This week I approached a locked and darkened nursery to pray. As I entered the room, I had to clear cobwebs from my face that struck me as I walked in. Beloved, these things ought not to be.

Several weeks ago, I spoke to you about the importance of the children of Valley Bible Church. On a Friday afternoon, I spent some time walking through our building, praying for our church's ministries. As I prayed through the children's classrooms, I was overwhelmed with a deep, deep sadness. These rooms are frozen in time from mid-March when we had to suspend all of our in-person ministries. Bible curriculum posters are on the walls depicting scenes from the life of Christ. Memory verses and other Bible verses are posted as well. Pictures of the kids and some of their crafts hang from the walls. All are prominently displayed for no one to see.

I have continued this as a weekly practice, walking through our building, beseeching God in His grace to defeat the Coronavirus and return our children and families to worship as He has commanded us to do.

I invite you to pray with me. If you'd like, you are welcome to come to the church and walk through the building as you pray. When we are in these empty spaces, it helps to frame the seriousness of our prayers.

One picture I noticed on one of the walls was of a smiling Jesus, surrounded by children holding hands and dancing around him. Certainly, it is inspired by this Bible story:

Mark 10:14-16
15 And they were bringing even their babies to Him so that He would touch them, but when the disciples saw it, they began rebuking them.
16 But Jesus called for them, saying, "Permit the children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these."

We must permit our children to come to Jesus. We must not hinder them from doing so. Children need adults to lead them to faith and a life of discipleship, teaching them to observe all that He commanded (Matt. 28:20). To not do so is disobedience. Another Bible story of Jesus and children is found in Matthew 18. He, with a child standing before Him, said, "And whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me; but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea." Matthew 18:5-6

Jesus cares deeply about Children. Teaching children is a serious business to Him, and should be for us as well. It is evil when children are hindered from coming to Him. It is evil when children who are believers are caused to stumble.

There is great evil occurring in our land these days. It is evil to hinder all of God's children (young or old) from worshiping Him. We all know there are health concerns from the Coronavirus. Of all people, we should be looking to God earnestly and repeatedly asking him to remove this virus, praying for healing and unity in our families, churches, cities, and nation. I wonder if God's church has been faithful to do this, or if His people have been fearful, looking to "experts" to protect them?

We must also take reasonable precautions, and we have. But the crisis has been compounded by its politicization. Truth is hard to come by, and the trust of those in authority has been severely damaged. Our faith and corporate worship have been hindered, deemed non-essential, while many lesser activities have been allowed.

One of the worst consequences is how this has affected children. Children are being used as pawns in the politics of it all. They are the ones who have perhaps suffered the most—even in the church. We have been able to provide live-streaming services, online Life Groups, and Middle School and High School meetings. But children?

Join with me in praying for God to fill our classrooms once again with children, with adults, with families who are being discipled as followers of Jesus Christ. Pray for this all to be over quickly, and for our church leaders, wisdom to fulfill our responsibilities to lead, protect, and feed God's flock.

This week's "Afterthoughts" then, is more of a forethought. I usually write on something from the previous week's passage. The idea has been that there is too little time to say all that can be said about a passage of Scripture in one message. Thus, the name, Afterthoughts.

This week we are looking forward to Sunday's passage, and thus, this is a forethought. For just as Jesus said that children should come to Him, in our passage, we see that He invites all of us to come to Him.

Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone is, thirsty, let him come to Me and drink." John 7:37.

Thirsty for worship and fellowship with the Body of Christ? "Let him come to Me and drink."

I would like you to see Jesus' invitation to come to Him as an invitation to worship. This Sunday is an opportunity to do just that. Our annual out-door worship, "Church in the Park," has been moved to behind the church this year. This Sunday, we will have "Church Behind the Church."

This will be a safe, outdoor environment for those who have not been able to attend worship in person. Many have not worshiped for over 5 months! That's a very long time. We are designed to gather as God's people to worship. We have a large grassy area behind the church, enabling us to accommodate many people while safely socially distant.

We are commended, commanded, and invited to come to Jesus.

"If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink." John 7:37

"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest." Matt. 11:28

"Come, let us worship and bow down,
Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker." Ps 95:6

"Permit the children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these." Mark 10:16

We also have a significant event this Sunday: Baptisms. There are some courageous souls who will boldly declare their faith in Christ in baptism, and their allegiance to you, as part of our church family. I pray you will be there for this essential moment in the lives of these disciples.

And will you pray for our children? A memory verse I saw in the classes was Psalm 34:17-18, "When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears and delivers them out of all their trouble. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.”

Beloved, shake off the cobwebs and seek the Lord. A ministry in disuse will only draw dust and spiders. Our building is not a museum, but an instrument for ministry to people. God promises to answer those who come to Him and cry for help. Please join with me in praying for Him to do something remarkable in our midst. May our gracious Lord bless you all!