The lightning bolt slammed into my house at exactly 4:18 pm.
Five seconds later my electronics—television, computer, router, satellite dish, DVR—were smoldering. And the roof was none too happy, either.
I spent three days ordering gear, re-running wiring, managing inspections, and summoning-up long-ago passwords. When I wasn’t on hold with utility and insurance companies, that is.
Not until replacement electronics were humming along did it dawn on me: God was with me, but I’d talked with everyone but Him about the lightning strike.
All my attention had been focused on things that ultimately didn’t matter. Twenty years from now my being offline and away from Pawn Stars reruns won’t matter. But being so distracted I forgot to pray for my family and the kids I serve at church?
That could have eternal consequences.
When you’re aware God is with you, you begin viewing people through God’s eyes: beloved children who either know Him or need to.
In this lesson series you’ll help kids discover something you already know: God is with you. Crises, work demands, relationship meltdowns—He’s ready and willing to walk through all of them with you.
But, if you’re like me, at precisely those moments you most need to lean on God you sort of forget He’s there. Instead of inviting Him into our challenges we leap into problem-solving mode to handle situations ourselves.
Which doesn’t always end well.
So, in this God With Us series, join your kids in letting the truth of God’s presence sink deeply into your heart. Consider these lessons not just content to teach, but truth to learn (or re-learn) as well.
Why? Because staying mindful God is with you changes your perspective in profound ways…
4 Ways Knowing God is with Us Changes Our Perspective
Your focus shifts from the temporary to the eternal.
My prized electronics are guaranteed to one day become recycled landfill. But the people I met as I tried to replace those electronics—they’re eternal.
Had I been mindful God was with me on those many phone calls would I have been more patient? Kinder? More understanding?
Yes…because I’d have remembered I’m called to bring the Kingdom of God into every encounter I have with others.
Getting my stuff was important, but nowhere near as important as the people I met while getting it. How I reflected the love of God to those people mattered far more than whether I had to wait an extra week for a router.
It’s one thing to know God is with you. It’s another to feel it.
When you’re aware God is with you, you begin viewing people through God’s eyes: beloved children who either know Him or need to. The Holy Spirit prompts you to see the difference between temporary and eternal, and to keep first things first.
You ask better questions.
That bolt of lightning threaded its way between tall trees to zap my rooftop. Later I found myself thinking, God, I’m on your team, remember? You couldn’t have nudged that bolt a bit to the left or right?
Which was precisely the wrong question.
Nothing in Scripture promises earthly life will be easier for us as Jesus-followers. If anything, we’re warned it will be more difficult, more likely to include misunderstandings, persecution, and spiritual warfare. Perhaps even an occasional lightning strike.
When we’re mindful God is with us, we stop asking Him to protect us from problems. Instead, we ask how He wants to work in and through us no matter what happens. We no longer feel short-changed if it’s our house on the block lit by lightning. Instead we ask, What are you doing here and how can I cooperate with You?
You fully realize you’re not alone.
It’s one thing to know God is with you. It’s another to feel it.
In this series you’ll help kids not just know God is with them—you’ll help them feel it, too. Lean into those moments in each lesson where kids directly encounter God in prayer, worship, and meditation—that’s where kids learn how it feels to be hugged by God, to hear His voice, to feel His presence.
And that’s where you’ll encounter Him as well.
You experience peace—and hope.
There’s a peace that passes understanding and it comes when we’re living in the presence of God. That’s where there’s less to fear, less need to pretend we’re in control. We move through our days confident God is aware of what’s happening, and that, ultimately, He’ll use it for our good.
Our perspective flips from poor me to Praise God and that’s where peace and hope reside.
For you, for me, and for your kids.
When the Holy Spirit cements in your kids an awareness God is with them, everything changes.
They see themselves clearly—as beloved children of God.
They don’t fear loneliness—because they know they’re not alone.
And they look to their futures with confidence, aware God is with them now and will be forever.
We’re praying for you as you bring this truth to the kids you love: God Is With Us!
Wonder Ink’s 3-year, 52-week children’s ministry curriculum offers kids space to fully find their place in God’s Big Story. Children discover they are Known by God, Loved by Jesus, and Led by the Holy Spirit.
