1 Corinthians 13, Hopetown Style

Love is the word leading the 2nd-4th graders this week at Hopetown, along with a cloud and pillar of fire from Isaiah 4:5-6. The first night, Melissa taught on Hopetown's version of 1 Corinthians 13. "Love is...patient, kind, forgiving, trusting God, hopeful--looks for the best, enduring--keeps going to the end, polite--supportive, warm--open. At the end of the night, each child who wanted to turned to the group and said, "This week, I want to love." Then, their "buddy" counselor came to the front and prayed for that child and their week at camp. The second night, we went on to top about what love is not. "It is not giving up, caring for self-not others, seeking revenge or holding grudges, being jealous-wanting what it doesn't have, boasting, being irritable or sarcastic, being resentful, laughing when someone messes up." Day 2 (or night 2, to be exact) gave the kids an opportunity to talk to their buddies about a particular way in which they had not loved that day. They wrote these on a rock and threw them into the fire to "get rid of them" as Scripture suggests. As the week has gone on, we have seen these 2nd-4th graders love in big and small ways. Tonight, Melissa taught on Matthew and giving a cup of cold water--and how it really is giving to others that brings refreshment to us. The kids were then given an opportunity to give back to their buddies--by offering them a cup of water and telling them what they had meant to them over the week. The hearts and words of these precious kids were much more refreshing than water could ever be. It is no wonder that Jesus says to be like a child...in the ways that we love and give and speak honestly from our hearts when we mess up. ""Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best f the three is love." 1 Cor. 13:13, The Message