The rodeo was in town, and Papa Tim and I went to it. We watched the cowboys rope calves and ride broncos. It was almost nighttime when the bull riders began their show. The bucking bulls raced out onto the field, kicking and tossing their horns around, trying to throw the cowboys off. It was very exciting!

But then, right in the middle of one scary ride, something happened. The sky turned bright gold and red and purple! It was the most beautiful sunset I had ever seen! Everyone in the stands said, “Oooooh!” And they weren’t watching the bull rider— they were watching the sky!

I believe God sent that sunset to remind us that HE is more fun than bull riding! Fun? Yes! God is FUN! He does things nobody else can do.

Once Jesus, God the Son, was teaching a huge group of 5,000 people out in the countryside. When evening was near, his disciples told him, “We should send these people away so they can go buy food and eat.”

Jesus said, “They don’t need to go away. YOU feed them!”

The disciples were so puzzled! “How can we do that?” they asked. “It would take all the money we could make in a year to feed these people!”

A boy heard what Jesus said. His mother had sent him a lunch of loaves and fish. He held it up to Andrew, one of the disciples. Andrew must have smiled. But he said, “Jesus, we have a boy here with 5 barley loaves and 2 small fish. But what are these among so many people?”

Jesus said, “Bring them here.”

Andrew brought the boy and his lunch to Jesus. That little boy had great faith! Jesus must have smiled pretty big, because that boy believed in him. Jesus took the fish and bread and prayed over it, then began breaking off pieces to give to the disciples. “Give these to the crowd,” he said, while he kept breaking up the bread and fish.

The disciples held out baskets and took the pieces, which kept coming and coming until they filled all the baskets! They fed all 5,000 people, and then gathered up the leftovers. There were 12 baskets of bread and fish left! Jesus did that because a little boy believed in him.

When we are having a hard time, we can always ask God to help us. We ask in Jesus’ name. That’s when miracles can happen!

Here’s a Bible verse you can memorize to remind you of God’s great care for you. The Apostle Paul wrote:

"This same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 4:19, New Living Translation)

See you at the next Campfire!

Hugs & kisses,

Montana Gramma

Hi Boys & Girls! Welcome to the campfire!

July is rodeo time in Montana. Everybody crowds into the seats around the arena and watches cowboys and cowgirls ride animals. The first are called “wool riders”, children who hold onto the sheep’s wool while the sheep tries to buck them off.

All day long the rides get more difficult. The cowboys ride their horses out into the field and rope calves. The fastest cowboy wins. Then they rope steers with horns. Sometimes there is barrel racing. These are usually cowgirls who ride their horses around barrels on the field. Some of the cowboys try to ride bucking broncos.

Finally, the cowboys with the most practice try riding bulls with horns. The bulls stomp their feet in the stalls. They snort! They start to buck! Then the cowboy climbs over the fence and sits down on the bull. The gate opens, and the bull races onto the field, bucking wildly. He tries his best to get the cowboy off!

It’s a wild ride! For the cowboy, the ride seems to go on forever! But the ride is really only 8 seconds long. The buzzer rings and the cowboy jumps off the bull. A clown runs out onto the field to distract the bull while the cowboy gets away from it. After all the bull riders have finished, the judges decide who did the best job and give him a prize.

Sometimes life feels like you’re riding a wild bull. It’s hard! You think the hard times will last forever! But usually the worst of the hard times pass, and you can relax again.

The Apostle Paul said, “We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed . . . We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. . . Our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen.” (2 Corinthians 4:8, 9, 17)

Paul was telling us that sometimes life can be hard. But if we keep our eyes on Jesus and obey him, we will someday be given a reward — a prize — when we get to heaven. Just like the best bull riders get prizes here on earth!

So when things get tough, keep your eyes on Jesus and trust him to keep you strong during hard times. Memorize this verse to remember always:

“Be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the LORD your God will personally go ahead of you. He will never fail you nor abandon you.” (Deuteronomy 31:6, NLT)

See you at the next Campfire!

Hugs & kisses,

Montana Gramma