WEBVTT - #377: Growing Pains 

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<v Speaker 1>Before you start today's episode, I want to share a

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<v Speaker 1>story that truly touched my heart. A mom recently wrote

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<v Speaker 1>me saying, my children are almost ten, eight and five,

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<v Speaker 1>and it's been such a blessing to see the older

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<v Speaker 1>two grow with the content. Now we listen to our

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<v Speaker 1>favorites again, and the youngest is the age her brother

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<v Speaker 1>was when we first started. We're on our third time

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<v Speaker 1>through the Exodus series. That's how much we love it.

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<v Speaker 1>nourish the soul and that we can trust. Stories like

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<v Speaker 1>these remind me why I do what I do. Kan's

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<v Speaker 1>a child, and now creating them for my own children

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<v Speaker 1>person we so desperately need help from. Please every gift,

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<v Speaker 1>no matter the size, keeps this podcast going, sharing God's

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<v Speaker 1>word in a way children love, nurturing their faith, and

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<v Speaker 1>of this journey, for trusting me to be a part

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<v Speaker 1>of your children's spiritual growth, and for supporting this mission

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<v Speaker 1>not letting this podcast die, as well as helping these

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<v Speaker 1>stories to be more accessible to kids everywhere. Hello again,

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<v Speaker 1>and welcome back to Kids' Bible stories. Today's story is

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<v Speaker 1>called growing pains, and this comes from James Chapter one,

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<v Speaker 1>verses one through eight. Have you ever had your legs

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<v Speaker 1>heard at night? I remember one time when I was kid,

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<v Speaker 1>I told my mom.

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<v Speaker 2>My legs are sough ache.

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<v Speaker 1>They hurt. I was lying in bed and kept twisting

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<v Speaker 1>around under the covers, trying to find a comfy spot.

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<v Speaker 1>I rubbed my shins with both hands, like I was

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<v Speaker 1>trying to warm them up or rub the hert away.

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<v Speaker 1>I didn't know why they hurt. I hadn't fallen or

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<v Speaker 1>bumped into anything. They just well, they ached and hurt.

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<v Speaker 1>She came in, kissed my forehead and said, oh, sweetie,

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<v Speaker 1>those are growing pains, growing pains. I wasn't so sure

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<v Speaker 1>I'd like the sound of that, but then she smiled

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<v Speaker 1>and said, sometimes when your body is growing taller and stronger,

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<v Speaker 1>it can ache a little. That's because your bones, your muscles,

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<v Speaker 1>and joints, they're all stretching and changing. It might, but

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<v Speaker 1>it's actually healthy and normal. Listeners, doesn't that sound strange?

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<v Speaker 1>That pain could actually be a sign that something good

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<v Speaker 1>is happening that I'm growing. Today, we are going to

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<v Speaker 1>talk about the kind of hard things that God can

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<v Speaker 1>use to help us grow in our hearts and in

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<v Speaker 1>our faith. So let's go ahead and jump right into

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<v Speaker 1>today's story. Many people believe that the person who wrote

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<v Speaker 1>the part of the Bible we were about to hear

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<v Speaker 1>that it was actually Jesus's brother, James. Can you imagine

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<v Speaker 1>what that must have been like, growing up with Jesus,

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<v Speaker 1>eating breakfast with him, playing outside with him. Oh wow, Well,

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<v Speaker 1>James wrote to encourage those who are going through a

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<v Speaker 1>hard time, So let's hear what he wrote.

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<v Speaker 2>James, a servant of God and the Lord Jesus Christ,

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<v Speaker 2>to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations. Greetings, consider

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<v Speaker 2>it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face

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<v Speaker 2>trials of many kinds.

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<v Speaker 1>Oh, hold on, mom, what's a trial? It means something

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<v Speaker 1>really hard that you're going through. It can be painful.

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<v Speaker 1>It could be something that makes you feel sad or scared, frustrated,

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<v Speaker 1>like starting a new school, or even getting really sick.

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<v Speaker 1>Oh okay, let's hear what else else?

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<v Speaker 2>He says? Consider it pure joy, brothers and sisters, whenever

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<v Speaker 2>you face trials of many kinds. You know that the

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<v Speaker 2>testing of your faith it produces perseverance to keep going.

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<v Speaker 2>Let perseverance then finish its work, so that you may

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<v Speaker 2>be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of

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<v Speaker 2>you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously

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<v Speaker 2>to all, without finding fault, and it will be given

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<v Speaker 2>to you. But when you ask, you must believe and

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<v Speaker 2>not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a

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<v Speaker 2>wave in the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.

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<v Speaker 2>The person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.

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<v Speaker 2>Such a person is double minded and unstable in all

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<v Speaker 2>that they do.

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<v Speaker 1>Thank you for that message, James.

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<v Speaker 2>You're welcome.

