FriNiteKids: An Ornament of Grace

AN ORNAMENT OF GRACE

by: gina rodriguez

#FriNiteKids

This past Friday night, before receiving a hug and greeting from Coco, I was met with a huge smile as she came up to me and said, “Miss Gina! I have something to tell you!” Unfortunately, I had to start class soon, so I told her that I was excited to hear all about what she had to tell me, and that we could talk all about it together after class. She smiled, gave me a hug hello and agreed.

After prayer requests, I was excited to begin to start our study for the next couple of weeks on a new Bible verse, Romans 3:23. I was super encouraged by one of the new little girls to the Bible Study named Hailey (6 yrs old). It was her first time ever hearing about the word sin, so she had many (great) questions! It amazes me how children so young can quickly understand what sin is… I didn’t have to go over every single sin, but simply define sin as: Anything we think, say, or do that offends God, and she started naming multiple sins! lol… No one can tell me that children are too young to comprehend these things. We finished by teaching them motions to go along with the Bible verse so that they can memorize it.

After Bible Study, I’d gone outside to wait for the Older Children’s class to end. (This is usually the hour I get to simply sit and talk to Coco, answer all of her questions about God, laugh and watch her do gymnastics — it’s hard to say, but this time is probably my most favorite part of the Friday Night Bible Study). The questions came, I got to read her a chapter from her Jesus StoryBook Bible, and from time to time she’d allude to the thing she wanted to share with me, but the other children made it hard for me to be alone with her to listen.

The sun had already gone down now, the older kids had come outside, and there were a couple of us still hanging around talking afterwards. I felt a tug on my side, to look down and see Coco there, her head tilted to the side, with that same smile she met me with earlier. “I have to tell you Miss Ginaaaaa!”, she said.

It doesn’t take much for her to make me smile…or for her to have my attention. I was all ears. As we sat on the trunk of my car, she ventured to tell me that there had been a girl at school that she was mad at for some time now. “She used to be so mean to me Miss Gina, but I prayed, and I forgave her! Now we’re friends again!”

I couldn’t help but give her a huge hug and say, “Wow! Praise God Coco! You see, God helps us to forgive, because we can’t do it on our own!”

While driving home that night, I couldn’t stop myself from almost breaking down in tears praising God for the work that He is doing in her. Not only did she tell me Friday night about how she forgave, but she also was super excited to share with me that one of her prayers had been answered (again), she would be starting Gymnastics soon! (If anyone knows Coco, you would know that Gymnastics is her favorite sport…it’s not hard to guess that when she’s running around doing Cartwheels and interpretive dances in the parking lot).

The love I have for her is inexpressible, but the love that Christ has for Coco is far deeper, fuller, richer, purer, and better than the love I could ever love her with. I praise God for opening her eyes, and bringing her in to participate in the love that is shared between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. She is His forever, and she will always be an ornament of grace that He’s granted to me to decorate the walls of my life. The theme, His glory.

FriNiteKids: Update & PR's 10.5.12

#FriNiteKids

Update / Praise God: 

Eric: "So, is Jesus coming back?"
Gina: "Yes." Eric: "YESSS!!!"

For the last few weeks, Gina and I have been explaining the gospel using Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Gina, who teaches the younger kids, has used some great visual illustrations (drawing pictures on the white board; using a golden string for eternal life and a black string for eternal death; creating a song out of Romans 6:23; using a dartboard analogy to explain sin and substitution). I've been teaching the older kids mainly by using "the Bridge" illustration and breaking down the gospel in a bad news / good news format. Today I had the privilege of explaining the gospel to a couple of teenage girls from the neighborhood who admitted to having almost no understanding of the Bible. And Gina has had numerous talks about the gospel in and out of her class time. 

Gina praying with her kids at
the end of one of her lessons

"The Bridge" illustration 

Aric drawing some of the kids'
 names and Bible verses 

Tonight Aric Diaz from Texas came by to help with the Bible study. He is gifted in graffiti art, and he spent time with the kids afterward, drawing their names and Bible verses on pieces of paper. One boy told Aric, "I want to be just like you." Aric responded, "Noooo! You should want to be like Jesus!" Praise God for the many opportunities we have had to proclaim His gospel to these children on Fridays! 

Prayer Requests:

• Please pray that the children will have a clearer understanding of the gospel and that their hearts will cling to the truth of the gospel.
• Please pray for male laborers to come mentor the neighborhood boys. 
• Please pray for wisdom, creativity, and diligence as Gina and I consider where to go next with our lessons. 
• Please pray for unity between Gina and I as we serve together in the gospel.

Always practicing bboy moves :) 

Happy 17th Birthday, Luis!

Fri.NiteKids: Gina & Coco

Gina and Coco, the little 7 year old disciple. #Fri.NiteKids

Here is a post that Gina wrote about the privilege she has to disciple Coco. Oh how I love this little sister in Christ! Yesterday when Gina taught about Hell, Coco began weeping. As I sat next to her, patting her back, I asked her, "Is it because she is talking about Hell?" She continued crying, then looked me in the eye and asked, "Have any of your friends gone to Hell?" Sobered by her question and convicted by her response to the reality of God's judgment of sin, I responded, "Yes, yes some of them have." 

After Bible study, Coco asks Gina questions and they usually spend more than an hour discussing the gospel, praying, and reading the Bible together. Praise God for giving Gina words to give a depiction of Coco and the glorious grace of God working in her. Below is taken from Gina's blog.

