The Next Generation: Forming Kids for Lifelong Faith

How Chocolate Milk Has Taught Me Lessons About the Holy Spirit

By Sammie Gallo, Creator of Abundant Life: You Were Made for More

I bet that wasn’t the subtitle you were expecting to hear today! I was volunteering at my church’s kids camp as the camp nurse and was asked to teach a large group lesson about the Holy Spirit. I was so pumped to do so, but unfortunately never got to because my son ended up being admitted to the hospital for a few days. So, I figured, why not share the message on the blog this month?! Let’s dive in!

I want to start out by asking you a question that I really want you to think about in your head. Keep the answer to yourself, or grab your journal and take some notes. How many of you have ever done something really hard? Something new, something scary, something uncomfortable? Something that sent your tummy into all of those uncomfortable knots? 

Think about it for a second.

I’m sure you have – I know I have. I can look back at my life and trace moments that have felt extremely hard. Difficult. Daunting. Scary. Tummy turning.

I – just like you I’m sure – have done some really hard things. I’ve run half marathons. I’ve had four babies (one without any pain medication). I’ve spoken in front of big crowds, even though I used to be TERRIFIED of public speaking. You know what I remember about all of these moments in my life that have felt really hard and scary? I’ve always asked the Holy Spirit to help me, and He has always shown up.

If you get one thing from reading this – this is what I want you to remember. The Holy Spirit is REAL. He gives us real power. Real help. Anytime we ask for it. He is active and working in our lives. Think about a superhero you guys have seen in a movie. You know in those stories, there’s always a moment when things look impossible. The final villain is too strong, the challenge is way too big, they don’t have what they need to win – it looks like the hero might lose. But then the hero gets help they didn’t expect, something gets unlocked or someone unexpected comes to help and just like that they’ve got what it takes to keep going, stand strong, and save the day.

That’s the picture I want you guys to keep in your head today as we talk about the Holy Spirit today. The Holy Spirit isn’t some made up idea – he is real help when we need it, real power when we ask for it. 

Let’s take a look at when the disciples first learned who the Holy Spirit was. When Jesus came back to life, He knew He wouldn’t stay on Earth forever – He knew his disciples had a massive mission.

Check out what he told them. “What I’m about to tell you is true. Anyone who believes in me will do the work I have been doing. In fact, they will do even greater things. That’s because I am going to the Father (John 14:12). And then he goes onto say Acts 1:8, “You will receive POWER when the Holy Spirit comes on you! Then you will tell people about me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria. And you will even tell other people about me from one end of the earth to the other.

Jesus made a promise that he would send a helper – and he keeps his promises! But after three days of waiting… The disciples still had no idea who or what this Holy Spirit was. They were getting ancy… nervous… When was He going to show up?! Check out this video to find out what happened.

 The AMAZING Story of Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2) | Bible Stories for Kids

I want you guys to really understand: What happens when I invite Jesus into my life as my Savior?” Click the link below to see why chocolate milk and the Holy Spirit are more alike than you think.

Chocolate Milk and the Holy Spirit (Christian Analogy)

SUMMARY OF CHOCOLATE MILK ANALOGY

On this table is a glass of white milk. This glass represents your body and the milk represents your spirit.

I also have some Hershey’s Syrup. Love this stuff on sundaes – but you know what it’s also good for?! Making chocolate milk.

This is a great way to think about what God does when we invite Him into our lives. (Pick up chocolate syrup and pour it into a glass of milk. Watch as the syrup settles to the bottom of the glass.)

Hmmmm… What do you guys think the chocolate syrup is?

The glass represents your body, the milk represents your spirit, and the chocolate represents what happens when you are born again (when you invite Jesus into your life and to live in your heart).

The first time I saw this, I thought, “That’s interesting, Lord. Look at how the chocolate has settled to the bottom.”

The Lord said, “This is what happens to people who are born again and don’t do anything more. This is what happens when a Christian keeps the Good news to themselves.”

I don’t know about you guys… but that’s not how I like my chocolate milk! I like it creamy, mixed together, all the chocolate dissolved.

(TAKE SPOON, PUT IN GLASS, STIR UP). Ah! That’s better. Do you know what is cool?

God revealed to me an image that the spoon represents spending time with God in prayer, worship, and His Word.

I realized that when we spend time praying, worshiping God, and reading His Word, then God’s Spirit and our spirit become blended together. They are inseparable. God’s Spirit is always within us- what matters is what we choose to do with it. Will it settle, or will it overflow into the lives of those around us?

(STIR, WHIP – AS YOU ARE WHIPPING, YOU’LL NOTICE THAT SOME SPILLS ONTO THE TABLE).

When the milk spills out, I am reminded of John 7:38: “He who believes in me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” (NKJV).

Chocolate milk has a lot of lessons to teach us about the Holy Spirit. My prayer is that you would ponder and see what the Holy Spirit is doing right now in your life, and maybe, even be bold enough to ask how He wants you to overflow your heart that has been filled with his love for others.

Be encouraged – when you have accepted Jesus into your life and received the Holy Spirit, He is always in you. The two cannot be separated – just like the chocolate syrup and the milk. Even in our sin and our mistakes, God’s spirit is always with us. It’s up to you what you do with it – will you let it settle, or will you stir it up by acts of faith and allow it to overflow into the lives of others – for His glory and for your good?