Guest Blog written by: Brad Kempson

We start out reading a passage everyone has heard before. When Jesus feed the five thousand. We all know that the amount of food was very small, and the amount of people was very big. Everybody knows that this miracle was big, but what most people don’t know is that this was to show us that no matter how small we might think we are able to affect people, God will be able to spread that out to affect many people. 

The second thing we read is also a very big passage taught to children, and that we hear in church all the time. That is when Jesus walks on the water. The disciples were going back from that day’s lessons, and a big wind came onto the water, and the waters became rough. The disciples saw that Jesus was coming towards the boat on the water. When they saw him, they were afraid. But Jesus told the that it was him, and they believed and took him onto the boat. As soon as they invited him on, the boat hit the shore. This is to show us that when we are in storms in our lives, if we take in Jesus and want him, he will get us to a safe place.

We read that Jesus is the bread of life. The people are following Jesus because they know that he could help them eat. But Jesus tells them that they shouldn’t search for food that spoils. The people want to know how they can get the food that Jesus told them about that will lead to eternal life. Jesus tells them that they have to believe in the person that God has sent. Jesus told the people that he was the bread of life, and that he was the bread that has come down from heaven. The people were upset that Jesus said this because they knew his parents, and they didn’t believe him. 

One thing that we read is how Jesus helped a blind man see. Everyone knew that he was born blind. When he could see, and he told them how he could see, they criticized him and talked bad about him and Jesus. Jesus tells the people that the blind can see and the ones that see will be blind. This means that all the people who follow him will be given sight, and the people that deny him and think they he is wrong, will become blind and can’t see the truth, 

Jesus uses another example to teach the people about him. He says that anyone who enters the sheep pen not through the gate is a thief and a robber, and the sheep won’t listen to their voice because that person is a stranger, and sheep don’t follow strangers. Any one who enters the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. Jesus tells the people that he is the gate. Anyone who enters through him will be saved, and the thief comes to destroy. 

We also read about Lazarus dying. When Jesus finds out, he knows that God has done this so he can be glorified. Jesus said that Lazarus was asleep, but the disciples didn’t know that he was actually talking about death. Jesus wanted to see where Lazarus was laid, and they took him. He then wanted them to move the stone. They told him that he would smell. Jesus wanted them to move the stone and they finally did. He thanked God that he had heard him. He then called out to Lazarus to come out. Lazarus came out with cloth wrapped around his hands and feet and one over his face. 

Another thing we read is how Jesus washed his disciples’ feet. He went to Simon Peter, and he didn’t want Jesus to wash his feet. Jesus wanted the disciples to know what he had done for him. Jesus said that because their Teacher and Lord had washed their feet, they should wash each other’s feet. We did this one night in Georgia. We were all sitting around a circle with our partners, and we all got down and washed each other’s feet. This was a very special moment for everyone on the trip. 

Jesus then goes on to predict his betrayal by Judas, and how Peter would deny him. Jesus also promises the people the Holy Spirit. He says that he was leaving them but he would be with them through it. 

Finally, we read that Jesus is the vine. This was a lesson we did in Georgia. We did all of the I am stories that Jesus told. This was also the VBS theme for Ebenezer. We did this lesson first, and it went very well. What this is saying that we need to stay in Jesus and God. And if we do, then he will make us plentiful. The visual we had for that day was a plastic vine of grapes with the fruits of the spirit on the grapes. We had all of the kids take one and we told them to say what was in the grape. After they picked one, we told them that if we stay in Jesus we will grow all of the fruits of the spirit. We will also be stronger in our faith if we stay in him and be closer to him.

Guest Blog written by: Jessica Brown

i’ll never forget that day. as long as i live.
it was a sticky, hot, miserably humid july afternoon.
i bounded out of the house in an emotional mess.
i headed straight for the rail trail. i needed some space.
some hot asphalt under my feet to clear my head and make sense of my
heart.
i’d had a disagreement with a loved one.
the kind that leaves you spinning and searching and grasping for something
to steady you.
four miles later, upon my return to the car, i noticed the dad and his
kids.
they were pulling a cooler. laughing, chatting. carefree.

i thirsted for that.

oh, how parched i was for that.
as our paths crossed, the dad asked a simple question.

‘would you like a cold drink of water?’

it seemed a loaded question.

i pondered what kind of strings were attached.
his little girl opened the cooler and offered me an icy, cold bottle of
water.

and just like that, they were gone.
bounding down the rail trail.
no doubt to spread the joy that oozed out of them.

everyday people try to hand you something to quench your thirst.
fame. fortune. fads.
false security.
fake happiness.

like a mirage in the desert, we drink the sand.
and continue searching for something to satisfy the dry, barren space in
our soul.
often wondering why in the world we can’t seem to end the insatiable
drought in our hearts.

we are promised total bliss if we just score the goal, bring home the win,
buy the stuff, join the crowd,
grab the guy or gal, journey down the wide road paved straight to
destruction.

empty promises.
that leave us parched and hankering for more.

but God promises so much more.
Jesus replied, “if you only knew the gift God has for you
and who you are speaking to, you would ask me,
and I would give you living water.”
john 4:10

i could hardly wait to get to my car and guzzle the cold water.
it wasn’t until i was safe in my car that i saw the string attached.
i cried all the way home. for i was no longer thirsty.

the bottle still sits on a shelf in my bathroom.
where it serves as a reminder each day to quench my thirst on the One who
promises me a fountain of everlasting life.

Jesus replied, “anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty
again.
but those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again.
it becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”
john 4:13-14

we are invited to satisfy our unquenchable thirst at the fountain of
grace.
jesus offered the same to the samaritan woman at the well.
she was an outcast. a woman with many men. rejected and hated.
yet, parched.
like us, she was seeking something to flood the desert of her soul.
instead, she found someOne.

“please, sir,” the woman said, “give me this water!
then i will never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get
water.”
john 4:15

Guest Blog written by: Ethan Pettigrew

Sadly, summer break is nearing its end and it feels all too soon.  For me it feels like just yesterday I was throwing footballs at the CIA sports camp in Georgia or leading worship in churches in Honduras.  Those weren’t yesterday, however, and that means school will start soon.  In today’s reading I read something that we all need to remember especially now that school is approaching.

In Luke 12:4-7, Jesus gives a message titled Fear God.  Jesus tells us not to worry about those who kill the body, rather fear the One who has the authority to throw people into hell after death.  How true is that heading into the school year?!   When we get to school, we’ll be tugged in all kinds of directions by our “friends” and other peers.  When that happens we need to be ready to stand for what we have learned this summer from God’s Word and trust that God will protect us.
Jesus goes on to talk about how much God cares about even the sparrows who are sold for almost nothing.  He tells us that the hairs on each of our heads is numbered by God and that we are worth so much more than sparrows.  God is always looking out for us and keeps our best interests in mind at all times.  That’s why sometimes we don’t get why certain things happen for weeks, months, or even years down the road. God, however, knows exactly why certain things need to happen at the exact moment they need to happen for our good.
When school starts Monday, it’ll be easy to try to just fit in and it’ll be easy to start worrying about what other people will think of us.  Like Jesus said, though, IT REALLY DOESN’T MATTER WHAT OTHER PEOPLE THINK!  The only person’s opinion of us that matters is the one that died on the cross for each of us almost 2000 years ago.
So, in these last few days of summer, I ask everyone to pray.  Pray that when school starts you’ll be able to stand up for Jesus and everything that you’ve learned this summer.  Pray especially that you’ll have the courage to not worry about what other people will think about you when you don’t act like everyone else, but instead you act like Jesus the Savior of us all.