“I USED TO LOVE SINNING, BUT THEN YOU TOLD ME ABOUT JESUS.”

By: Gina

Her face shines brighter than the Sun whenever the opportunity arises to talk about Him. Her smile radiating from ear to ear, long black curls flowing in the wind as she pivots her foot, shifting all of her 53lbs to her right leg with her hand on her hip. The fullness of those seven long years of age and the wisdom they’ve acquired pour forth from her mouth to her younger cousin, testing her on what they’d just learned 10 minutes ago in Bible Study.

“Who’s the most important person, Raquel?”, said Coco.

“Umm…. God! I mean, Jesus! I mean….yeah!” Raquel replies, as she looks to Coco for affirmation.

I try not to burst out with loud shouts of praise, rejoicing from the pure joy bubbling up within me as I’m overwhelmed by the joy she is enthralled in by simply talking about Him. Jesus. Yes! This Holy God, yet loving friend, Righteous King and faithful Savior! It is Jesus that Coco is filled with excitement over!

After she quizzes her younger cousin, the three of us are distracted by the loud calls to worship that the sky proclaims. Bright neon-looking pinks mixed with soft oranges sitting on a background of indigo sky. After many questions and answers, Coco pulls out her Jesus Storybook Bible and begins to ask Raquel if she’d like to see what Heaven will look like. As she scrambles to find the page towards the end of the book, she re-adjusts all of the purple, plastic, bracelet pieces (used as book marks) to save the place of her most favorite stories and people in the Bible, one being Peter.

If ever I took the time to write down all of Coco’s questions about God, His Son and His Holy Spirit, I’m quite positive I could conclude my memories with a chapter-book. However, I’d still like to give you an idea of how deeply my life has been impacted by a child so young, and so eager to know God, that I am drawn to worship Christ every Friday evening because of what He is merely doing in her.

It baffles me to see how much understanding Christ has granted her at this extremely young age of seven. Not only does Coco hate her sin, but she weeps over it. Not only does she know the gospel, but she has been totally and radically transformed by it. Not only does she know that the gospel is true, but its truth resounds in her life so much so, that she weeps and prays, weekly, for her family’s salvation. Not only does she understand that hell is real, but she weeps in Bible Study for those who have gone there.

I never in my life could have ever expected to have such deep emotions and love for a child who is not my own. However, I have recently found myself identifying with the Apostle Paul when he addresses Timothy and Titus as his “true child” or “beloved child”(Ti.1:4, 1 Tim.1:2, 2 Tim.1:2). Marriage-less, husbandless, childless, I find myself given the gift of being a mother to children who’s real mom’s are in prison, or worse, are present yet have never told them about the one who could save them from the sin they’ve passed down to them.

I don’t know how long of a time the Lord will continue to grant me to be a part of their lives. However, during this sweet, sweet time, I will continue to find myself before His throne, worshipping Him for the opportunity to delight in Him in this way; Provoked by the challenge of loving and trusting my Savior like a little child (Lk.18:17).

Fri.NiteKids: A Quick Intro.

Yodeysi, Luisana, Coco, Yudeisy, and Alondra w/ Gina. #Fri.NiteKids

I'll call "Fri. Nite Kids" an inner-city ministry in Tampa that my beloved sister, roommate, and co-laborer in the gospel, Gina, unintentionally started about 2 years ago in her old neighborhood by sharing the gospel with a little girl, who then told her neighborhood friends, who then repeatedly showed up at Gina's door with questions about Jesus, the Bible, etc. There is much more to say about how the Lord began this ministry and how He has been reaching these children with the gospel, but I will post that later, Lord willing. 

For now, I rejoice that after praying for some months now for the few laborers of this ministry and the many children in this neighborhood, God has opened a door for me to serve in the ministry every Friday. I am now teaching the middle and high school kids about the gospel at 6:45pm after Gina teaches the younger children at 5:30pm. I can't express how much joy and burden God has given me as I begin to share the gospel and my life with them (1 Thessalonians 2:8). They have become even more dear to me as I have spent time with them in these last few weeks. My heart is so burdened for these children, and I praise God that He has me here to labor that they might know "the Father of the fatherless" (Psalm 68:5). 

Gina also plans on trying to post more about the Bible study on her blog here: http://unabridgedgina.wordpress.com/

Prayer Requests: 

• Salvation: Most of these children come from extremely broken homes, and they do not know Christ yet. Please pray for the Spirit of God to open their eyes to the glorious gospel of grace as He also empowers us to proclaim it to them weekly. Pray also for their families' salvation. 
• Laborers: The Lord has blessed this unexpected ministry with laborers who love these children and have proclaimed the gospel to them for about 2 years now. At this moment, however, only Gina and I are serving/teaching on Fridays. Please pray that the Lord of the harvest will send laborers (especially faithful brothers to disciple the young boys in the neighborhood) to this neighborhood. 
• Local Church: Please pray that He will connect the Bible study to a local church so that it can be under elders, etc. Efforts are in progress to connect the Bible study to a solid local church that is near the neighborhood, but please pray that it will happen.
• Unity: Please pray Philippians 1:27 for Gina and I. Pray for our unity and harmony as we labor together in the gospel and live together along with 3 other beloved sisters in Christ. Pray that He will keep us humbled by His glory and remind us continually that our lives are hidden in Christ alone.