Have your heard the newest Newsboys song "God's Not Dead"?  Pastor Matt and the worship band played it for the End of the Year celebration and I can't stop singing it. I found it on YouTube and played the video over and over while I was doing housework.  Around the fifth time it played, I put down the broom and watched the video... It was a very accurate and sad commentary of our culture, people constantly being inundated with the concept of "God being a myth" and "we are all animals".  Then, Christians standing up and saying "NO - we are not animals, we are not an accident, we are the created by a loving Creator".  As a mother and Children's Director my heart pounded, my pulse quickened and 
as I get ready for a night of Caravan my task is clear; my job is to tell your children " 'God's not dead, He's surely alive. He's living on the inside roaring like a lion.'" 

As we go through the routine of our week; going to work, cleaning the house, whatever it may be - let's link arms as parents and the church body and tell our children "

Yes, I know - I don't hide my feelings or thoughts very well. It's intentional, I don't even try. What you see is what you get.  I realized this morning that we have several new families at East Gate who may not completely know what the different programs are in the Children's Department, so I thought that I would take a moment to say "I Love Children's Quizzing" and also "we do Children's Quizzing too!"

Children's Quizzing is a Bible Study for kids. There is a six  year cycle, and each year they study a book of the Bible.  Throughout the year, there are competitions between other Nazarene churches in our area and then at the end of the study, there is a competition for those whole qualify for the whole district.  Quizzing even goes beyond that; there are regional and even an international competition.

Our culture loves competition. Competition definitely has its merits and flaws. There are strong points for both sides of the argument.  Me personally,  the trophy my daughter earrned for Bible Study in Children's Quizzing is much more meaningful in our house, than her martial arts trophies.  Her trophy represents  knowledge in her heart that will never rust or be destroyed by moths.  Martial arts can save a life, but Bible Study can foster that intimate relationship with Jesus can save her soul.

If your children are not involved in Children's Quizzing, consider having them got involved this fall. Your kids will enjoy digging into the Word!

Ok, quiz time. Can you put these Biblical characters in chronological order: Apostle Paul, Joseph,  Deborah, Jesus, Noah, Lydia.  This sounds like a simple exercise, but in order to do this, one would need to know a basic timeline of the Bible. Beyond that, key events that surround each person flash through a person's mind as each character is put in order.  This is how I did this exercise: Noah and the Ark, (first), Joseph, prime minister of Egypt (second), Deborah the judge in the Promised Land (third), Jesus (fourth), Paul the missionary of Jesus' message (fifth) and Lydia, the business woman converted by Paul (sixth).

Basically, to put these people in order, I had to have an idea of where they fit in the time line of Scripture.

Each program in our Children's Department at East Gate has a specific purpose. When put together, they all fit like a puzzle. For example, Sunday School teaches snapshots of Biblical stories in detail, but they are not necessarily in order. Children's Quizzing takes a school year to the teach one book(s) in depth. Caravan teaches  life skills and Nazarene doctrine. Children's Choir provides an avenue of worship and  entertainment. Children's Church had a make-over to complete the puzzle. Children's Church focuses on the timeline of the Bible. We started right at the beginning~ Genesis.

As many of you know, I have a background with curriculum development, specifically Children's Quizzing. What I LOVE and learned about the power of the Children's Quizzing book cycle is how it encapsulates the timeline of the Bible.  Children's Church loosely follows this book cycle and allowing for a few extra items.

What I really love about learning about the Bible in this fashion is that children begin to see how things flow together.  They are see a person/the nation of Israel in their present state and then read ahead and see how their decisions affect their future.

One of the best example of this is Joseph.  We meet Joseph as a 17 year old boy and then we fast forward in his life and read how his choices as a 17 year old affect his life as a 30 year old. We see how his faith in God motivated the choices he made. Children can't see their own future, but they peek into Joseph's future and learn from him. This is a powerful learning tool when teaching chronologically.

Children can learn to see the big picture and help children to relate to Joseph as a real person. By learning about his whole life, children can see what is was like for Joseph to live in a family where their was favoritism, bullying, dysfunction, yet he chose to follow God. Most importantly, they see God as the Hero of the Bible.  It is God that saved Jacob's family by sending them to Egypt during the famine. It is God that kept Joseph safe during his trials in Egypt, and it is God that reunited Joseph and his father.

We are planning to study these books,  skipping sections that may be deemed inappropriate for children. Remember, the Bible is the Bible, it is not necessarily a "G" rated book when it comes to violence and "adult themes".

Genesis - how the world started, where we come from, the beginning of the Israelites through the patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph)

Exodus - Israelites in Egypt! slavery!  Moses raised up, the nation of Israel is given their own land. God is the Leader of the Israelites through human leader, Moses.

