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When I was a kid, I saw each Bible story as a separate story with the story of Jesus being the most famous one, the most important one. I wish a book like “Epic Devotions” had been out then. “Epic Devotions” is not just a book of devotions for kids, it tells the entire narrative of the Bible. (Not to be replaced with actual bible reading though.) Each devotion is sure to catch the eye of a kid, with bright colorful illustrations. They layout of this devotion book is perfect for a kid. At the beginning of each devotion, they will be challenged to look up and read the story in their own Bible. The devotion provides an overview and explanation of what kids just read. At the end of each devotion, there is a challenge that kids can do to live out what they just read. It can be as simple as praying to God or sharing what they read with a friend. This devotion then challenges kids to memorize a verse each week. There are 52 devotions, one for each week. If a child goes thr

Imagine you rebelled against your father, thinking that your way was better than his, only to realize that life wasn’t better and having to make a long walk home. On the way you come up with a speech, hoping he will accept you back but thinking that’s not likely. You get home and realize your father has been looking out to the horizon each and every day you were gone, hoping you would return home. He comes running towards you and you get ready to give him your speech. He totally ignores it and greets you with open arms, showing mercy and grace towards you. Instead of punishing you, he throws you a party. What great love! I’ve been that rebellious son. I saw the lights out in the distance and went out to explore and see what life had to offer, only to end up in a pigpen, knowing that there was only one option…return to the Father. On the journey back, the enemy filled my mind with lies. “You’ve gone too far.” “God won’t love you the same way again.” “Going back and li

A 22-year-old guy…dancing and jumping around with a bunch of kids…wearing a tiger bandana and tiger ears…having the same amount of energy as the kids…listening to VBS music in the car for months…spending his personal money on VBS materials instead of going out with friends to eat out…studying and praying for VBS instead of looking for a job, and even turning down some offers just so he can do VBS…committing to doing 2 VBS’s in one week...investing in younger students so they can lead VBS. This doesn’t sound like a normal 22-year-old guy. I’ve heard so many VBS stories. According to LifeWay Research, in 2017 alone there were 65,301 salvation decisions from VBS. So what makes my story stand out? I really don’t know.  My first VBS was in 2001 at Cleveland First Baptist Church. A family friend told my mom about this thing called “VBS” and mom signed me up. That’s where it started. Each and every summer many kids look forward to vacations. I always, and still, looked forward t

Have you ever messed up, and no matter how hard you tried, you just couldn’t fix it? You tried everything and nothing worked. That happened to me last week. I am currently in the process of putting together multiple videos for GFBC's Vacation Bible School 2019. One of the videos I am producing is a Sharing the Gospel video, where we will explain God's plan of salvation. If you know me well, you know I love to get creative. This year, I asked my team members who are going to be helping me in VBS if they would be willing to be a part of this video. They were all very willing, so we set up a day to film. A few weeks later, the day to film the video finally arrived. I set up my camera, microphones, and even a teleprompter. We filmed the introduction and then everybody did their individual lines. I put on my headphones, making sure I was getting good clear audio. We filmed the video in about 45 minutes. Two days later, I transferred the video files over to the computer that

Focus- a center of activity, attraction, or attention; a point of concentration It’s officially 2019! I’m so excited and ready for 2019. There’s a lot to be excited about, from graduating from UAB in April to interning at a local television station this Spring. It’s a year of transition. I’ll be transitioning from going to school everyday to going to work instead. I’m eager to see where the Lord leads me in 2019. Every year that I’ve been at GFBC, Pastor Kevin has challenged all of us to pray for a watchword at the beginning. At the end of the year we could go back and see how God use that word to impact of lives. In 2019, my watchword is focus. I should know a lot about focus. Being a broadcast communications major and a volunteer of GFBC’s media team, I work with cameras a lot. Our professor always stresses to make sure our image is always in focus. When I run a camera at church there are times someone will say, “check your focus.” Why is focus so important? In an image, the