Flowing with the Spirit

Here's a no-brainer ... the person who chooses to drive while constantly looking in the automobile's rear view mirror is destined to become a casualty! Focusing entirely upon what is behind you will prevent you from seeing what lies ahead of you. Continuing this practice will cause you to become a listing in your newspaper's obituary column.

Many Spirit-filled children's ministry leaders make this horrible mistake in their services. When the Holy Spirit moves in a service during a particular song or event, they make a note of the methodology and begin to do the same thing in each and every service expecting to have the same results. All of a sudden, they have discovered "the" formula for a move of God.

A biblical example of this is found in John 5 where the sick man is laying beside the pool of Bethesda. In this story, Jesus comes and asks if he wants to be healed. The man almost missed his miracle because he was totally focusing upon a set formula. His attention focused upon how God had moved in the past. The sick man knew what was needed to replicate that miracle. And yet, God wanted to demonstrate His presence and power in a new way at that exact moment.

Here's my reason for this week's blog. Do we in children's ministry have our set of formulas of how God has to move? After all, the Spirit of God walked into our room three months ago when we sang a particular song, right? Didn't He move mightily when we brought the kids forward after the second worship song?

Remember, constantly looking in the rear view mirror might not produce what we want! Let's be thankful for the past moves of God and looking forward to what He wants to do today. Let's go with His flow and see Isaiah 43:19 happen in our services. "For I'm going to do a brand new thing. See, I have already begun! Don't you see it?" (The Living Bible).