Sunday Devotion- Mo and Bro

Janet Rubin

By now, you novel journeymen and women know a great deal about me. I don’t think I’ve mentioned yet that besides being a writer, home school mom, college student and general nutcase, I am also a leader in our church’s youth group. This is a new adventure for me this year, but something I’ve felt called to for some time. My main function at youth group has been “snack lady.” A pretty good gig really. I mean the kids might get annoyed with the youth pastor when he tells them to “Quiet down!”, or roll their eyes at the other "uncool" parent/leaders when they try to talk to them… but what teenager doesn’t like the lady who hands them a cupcake and a cup of iced tea? Snacks? No problem. I'm your woman!

There is another part of youth group. After the worship, announcements, Bible lesson, and such, comes “small group time,” a time for discussion questions and prayer. Up until a couple of weeks ago, I was just assisting another woman leader who lead our small group of junior high girls, but for some reason, things got switched around and I found myself ALONE with a group of junior high girls. How can I describe this horrible experience? I felt like George Bush leading a meeting full of Hillary Clinton supporters. Well, sort of. The girls weren’t hostile or anything. There were more like comatose. I kept reading my lame discussion questions, and they kept silently gawking at me, like an audience of Vulcans watching a comedian. I rambled. I tried to be funny. I tried to be deep. The looks on their faces said it all. I could hear Sean’s group nearby, laughing as they all animatedly traded stories. I could see Karla’s group bent over their Bibles, searching for the answer to some question. And Tony’s group, huddled in prayer. With 15 minutes to go and no hope of recovery, I skipped prayer and said, “Soooo, who wants to help me set up the snacks?”

Once the kids left I approached Rachel, the youth pastor’s wife, and confessed to her what a dismal failure I was as a small group leader. I assured her that I wasn’t dropping out of youth group and would continue being the lemonade-mixer, and keeper of the chips and salsa, and helping in any other way. But that I couldn’t- simply couldn’t- lead a small group. She assured me that was totally fine, and I appreciated her gracious understanding, but went home feeling useless. I felt inferior to Tony, Sean, and Karla. What they were doing was the stuff that mattered- connecting with the kids, teaching them, praying with them.

At home, I retreated to my comfort zone, snuggled on the couch with my laptop. Before I left church, Rachel had reminded me of my idea about having the kids do skits. I though about what we’d read during bible time that night from Exodus and started typing. By the next morning, I had two weeks worth of skits about "Mo and Bro." I had a ridiculous amount of fun writing them and was delighted with the end result. Here’s an excerpt:

Aaron: I can’t believe you got me involved. This was supposed to be your gig. Couldn’t you just do what God said and leave me out of it, Mo?

Mo: Dude, you know I can’t do public speaking. Remember that play in high school?

Aaron: (laughing) Oh yeah, your big role in Pirates of the Nile?

Mo: Remember how I was always fine in practice, but then on opening night I couldn’t say my lines? I was shaking, sweating. I felt like I was going to hurl, and I couldn’t say anything!

Aaron: Yeah, you looked like an idiot.

Mo: Oh, thanks a lot bro.

Aaron: Well, you did.

Mo: I know it, okay?! That’s why I need you to talk to Pharaoh. Getting a king to set a million slaves free is just a tad bit scarier than playing Captain Jack in a play…

Aaron: you really did look like an idiot.

Mo: All right, already. At least I wasn’t the one who had to be the water boy for the Cairo Camels football team.

Aaron: (sheepishly mumbling) I could have played if I wanted; I liked getting the water.

Mo: Whatever. (lowering voice) Okay, we’re here. You’re doing the talking, so you go first. (Aaron rolls eyes.) We’ll do it just like God said. We’ll go in there, and you tell Pharaoh to let our people go. God said he won’t listen to us, and that he’ll ask for a miracle…and then I’ll do that thing God said to do with the staff.

Aaron: Okay, let’s do it. (Mo and Bro do cool brother handshake and enter throneroom...)


So, throughout the week, I emailed teens and leaders, and was pleasantly surprised to find all enthusiastic about performing. Last night was our premiere performance. The actors were marvelous, the kids laughed in all the right spots, and more of them expressed an interest in drama. I went home feeling much better than I had the week before, having been reminded again that God made us all different, each with different gifts and functions. There is a place for me and a place for all.

Today I stopped by church for something and saw our groundskeeper, Jerry, in our huge gravel parking lot. He was quietly serving as he always does, carrying heavy shovelfuls of dirt and rocks and filling in the gouges and potholes left by the last snow-plowing. He smiled broadly and waved at me, then went back to work, looking contented. I thought how grateful I am for Jerry, and how unhappy I’d be doing his job, and how smart God was to design His church in such a way that there are people to do everything that needs to be done.

Are you feeling badly about some gift you don’t have? Feeling envious of others who do have those gifts? God has a purpose for you. Ask Him what it is. When you serve using the gifts He gave you, it will fill you with pleasure and bless others.

1 Corinthians 12:18-20 But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.