In Vacation Bible School, we did an experiment once where we proved that two pieces of paper could hold up the weight of several hymnals. For those of you who don’t know, Vacation Bible School is a weeklong event for school age children to play games, eat kid friendly food and learn about the Bible. It’s a tradition that parents love, because it gives them some time off, and it’s usually very inexpensive.
I always volunteered to run the Science Station, where we used various experiments to illustrate spiritual ideas. We used invisible paints that lit up under ultraviolet light, to illustrate hidden sins. We used exploding volcanoes that used baking soda and industrial strength hydrogen peroxide to illustrate…something. And then we had the experiment with paper.
One thing you learn as a demonstrator of science experiments is to run the experiment well ahead of time, and preferably more than once. So the night before the demonstration, I took two pieces of plain white paper, rolled them into tubes, and taped them so they wouldn’t unroll. If you rolled them just right, they would stand up straight on the table. Then you put a book on them. And behold, the tubes would hold its weight.
The next day I had my supplies out. My paper, tape and hymnals. The kids swarmed around the Science Stations yelling, “What are we doing today, Pastor?”
“Well,” I said. “Today we’re going to hold up hymnals with pieces of paper.”
“No way!” the children said, almost in unison.
“Go ahead and try.” And then the children went to work folding the paper in various shapes, usually wedges, that immediately collapsed under the weight of the hymnals. Finally, after several attempts, I would roll the paper into tubes and ask the kids for help in testing the apparatus.
The kids loved this part. First one book.
“Wow!”
And then another.
“Wow!”
Then a third. Their amazement only increased. I believe we actually managed to stack four hymnals before the tubes collapsed.
What was the point of this demonstration? To show the kids that weak things can be strong, if they’re put in the proper shape.
The Apostle Paul once approached the Lord about an infirmity that he wanted the Lord to heal. God refused, telling him, “My grace is sufficient for you. For my power is shown forth in weakness.” And then Paul wrote, “For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
Even the weakest person can show strength, if they find their strength in God. Just as paper can be strong, if it’s in the proper shape. You may not feel strong. You may feel as flimsy as a piece of paper. But if you let God form your life, you will find strength you never believed possible.
God is in the business of making weak things strong. That’s what I learned at Vacation Bible School.
— Nelsonia