Time Flies When You Are Serving God

Saturday, May 12th, was one of those days that makes you feel old… but so happy too. It was a day of seeing another of my K.C. Krew kids getting married!

The last time you’ll see “Cheek” after Krista’s name!Krista and Karl Today….

Karl and Krista in 1998!

Cool Krista!
(wearing a costume for Kids Church)

Krista getting married, and that’s Sara’s dad doing the ceremony!

This was a very encouraging day for me. You minister and invest in so many kids in your life, and you don’t always get to see what God does with their lives. Some you never even get to say good bye to, let alone, get to see them again years later. It was so nice to get caught up on what they are doing and how much they have grown up!

Krista’s little sister Erin, Gwen, (me), Laura and Amy Joy.

And YES, I have old pictures of all of them: (hope they still love me after this!)

Erin back then!

And Amy Joy too!

I’ve got special stories with each of these girls, and it was fun to tell them over again at the wedding. Laura, second from the right, graduated from Moody Bible Institute on the same day as the wedding, (along with another former K.C. Krew kid, Noah, not at the wedding), and is also very special because she is the first kid I ever baptized. She may not realize it, but she is quoted in an article on Kidology.org, but since it is the membership section, here is the poem she wrote:Here are some pictures of Laura:

Laura in 5th or 6th Grade

Who is that skinny runt Laura is sitting with?

Sorry these pictures are grainy, but I was pioneering the era of digital photography back then! But lest you think it is only the girls I fondly remember, there were some grown up guys at the wedding too!

Bruce (Krista’s “little” brother), me, and Billy.

Also, David, Amy Joy’s Big Brother,
now a piano major at DePaul University! David and Karl then!
(when he played a keyboard in Kids Church)

And here was the “shocker” for me… you know those cute little pip-squeeks in Kid’s Church? They may end up dating some day! Here is Gwen, one of the first kids I met when I was interviewing at the church, and Bruce, who was my official “Taco Bell Buddy.”

Awana Clubber Gwen, back then!

But, last, but not least, here is the girl who almost made a grown man cry: My little sweet Beth, who I used to put in my guitar case to try and steal her home! (and btw, whose mom made nearly all of Gus’ costumes)

Sweet Little Beth, as I remember her! Beth and Karl not so long ago!

Beth and Karl today!

Here is Beth of today, sweet as ever, but a bit taller. (And not blond?!) One of the first things she said to me was, “Pastor Karl, I don’t think I’ll fit in your guitar case any more!”

But what made me happiest was to see my little Beth, who was never old enough to be on K.C. Krew when I was there, proudly wearing a Kid’s Krew shirt nearly ten years later.

WARNING!
Emotional Emoting Coming:

No matter what happens in life, the good, the bad, and the ugly, there is only one thing that will remain – the fruit that GOD grows as we serve Him with all our heart. That God would use me in the lives of so many children over the years is truly amazing and humbling to me. Why me? There is no reason other than His amazing grace and mercy… as I often like to say, the biggest miracle God ever does is to use imperfect people to share His perfect love.Seeing these nearly grown kids and reliving the happy memories of days as their pastor, was a sobering reminder that the most important thing we can invest our lives in is people.

Perhaps you have seen the little plaque that reads, “Only one life, ’twill soon be past, only what’s done for Christ will last?” Well, that’s not what all that the poet wrote.

The poet wrote this:

“Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.
And when I am dying, how happy I’ll be,
If the lamp of my life has been burned out for Thee.”


Life is filled with trials. Some are our own fault, others God sovereignly brings our way as part of His purposes, but either way, they are part of His Refining process. When you get stressed, or depressed, or compressed, or repressed, or depressed, or…. (you get the idea!)… focus on the good, on what God has done in spite of you… and be encouraged. Fruit that is of you, will fade away, but Fruit that is of God will continue to grow with or without you, because it God causing the growing all along.

As AT & T used to sing, “reach out, reach out and touch someone,” for that’s all that matters and all that lasts. I hope God will allow me to see even more kids in the years ahead who He let me have a little part in leading them to Him and teaching them about Him.

Top Row: David, Krista and Noah
Middle: Krista (different one), Melody, & Laura in the pink
(Beth’s mom, Kim, on right)
Front Row: Karl and Sara


And save those pictures, you never know who you might be able to embarrass on your blog someday!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

Kidologist

Karl Bastian is the founder of Kidology.org, the creator of ToyboxTales.com, and the author of OrderoftheAncient.com. His personal website is Kidologist.com He is Big Kid with a passion for equipping and encouraging those who minister to children.

Comments are closed.