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<v Speaker 1>Now. Listeners. We were just talking about trials and pain,

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<v Speaker 1>and did you catch what James said? He said, we

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<v Speaker 1>should consider it joy when we go through trials. Wait,

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<v Speaker 1>what huh? That sounds kind of backwards. I mean, I

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<v Speaker 1>thought it would say something like feel sad or be

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<v Speaker 1>frustrated when hard things happen. But joy that seems like

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<v Speaker 1>the opposite of what we'd expect. James does say why

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<v Speaker 1>we can feel that way?

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<v Speaker 2>You know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance,

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<v Speaker 2>and that will finish its work so that you may

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<v Speaker 2>be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

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<v Speaker 1>Let's talk about what James means. Sometimes a way that

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<v Speaker 1>can help us understand something like this is through a story,

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<v Speaker 1>So let me share one with you. There was once

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<v Speaker 1>a girl named Mia who wanted to race in the

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<v Speaker 1>big school bike race at the end of the year.

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<v Speaker 1>She had never done a bicycle race before, but she

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<v Speaker 1>thought it sounded exciting and she really wanted to try.

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<v Speaker 1>So Mia started training every morning before school. At first,

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<v Speaker 1>it was really hard. Her legs got tired fast. Sometimes

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<v Speaker 1>she got side cramps. One morning, she hopped off her

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<v Speaker 1>shiny blue bike, sat down on the grass, and proclaimed, Oh,

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<v Speaker 1>this is too hard.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm not sure I want to do this anymore.

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<v Speaker 1>But her mom, who had been watching, knelt beside her

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<v Speaker 1>and said, gently, remember when your legs used to ache

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<v Speaker 1>when you were growing taller. That was growing pains. Right now,

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<v Speaker 1>your muscles are doing the same thing. They're working hard

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<v Speaker 1>and getting stronger. If you keep going, you're going to

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<v Speaker 1>be amazed at what you can do. Mia wasn't so sure,

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<v Speaker 1>but she decided to trust her mom's advice, and you

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<v Speaker 1>know what, week after week she kept biking. It was

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<v Speaker 1>still hard. Sometimes her legs still ached a little, but

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<v Speaker 1>she started biking farther and faster, and by the time

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<v Speaker 1>the race came, Mia stood at the starting line with

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<v Speaker 1>confidence in her heart and strong legs underneath her. On

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<v Speaker 1>your marr, get your head at it. She didn't win

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<v Speaker 1>first place, but she did finish the whole race, and

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<v Speaker 1>she smiled because she had grown, not just in her legs,

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<v Speaker 1>but in her heart too. You see, that's kind of

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<v Speaker 1>like what James was talking about. He told us that

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<v Speaker 1>when we face trials, hard things, when life feels like

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<v Speaker 1>a tough race, we can actually be growing. Our faith

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<v Speaker 1>can get stronger, just like our legs get stronger when

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<v Speaker 1>we use them. Our trust in God grows when we

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<v Speaker 1>hold on to him even when things are hard. And

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<v Speaker 1>guess what, He will always be with you. He loves you, dearly. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>that is it for our story today. But before we go,

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<v Speaker 1>let's think about what we just heard. Raise your hand.

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<v Speaker 1>If you've ever had growing pains, I haven't, usually at

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<v Speaker 1>night or after running a lot. Thanks for sharing. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>we just heard that when we go through hard things

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<v Speaker 1>in life, things that might feel painful, James tells us

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<v Speaker 1>how we can look at them with joy. Just like

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<v Speaker 1>growing pains help your body grow taller and stronger, sometimes

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<v Speaker 1>our hearts go through hard things so they can grow

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<v Speaker 1>stronger too, And while we don't always like it, those

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<v Speaker 1>hard things might be part of how God is helping

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<v Speaker 1>us become brave, kind, loving, or wise. I do want

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<v Speaker 1>you to remember that not all pain is the same.

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<v Speaker 1>There is a pain that can help us grow, and

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<v Speaker 1>then there's a pain that's not good. Sometimes pain is

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<v Speaker 1>a warning sign that something is wrong, like when you

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<v Speaker 1>bump your head or have really sad feelings. That's why

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<v Speaker 1>it's always important to tell your mom or dad when

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<v Speaker 1>something hurts, because they can help you know the difference.

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<v Speaker 1>This week, I want you to remember God is always

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<v Speaker 1>with us, even in the hard things. He doesn't waste

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<v Speaker 1>our tears. He sees every struggle, every late night leg ache,

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<v Speaker 1>every prayer we whisper, and He uses them to help

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<v Speaker 1>us grow. So next time something feels tough, remember this

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<v Speaker 1>might just be your growing season and God is right

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<v Speaker 1>there cheering you on. Well. That is it for our

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<v Speaker 1>story today. Thank you so much for joining us, and

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<v Speaker 1>as always, bye for now.