Elvis Has Left the Building

Most people are shocked when they hear that LB has a shy side to her.

She also is not one that will put herself out there in front of others although she is getting better at that.

So each year when she says she is going to do speech at L2L I am a little surprised.

This year marks the 2nd year where she really wrote her speech by herself.

We helped a little but she did the majority of the work herself and for that

we are super proud of her.

Many said this was her best speech yet.

We are just proud of the fact she did it.

The Church has Left the Building

“ELVIS HAS LEFT THE BUILDING!”  You have all heard this popular saying!  Recently, our congregation built a new auditorium.  On the first Sunday night we worshipped in it, one of our ministers challenged us with this saying, “The church has left the building!”  What did he mean by that saying?  He meant the church needs to leave the building to spread God’s word.  Many people my age and older, don’t want to “leave the building” because they are scared and don’t feel like they know much about the Bible.  But we should not have “a spirit of fear” like 2 Timothy 1:7 says, because we should have a spirit of “power and of love and of a sound mind.”  Why?  God’s plan is for us all to leave the building.  Mark 16:15 says, “He said unto them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.’” If this is what He wants us to do, He will give us the way to do it.  So, what does that mean to me as a 12 year old?

I have to be willing to leave the building.   God is calling us to do His work and spread His word.  He calls us just like He called Samuel in 1 Samuel 3:3-10.   We have to be willing to answer God’s call and hear Him.  In Isaiah 6, we see God calling Isaiah, but Isaiah didn’t think he was right for the job.  God had faith in Isaiah to be His prophet.  Isaiah finally said in verse 8, “Hear am I, send me!”  We see here that Isaiah was willing to go.  Jon Gordon said once, “God doesn’t pick the best.  God picks the most willing.  You don’t have to be the best to do great things.  Just be willing.”  So, even being young, I need to be willing to answer God with, “Hear am I, send me!”

I must have confidence in not just myself but in my God as well.  What is confidence?  We use the word a lot.  Julie Andrews even sings about it in Sound of Music, but what is it? Confidence is the belief or faith that I can rely on someone or something.  I have to rely on God and the fact that He can get me through anything.  Two synonyms for confidence are trust and belief.  When I leave the building, I have to have trust that God is with me to catch me when I mess up.  I also have to trust in God that He will go before me shielding me from danger.  Psalm 18:20 reminds me that “As for God, His way is perfect . . . He is a shield to all who trust in Him.”  Part of having confidence is having a belief. I have to believe in His word or why would I want to share it with people?  God’s word is a light unto my path (Psalm 119:105) showing me which way to go in life.  Hebrews 4:12 tells me that God’s word is a two-edge sword that cuts to the soul just like in Acts 2 when the Jews heard Peter’s words at Pentecost and they were “cut to the heart.”  When I share God’s word with people it can change them and me for the better. So actually, I see that my confidence does not need to be in me but 100% on God!

Finally, I need to have big plans.  As humans, we sometimes limit God to what He can do through us.  Ephesians 3:20 is a great reminder of what we are able to achieve when God is at work in us.  It says, “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.”  To me, this means that if God is working in and with you than anything is possible.  I have plans to study more to become Christian.  One day, I would like to go on mission trips to Oregon and to Haiti with my youth group.  I want to teach young kids at VBS and maybe even be a Sunday School teacher one day.  I also want to be able to teach others about God when they ask me questions about what I believe.  To achieve these plans, there will be tough times in front of me, I just need to remember Jesus’ words in Matthew 19:26, “ . . . with men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

I want to be part of the church that leaves the building.  In order to do that, I need to be willing to answer God’s call, to have confidence in God’s faithfulness, and to think big when it comes to my spiritual goals.  Every Sunday and Wednesday as I leave the building, I want to be able to say, “Here am I, send me!”  I am leaving the building!