Joshua/Judges - Moses has died; Joshua is raised up and the Israelites moved into the Promised Land.  God leads through a series of judges.

1 & 2 Samuel - Trouble in the Promised Land! Samuel is the last judge, Israel wants an king. Saul and David are first to rule as king.

1 & 2 Kings - Good kings, bad kings and the ups and downs of Israel. A nation is affected by the choices they make.

Matthew - focuses on the life of Jesus - the center of it all.

Acts - how the Bible reaches to the 21st. century from ancient Israel and the Jews, to the missionary journeys to the Gentiles.

Is this an ambitious task? Yes.  Will it take time to do this? Yes.  However, in Children's Ministries, we have time on our side, we will have these children for up to five years, we have time and material. 

If you spend any time at all around me or my husband you will soon realize that we both really love the Bible.  It's a big part of our lives.  I recognize and affirm that a HUGE part of a child's spiritual formation is their personal familiarity with their own Bible.

When I took reins of the Children's Department, the FIRST thing I incorporated in Children's Church was to incorporate a SWORD DRILL. A sword drill is a time dedicated to learning the mechanics of the Bible; how to use their Table of Contents, what chapters and verses look like, and looking up verses. I have given out lots of gold coins to both the fast kids and those who help new readers.

For children, I am a fan of the paper Bible. I know that there are many great programs for technology, but  navigating the paper Bible gives a sense of chronology to Scripture that technology doesn't.  If your children have a "story Bible" that has "stories" in it I would encourage you to get them a simple Bible with chapters and verses.  Children's Church is actively and consistently teaching kids to feed themselves spiritually, and familiarity with God's Word is a basic skill.

Learning to navigate the Bible is directly connected to learning the chronology of Scripture, which is also a focus of Children's Church (and the topic of my next blog).  Parents, I officially invite you to Children's Church; don't forget your Bible!

This is a common question young children ask - and usually it's when parents are not prepared to provide a answer.  While many explanations and analogies have theological cracks in them, here is a good one to keep in your arsenal.

The ants.

Imagine an anthill with ants coming and going. Now, imagine standing next to the anthill watching the ants as they work, walk in lines, and carry things.  The ants can't see you, you are too big.  All the ants see is their world, the other ants around them, little tiny pebbles, and leaves.  Ants eyes are not capable of seeing a person, they weren't made to see anything that big.  However, just because the ants eyes won't let them see you standing next to them, doesn't mean you aren't there. 

That's kinda like God. God is so big, we can't  see Him.  We're like the ants; all we see is what is around us. God is much bigger. He's right next to us; and He sees everything around Him, while we only see the anthill. 

Keep in mind: This is a word picture to help kids grasp the "bigness of God" and  that God is Spirit and people are of flesh and blood, just as people and ants are made differently.

If you have spent any time around the children's department, then you know about the van ministry. It's vital...and crazy!  It's like a wild horse that will take you places fast....if you don't fall off at full speed!   So, in an effort to direct the energy of this 'wild horse' in the right direction, Karen Yarborough has stepped up the challenge of being our "Tinker Creek Team Captain" for the van ministry.  The van will now go only to her apartment in the Tinker Creek apartment complex. She will be the point person for loading and unloading and will ride the van to church to 'contain the energy' on the van.    She has a vested interest in the success of our van and children's ministry - all four of her kids are a vital part of this church!  When you see her in the halls, encourage her, support her and give her the understanding smile. You know the one, that smile that says "Oh yes! I've ridden that wild horse too!"

Children will be in the main worship service for Dec. 18th and Dec. 25th so they can watch and participate in the adult Christmas program as well as Christmas morning.  Children who participated in the children's musical and will be in church on Christmas morning are invited to sing in a smaller version of our children's choir.  Christina Hall will lead this smaller version of the choir in a few songs from the musical.  This is a great chance for your kids to lead worship in their Christmas finest.

There is one more practice TOMORROW at 4:30 for the children's Chistmas musical before the evening performance.  Dinner will be provided for the kids.  Consider donating a few dollars for the cost of pizza.  If you have any questions, please call Suzanne at 540-354-9305. It will be a great night! See you there!

The Children's Christmas musical is this weekend! There will be two performaces: Saturday night at 7pm and Sunday morning during the morning worship service. Our last practice will be Friday night (Dec. 9th) at 6:30pm.
Children pariticpating in the Christmas musical need to wear blue jeans and a solid color shirt.

All children will be in service for the Christmas musical.  Nursery care will be provided.

Children will join their families in the main sanctuary for the adult Christmas program on Dec. 18th as well as Christmas morning (10am service). Nursery care will once again be provided.  The children's choir will be singing some songs from the children's Christmas musical on Christmas morning. If you are planning on be here and want your child to participate, please contact Christina Hall for more information.