. I heard her admonish me because I chose people randomly (instead of in order) to read Bible words. I smiled. Those experiences at church were all a part of their spiritual development. That sand and beanbag, those dishes and markers were tools that helped them learn more about God's great love for them and His gift of Jesus. The walls became sturdy as preschool, kindergarten, and children's teachers worked with God to build them in those young lives. And now, they chose to follow God's plan for their lives.
I'm so glad...and so humbled...that God has called me to help boys and girls discover His truths. And I praise Him for the growth He has given and the lives He has changed.
Photo posted on Flickr.com
Photographer: Bolt of Blue
