Category: Children’s Ministry

Have you ever heard a child say something surprisingly profound? We adults have a saying for that: “from the mouths of children” or “from the mouths of babes.”

For example, when our six year-old Annie wants to “cheers” to something, she proclaims, “To the life of God!” We have no idea where she got that from, but that’s what she says and we love it. Likewise, when her three year-old brother David prays for meals, he simply says, “Thank you for the God.” Sure, that might sound theologically ambiguous at first glance. But I think he means, “Thank you for you, God.” And I’ll take it. In fact, I need it. I need to hear children express worship to God because I think they do it a lot better than us adults.

Jesus said so himself. We get the phrase, “from the mouths of babes,” first from the Psalms (chapter 8, verse 2) and then reiterated by Jesus in Matthew 21:16:

“Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read,

“‘From the lips of children and infants you, Lord, have called forth your praise’?”

Jesus was defending the children who were “shouting” in the temple after Jesus had dramatically turned over the tables of the moneychangers. You see, the children had been parading with their palm branches and shouting “Hosanna” to Jesus (the triumphal entry, which we celebrate at Palm Sunday). And they continued their procession into the temple as Jesus was clearing it out. That way, when Jesus was done clearing the temple, the children were still making noise and it bothered the chief priests. That’s when we hear Jesus quote the Psalmist in defense of the children.

This passage encourages me and reminds me to let the children praise (in the way that God made them to do so). It also reminds me to listen to the children and what they say/sing/pray when they worship God. Perhaps that is God’s way of speaking to me. 

If you haven’t heard, an extraordinary event has taken place in Wilmore, Kentucky. I called this small rural town home for 5 years when I attended Asbury Theological Seminary from 2002 to 2007. In early February, one of the chapel services for students at Asbury University (the school across the street from the seminary) spontaneously broke out into non-stop worship, prayer, and repentance. Word spread about God moving deeply in the hearts of students in Wilmore and within days tens of thousands of people showed up in this town of about 6,000 to join in prayer and worship. Call it a revival, an outpouring, or what you will. Whatever you call it, I believe God has moved mightily and I rejoice and celebrate what He has done and is doing. My prayer is that we would all be open to the miraculous move of God in our hearts, no matter where we live or work and that His transformation in us would overflow into love and service to the needs of the world around us.

I have attended a number of Asbury’s February worship services virtually (they livestream a lot of it). I have also seen and heard a lot of first-hand accounts from folks in Wilmore. If you’re curious about what’s going on, I would encourage you to find first-hand accounts of people on the ground in Wilmore. I will share some links below as good examples of just that.

One more thing: I first visited Wilmore in 1997 and have had close connections to the town ever since (including the years I lived there). The overall spirit of the people of Wilmore (and the institutions of Asbury University and Asbury Theological Seminary) has ALWAYS been that of sweet and gentle prayer, seeking holiness in the Lord, and repentance from darkness and towards full surrender in Christ. They have never been “showy” or holier-than-thou in the process (in my opinion). And those have been the reported marks of these recent prayer services. The point I am making is that what we are witnessing in Wilmore is really not new for Wilmore. What I see is a community that is simply leaning deeper into who they have been day in and day out for years. They have been faithful in prayer whether there is a viral revival or not. Let us continue to daily love God and love others in the highs and lows of life.

First-hand accounts of the Asbury Outpouring:

Asbury University’s official page about the Outpouring: https://www.asbury.edu/outpouring/

Podcast episode by my friend Andy Miller, whose brother teaches at Asbury University and was there on Feb 8th: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/more-to-the-story-with-andy-miller-iii/id1569988895?i=1000600055285

Podcast episode from Asbury Theological Seminary wherein they host a panel discussion of first-hand accounts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/asbury-seminary-kentucky-chapel/id988435522?i=1000600201484

Blog page of Craig Keener (a wise scholar in Wilmore): https://craigkeener.com/blog/

A dear friend and colleague (Danny Yamashiro) recently interviewed me on his radio program in Boston. He gave me the opportunity to share about my recent dissertation research about the sacred calling of the variety performer. He made the episode available on Spotify and I’d like to share it with you here: