And Then There Were Four…

The number four seems to be a theme this fall in the Children’s Ministry!

Four Kids

As of September and the “graduating” of our upper elementary kids, Foundations has four children regularly attending. While the class size has decreased in number, it has not shrunk in enthusiasm! The change in dynamic has provided an opportunity for the remaining kids to step up and take on new challenges, such as reading Bible passages for the class.

Four Weeks / Four Practices

As I write this update, we only have four weeks and four practices remaining until this year’s Christmas Program! At the beginning of November, we joined forces with Believers Homeschool Group to begin practicing for the program. We have 11 kids (6 families) taking part! This year we will be performing a play called A Pondering Heart: Christmas Through the Eyes of Mary. The kids have been hard at work practicing lines and gathering costumes. We look forward to getting to share it with you on Wednesday, December 21 at 6:30 p.m. in the church sanctuary.

Fourth Quarter

We are also moving into our fourth quarter of curriculum in Foundations. Over the past few months, we have been learning about God’s justice and mercy through the prophets of the Old Testament. As we move into December, we will begin to see how God protects and restores His people with lessons on people like Daniel, Ezra, and Esther.

Four Requests

If you would like to join in praying for the Children’s Ministry, here are a few requests:

1. For healthy kids so we are all able to gather together for Foundations and for practices
2. That God would do exceedingly more than we could ask or think through the Christmas Program performance this year
3. For wisdom in planning for the coming year
4. For lasting fruit to come from this ministry

Moving Up

It is hard to believe, but three of our Foundations kids are moving up to the sanctuary full time after August! We don’t have an official “moving up” ceremony like they do in schools in the Philippines, but we did have fun taking some pictures with a graduation hat!

Foundations is a ministry for early elementary aged kids that meets every other Sunday during the church service. This provides an opportunity for children to get Bible teaching geared for their age level, while also allowing them to regularly participate in the corporate worship service with their families on alternating weeks. As the children get older, it is important for them to be in the service each week so they feel an increasing sense of belonging to this church family. Church is for kids, too! We are a church made up of all different ages, and God wants to speak to each one of us through the corporate worship service.

Book Recommendation

For family devotions, our family is currently reading through the book Who is Jesus?: 40 Pictures to Share with Your Family by Kate Hox. If you are looking for a resource to help your child or, a child in your life to dig deeper into the Bible, I would highly recommend this book. One of my favorite things about the book is the way it helps readers to see Jesus throughout the whole Bible. The book is simple enough for young children to understand, yet deep enough that older children and adults can also learn something new.

Prayer Requests

When I pray for the Children’s Ministry and the kids who are part of it, I’ve discovered that I often pray “small” prayers. Not that it’s bad to pray for Foundations class to go well, or for new families to come to church. But the scope of my prayers has been broadened recently after reading the booklet Big, Bold, Biblical Prayers for the Next Generation by David Michael. It has challenged me to pray for “the Kindgom-sized things” and to trust God for the smaller things. If you would like to join in praying for our kids, here are a few requests:

• That the Father would draw them to Jesus (John 6:44) and that He would do so at a young age.
• That Christ will dwell in their hearts through faith, and that they would have the power to understand how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ (Ephesians 3:17-18).
• That they would have opportunities to boldly proclaim the gospel and be given the words to do so (Ephesians 6:19-20).
• That the “moving up” changes happening in Foundations would cause them to trust in, hunger for, and be consumed with more of a passion for God.

Happy Spring! Here is a little peek into what we’ve been up to in the Children’s Ministry over the past few months.

Reaching Out

In February, we made Valentines cards for some of the residents at Our House Senior Living Facility in Menomonie. They had a special mailbox set up outside where they invited anyone from the community to drop off Valentine’s mail. The Foundations kids took the challenge and made cards filled with personal notes, Bible verses, and reminders that God loves them. We also got to pray for all of the residents as a class, and many of the kids continued to pray for them outside of class as well.

Happenings at Home

Foundations class continues to meet every other Sunday during the church service for children in kindergarten through 4^th grade. Recently we have been learning lessons from the life of David. We’ve seen how God looks at the heart rather than the outward appearance, and how God uses regular people who trust in Him to accomplish His plans. We also learned that God is faithful to forgive our sins when we honestly repent, just as He did with David. These lessons help us to know God’s character better so we can recognize His hand in our daily lives.

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Prayer

One of the most important things we can do for the kids in our church is to pray for them. If you would like to join in praying for the Children’s Ministry, here are a few requests:

• That the kids would continue to grow in their understanding of who God is and how He has worked throughout history so they can recognize His involvement in their lives today.
• For good soil in the hearts of the children, and that the seeds being planted would sprout, take root and produce a crop in God’s timing.

What do news broadcasters, camels, and the Christmas story have in common? They will all play a part in this year’s Christmas Program!

Christmas Program Progress

The Children’s Ministry and Homeschool Group are joining forces this year to present a Christmas Program called “The Nazareth Evening News.” Since the beginning of November, we have been using the Homeschool Group time on Thursday afternoons to practice the program.  The kids have been diligently rehearsing their lines, practicing music, all while having fun with each other. Praise God that we are able to work in close proximity to each other again and present a Christmas Program this year! The kids are all excited to share the program with their church family and friends on Wednesday evening, December 22.

Foundations Update

In other news, when the Foundations Room meets every other Sunday, we are continuing our journey through the Old Testament. After teaching about Gideon recently, I was reflecting on what a privilege it is to get to share lessons from the Bible and truths about God with the children here. And I was also marveling at how God orchestrates life situations in the lives of these kids (just as he does in ours!) that help move this information from head to heart.

This quarter the memory verse we’ve been learning is Joshua 1:9 “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” I have been amazed to watch God bring up opportunities in the everyday lives of these kids, challenging them to make this verse a reality in their own lives. God is so faithful! Whether getting a shot, jumping off a diving board, or spending some time apart from parents, God wants them to know that He is always with them and can help them be brave. Obeying God and trusting Him in these small things will help the kids trust God in bigger things to come. It is such an honor to help point them to Jesus!

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Prayer Requests

• That all the pieces of the Christmas Program would come together, the kids would be brave in presenting it, and that the program would be a blessing to all those who attend.
• That God would bring some new families to church if it is in His time and His will.

Happenings

Mid-summer greetings from the Children’s Ministry! The biggest change since our last update is that we can see each other’s smiles again (and all of the teeth that have been lost over the recent months!) now that we don’t have to wear masks.

Although we do not currently have enough toddlers for a Beginnings Room, the Foundations Room continues to meet every other Sunday for kids in grades K-4. This schedule provides a good balance of age-appropriate Bible lessons and church participation. By participating in the church service, children learn how to worship God by being with and watching their parents and church family worship.

For the Next Generation

I recently came across this blog post worth sharing from Truth 78, a ministry whose passion is “for the comprehensive discipleship of the next generation.” They have established “Psalm 78 Day” on July 8th to serve as an annual reminder of our privilege and responsibility as Christians to pass along the truth about God to the next generations. Take a look at some of the first few verses of Psalm 78.

“We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the LORD, about his power and his mighty wonders. … so the next generation might know them–even the children not yet born–and they in turn will teach their own children. So each generation should set its hope anew on God, not forgetting his glorious miracles and obeying his commands.” Psalm 78:4,6-7

If you think about it, each one of us who call ourselves a follower of Christ is here because in God’s sovereign plan and way, someone obeyed Psalm 78 and passed the truth about God to us. Of course, parents have the primary responsibility of teaching their children the ways of God, but all followers of Christ also play an important role in doing this. This is true even if you do not participate in the Children’s Ministry! I am thankful for the wide variety of Christian voices that my children have speaking into their lives because of this church family!

Prayer Requests:

• For the next generations of our church, that they would hear the glorious deeds of the Lord and set their hope in Him.
• That we as church members would each be faithful to tell of the greatness of God to those children who are in our spheres of influence.

Spring is in the air! And with the coming of spring, we have a few new projects going on in the Children’s Ministry.

Cards for the Philippines

We heard from Brittany and Laura that the Christmas cards made by the Foundations Room kids were a big blessing. In fact, they were so well-received that we are working on another round of cards to send over this spring! Our goal with these notes is to provide encouragement to some of the churches, schools, & organizations that the girls have relationships with in the Philippines. It also gives the kids here a way to be personally involved with God’s work in the Philippines as they continue to pray for the organization that they made a card for.

Mother’s Room Makeover

In other news, we recently had a workday to spruce up the Mother’s Room (formerly known as the Cry Room). A new coat of paint and cleaning the furniture has the room looking refreshed. Now all we need is a new baby to arrive!

Family Easter Ideas

Lastly, as Easter is just around the corner, you may be looking for some simple activities to help you kids to better grasp the meaning of Easter. If you click on the image below, you can download the “Walking Through Holy Week” PDF by Focus on the Family to give you some inspiration.