How He Loves

As a Christ-follower, I am continuously reminded of how much Jesus loves us. Before my team left for this eight week journey, I was struggling to understand the depth and capacity of God’s love for me. While these children – children who have had experiences no child should have – were so full of life, it was clear to me just how much love they were lacking.

For awhile, I still struggled with how to give them the love every child deserves. Sometimes this love came out in a smile, a high five, or a hug. Slowly, I began to see little glimpses into the realm of true love.

Week 6 was the week that everything began to fall into place. One of our older girls that week became very special to me in such a short amount of time. Her age group usually sees themselves as “too cool” to participate in VBS. Even though I was scared of looking silly at times, I took it upon myself to encourage her to engage in the activities. This meant that I would spend a lot of time with her over the next week. I would jokingly point her out when she didn’t do hand motions or answer questions. While some children would have shied away by being pointed out, she slowly opened up and embraced our lessons full-heartedly.

By the end of the week, she was participating 100% in discussions, games, and she even sang along to all of the songs. God gave me direction to show her true love, and I began to understand how love works.

True love means that you invest yourself in the well-being of others, no matter what the cost. It doesn’t matter what terrible things we have experienced, love heals those wounds and gives us hope. Love does not worry about what we’ve done or who we were, it focuses on who we can be and where we’re going. The one-of- a-kind love that Jesus gives us is unconditional and overwhelming, but it is beautiful and precious.

So if you’re reading this, I want you to know that Jesus loves you for who you are and who you will be. You were made for great things. Together, through love, we can change the world.

–Megan Bartley

VBS On The Road 2016 Staff