Pay Attention
More than several years ago, when our older girls were still in elementary school, we were in the Bible study portion of a Relay Exchange lesson and the girls seemed particularly distracted. One of the girls was seated in one of those roly poly TV chairs for kids, and rolled up and back, up and back the entire lesson. Preaching the word--up and back. Talking about application--up and back. Another girl reading out loud from the Bible--up and back, up and back, up and back. At this stage, we were still hustling to finish a lesson hours before we had the meeting, so it was especially unnerving when we seemed to be getting nowhere!
But something happened that day that I will never forget. No one corrected that sweet rocking and rolling child (by the power of the Holy Spirit, believe me). At the end of the lesson, a pivotal question was posed to the girls. And who raised her hand to answer? Right, Miss Rock and Roll herself. Not only that, she NAILED the response. Now it was our turn to fall over!
Miss Rock and Roll taught me a lesson that day that I have never forgotten, and that has encouraged me countless times since that afternoon. We can never know what God is doing in someone’s heart, especially a child. I would have guessed that she had not heard a word of the lesson. Instead, she was thinking and absorbing (and rocking and rolling) her way into owning an important Biblical truth. When the girls in your group seem distracted, do not get discouraged. When your own daughter seems disinterested, do not give up. We have no way of knowing what God is doing. If we give up too soon, we may miss it!
Another more practical take away is to remember that different girls will respond in different ways to skills and to Biblical discussions. As we get to know one another, we can be students of one another, learning what draws out the hearts of those in our groups. We can be intentional about including everyone, and we can be deliberate about not allowing different learning and worship styles to cause disruption or disunity.
We believe God builds small groups in a particular way, for His purposes. When we pay attention to His plans and look for ways He may be working, we can all learn to appreciate one another, become more unified as a group, and guard against discouragement.