Use What You Have Learned

By Isaac Kierstead

2020 has been hard and I am sure many of you have performed more “other duties as assigned” than you ever thought possible. Many of you have become video editors, cinematographers, sound experts, and even actors! This season has pushed you to learn new things and grow the repertoire you have for ministry. As churches are beginning to reopen and children start pouring through the doors of your kids ministry, I want to challenge you to continue using the skills you have learned to grow the kingdom of God in a way that could never been done before. 

Some of the most encouraging stories I have heard through this global pandemic have been the people who saw a church service on their Facebook feed and their lives were changed! Groups of people who would have never stepped into a church building are now members of a church because they were able to hear about the love of Jesus at home. Families were sent links to kids ministry videos and now those families are attending church for the first time. We are able to use social media to reach places we could never have reached in the past and God is doing amazing things to bring people closer to Him.

One of the best messages I have received this month was a picture of a missionary family in Peru watching videos my church put together for kids. By creating a video lesson based on The Gospel Project lesson for the week, these kids were able to have fun interacting and playing games. Kids and families have been connected to our church family all over the world because of video sermons, bible studies, and especially kid-driven content. I would love to hop on a plane and go back to Peru to teach these kids every week, but God has opened doors and we have the means to reach families all over the world with a click of a button!

Lastly, we can reach the people in our communities who may never have the chance to be at church on a Sunday morning. Growing up, there were a few weeks I was in a hospital bed and not able to be at church. I remember my youth pastor sending me a box of some of the craziest things with a card I still have to this day. What an amazing opportunity we have now to reach kids, families, and the elderly wherever they are. Whether they are homebound or in a hospital room, we have the amazing chance to reach them with the Gospel and show them they are loved by God. No matter what is happening in their life, God has a purpose for them and we as a church family can encourage them. 

What amazing opportunities are ahead of us as we begin to use the skills we have learned and merge them with our weekly curriculum. Christian community is so important and we never want to mitigate the importance of meeting as a Church body. But, imagine the power that the Gospel could have as it spreads outside of the walls of the church and into the world by simply clicking ‘upload.’