Welcome to Grace and Space, a weekly newsletter from the Deconstructing Mamas Podcast! GRACE for who you have been, are now and SPACE for who you are becoming and will be!
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When your kids asks, "How was God made?" Let me explain.
God was never made, as we know. God always was and always will be! But at some point, God got the urge to create. And this changed everything, even God.
This urge came from the love that lived within God- among the three members of the Trinity- since forever. The love got so big, it spilled out and needed somewhere to land. So God created the world and the plants and the animals and you and me… you know the story!
And guess what? This changed God. Now God became a lover who is loved in return. We always say, “God is love” (1 John 4). And love needs an object, an other, outside of the self. Somebodies to love.
If your kid asks “How was God made?” you can start with the mind blowing mystery that God was never made, God always just was. 🤯 But for a lot of kids, that’s unsettling, too hard to grasp, not a satisfying answer.
So you can specify that the God who we know, the God who is Love, the God who created us, became this way at the Beginning of the story we know. When God’s love became too big not to share. In making and loving the world, God became who God is, too!
It’s kind of like how a parent was always a person but was changed upon the arrival of a child. The parent did not become a different person. But who that person is was now fundamentally changed. And from that moment on, the child will always know that person as a parent.
This line of explanation emphasizes the connection between the created and the Creator. A kind of chosen interdependence. God doesn’t want to be God without us.
--a little something from Reverend Mamas
This Week on the Podcast:
“My love, God is here when you choose goodness and are living from your heart. When you follow the path of love, God is with you from the start. And God is there when you mess up, if you make a choice that isn’t best. It doesn’t mean you’re bad; it just means you’re human-like all the rest.” (an excerpt from My Love, God is Everywhere)
Victoria Robb Powers and Cameron Vickrey, also known as the Reverend Mamas, are our guests this week on the podcast. Victoria is the Senior Pastor at Royal Lane Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas, and is the first female to pastor a Baptist church in the DFW Metroplex. She is a graduate of Baylor University and Brite Divinity School at TCU in Fort Worth. Victoria lives with her husband and three children in Lake Highlands. She loves to read, write, preach and teach.
Cameron is a graduate of Furman University and Wake Forest University School of Divinity. She currently works for Fellowship Southwest, sharing stories of ministry and mission along the US--Mexico border and advocating for migrants. She is also passionate about public education, and co-founded a nonprofit called RootEd, galvanizing parents of public school children to tell their stories and become advocates. Cameron lives in San Antonio with her family. Her free time is spent with her kids; wishing she were a gardener; teaching Sunday school to middle schoolers, and reading lots of books. On this episode, our conversation leads us to the deep questions of life and especially from kids about who God is and where God is and when God is. We chat about subjects from soap operas and healthy theology to original sin vs original blessing to how reparenting ourselves while we parent our own kids is deeply healing. Their children's book, My Love, God is Everywhere, is a new favorite of ours and both Lizz and Esther have experienced its healing nature for us as grown ups (I think they both use it devotionally) and also the beautiful message it has for our kids. At one point in the episode, which you have to listen to find out, both Lizz and Esther had their pens out frantically writing something down that changed their perspectives forever. If you want to make room for your own child-like soul to breathe and heal, this is a must-listen to episode. Like seriously, folks. You can find the Reverend Mamas and their book in these spaces: Instagram: @thereverendmamas More about Their Book: My Love, God is Everywhere
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Resource Alerts:
My Love, God is Everywhere
Encounter God's unlimited presence and unconditional love in this joyful picture book that helps kids discover God in all parts of creation, from the mountains to the anthills and, most of all, in our hearts amid joy, sadness, calm, and chaos.
In this poetic book for 4- to 8-year-olds, a child asks her mother "Is God here, or is God there?" and begins to understand that God's attention, kindness, and comfort are everywhere. Young children will learn
God is present in all parts of nature
God is present with them when they are scared or brave, happy or sad, and in all situations
each person is loved and good because they are God's child and God is present within them
Written by two ministers and featuring vivid illustrations in rich colors, My Love, God Is Everywhere honors the natural way that children see and love the world while affirming each child's identity as the handiwork of a loving God. Kids and adults alike will enjoy spending time with our good God as they reflect on the truth that God is everywhere.
Can't wait until Tuesday and need just a little snippet from our podcast episode that's coming up on Tuesday, November 14.
One last thing. We want to remind you that we are so glad you are here. We wouldn't be the same without you. You will always find GRACE for where you've been and who you are now, and SPACE for who you are becoming and will be.
Carry on, our new-found friends. Welcome to the twisty-windy, full -of-adventure faith path that's laid out before us all. Love,
Lizz & Esther
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