Rick Nier...Woo!

I am more than halfway through the last year of dropping one of my children off at school. It's my eighth grade daughter, for anyone keeping track of my family.  See, next year she will be at the high school, and her brother will drive her. He says that it's not cool for seniors to drive their freshman sister to school, but I bet it's cooler than being dropped off by your mom in a minivan.  So rather than groan about this daily responsibility, I've been reminiscing about what the drop-off line used to look like, way back in elementary school. Once our children were about halfway through their elementary years, the drop-off line became a test of patience.  Do you know which group you do not want to get caught behind in the parent drop-off line at an elementary school? The kindergartners. These little ones are barely able to walk, but now we put them in the high-pressure situation of trying to unbuckle their seat-belt, grab their backpack (which might be as tall as they a...

About once a month I go into our preschool and teach a lesson to a group of 2-5 year olds. There are about 60 of them, so question and answer time can be pretty fun. This year I am taking them through 1 Corinthians 13 and we're learning about love. Love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy, it does not brag or boast.                          ~1 Corinthians 13 The next part of the verse we’re learning is ‘love is not rude.’ I asked them what it meant to be rude. One kid said when you blow someone up with a tank. Yes, I suppose that would qualify as rude.  Another way to say it would be that love does not dishonor. This means that we should treat people with respect and show them, by what we say and do, that we value them. I asked a volunteer to squeeze a tube of toothpaste for me until the tube was empty. I picked a sweet young girl, who squeezed until the tube was empty. Then I said, "Now I need you to put all...

Wouldn't it be nice if, when someone merely mentioned the name of Jesus, people became Christians with no baggage, no past and no consequences from their past? What if, at the very mention of grace, everyone became nice and neat and could simply take their place next to us in our favorite pew? Not our seat, of course. But next to us in a pew that miraculously and suddenly had room for one more. Unfortunately, that is not the way grace, or pews for that matter, works. I recently finished Messy Grace , by Caleb Kaltenbach, a book I believe should be required reading for every Christian. Oh, I suppose the ideas have already been recorded somewhere in a book that is considered required reading for Christians, but somehow many of us have missed the application of truth that the Bible offers. Does it make sense if I say that Messy Grace  is groundbreaking while not actually offering anything new? I don't mean that in merely the sense of 'there is nothing new under the sun...

This year I am helping preschoolers memorize some verses in the Bible that talk about love. They are found in 1 Corinthians 13. It had been a month since the previous chapel time I led, so I wasn't expecting much when I asked them if they recalled what we talked about before. But one kid quickly called out, 'Love is patient.' I told that young boy he won the day. Then I told them I was going to talk about the next aspect of love, kindness, by telling them a story. Once there were these 5 guys that were friends. But one of those friends was paralyzed. Do you know what that means? It means he couldn’t move his arms or legs. Let’s pretend we can’t move our arms and legs. Just as an aside, I'm going to figure out how I can include this story in every chapel. Those kids all sat frozen while I told the story.  One day those friends heard that Jesus was in town. So the four friends that could move decided to pick up their friend, carry him on his bed all the way to Jes...

From time to time I will be posting a short teaching moment I had with the young children who attend our church preschool. This one involved a purposely mistaken drawing of my home. I say purpose;ly mistaken so you don't think I live in some weird world. So, I started coloring again. I was going to wait to show anyone, but I just couldn’t wait. I’m going to show you a picture of me at my house on a sunny day. Doesn’t this look good? What do you think? Am I a natural artist? These kids, who I've noticed struggle with staying in the lines, were quick to notice my mistakes. Of course, that was the point. It looks like I got a lot of things mixed up in my drawing. Sometimes we get things all mixed up in life. Do you ever fight with your brother or sister? Have you ever told your mom or dad no? Have you ever refused to share? Ever been grumpy? Did you know that sometimes even moms and dads get things mixed up? Even adults get angry, sometimes we fight and say things we should ...

Every year I share in the chapel duties for our Church preschool. Being a type-A, I like to plan it out for the entire year. I will be given 12 opportunities (give or take) to grab and keep the attention of 60 preschoolers. Yes, I am willing to be crazy and loud and funny in order to accomplish this. Sometimes it works. Other times my wife, who is the preschool director, just gives me the nod as my signal to pray and close and hope for better the next time. After all, sometimes leading a mini-Bible study with little ones is like herding cats, although I've never actually tried this. To give you an idea, I have tried many extreme object lessons; juggling, dancing, playing guitar, telling silly stories, etc. Mid-stream I will have one of these young kids raise their hands. I mistakenly assume they are about to ask some good theological question based on my amazing teaching. More often I hear their new dog's name or some silly comment about bodily functions. Sigh. The chal...