Forgiving Challenge Kids: The 11-Day Forgiveness AdventureSample

How Do We Rise Up?

Francis Younghusband was a British explorer and soldier. One assignment he had was to lead the British Army to defeat the country of Tibet in 1904. Francis had entered the city of Lhasa after a significant battle in which most of the Tibetan army had been killed. Rather than being quiet or sad, the Tibetan villagers began clapping as Francis and the army stepped onto the stage. Francis was so confused. Why were they happy that they had lost the battle?

The reason why the Tibetans were clapping was that they were trying to get rid of evil spirits. The Tibetans actually wanted him and his army to get off the stage and out of their city. So clapping meant something very different in Tibet than it did for us.

Sometimes we also misunderstand what God is doing in our lives. When we do something good, it feels like no one notices. We wait for the applause, and we get none.

Or we feel like everything is going wrong and that God is against us. We see the hard things we have to do and wonder why He doesn't just come down and fix our problems. It seems like He is missing or absent. But it is quite the opposite.

After Jesus restored Peter, He ascended into heaven. Some thought that Jesus was leaving Peter and the disciples for good. But that's not the case. Jesus promised to come back again, but He sent us a gift: His Holy Spirit until He comes back. The Holy Spirit now lives in us. Because of the Holy Spirit, we know that we are not alone. God actually lives in us. How amazing is that?

This shows us that God doesn't restore us and then leave us on our own. Instead, he restores us and fills us with Him. Just as God restores us, He then invites us to now go and restore this world. That's why we pray in the Lord's Prayer, "Thy Kingdom Come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."

It can be scary to truly live as a restored disciple of Jesus in this world. But rest assured, you will never be left alone.

Like Francis learned, clapping doesn't always mean something good. And just because you hear silence doesn't mean God's far away. Even when it seems quiet, know that God is always there for you and loves you. So go out, and be the restorer God has called you to be.

Challenge: We will have many battles to face in life. Some of those will end well, and some will not. It's tempting to pray that you will never have to go through tough times. Today, be challenged instead to pray that you will become closer to Jesus when the tough times come and see Him work in your life every step of the way.