Wednesday, November 28, 2012

GCPC Kids Update

Just a reminder to pick up your advent wreath kit on Sunday. This is for families of preschool age children - 5th grade.  All kits are labeled with the last name of each family.  

Don't forget to check out the resource table - there are a ton of books and cd's that are great to have for your children.

December 9th the children will be singing in front of the congregation during the closing songs.  They have been working for months on the Bible Book Bop by Go Fish. Thank you so much Randy and Rob for working on this song with the kids.  I know this is a popular song in our household.  You can pick up the cd for $10 at the resource table.  Bible Book Bop is part of the Snazzy CD by Go Fish.  This is a fun song, but ultimately our aim in working on this song with the children is to help them with learning the Books of the Bible in order.  Realistically at this point they are unable to sing the whole song but repeated exposure is beneficial.  We have also been working on finding the books of the Bible during Sunday Communities. Posters have been made that list the books in order and teachers use this to share with children when they are looking up passages related to the lessons.  I encourage you to have your children look up passages at home especially during this month when we celebrate Advent.  Each week there is a Bible passage on the candle ornament you will be bringing home from church.  You can make a game out of it with your kids to see who can find the verse first, if they know the books of the Bible before or after the one listed, New or Old Testament, etc.

From the following source:  http://www.abcjesuslovesme.com/bible/719-teaching-your-child-the-books-of-the-bible

"Hand Motions (reprinted by permission)
Although most of the meanings behind the hand motions are above a preschooler's understanding, using hand motions is one more way to learn the books of the Bible.  The hand motions are created using the major themes of each book."       
           Old Testament Hand Motions                  New Testament Hand Motions

Don't forget the pancake dinner and movie night this Friday.  It's not too late to sign up and join us. 

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Advent ideas

Advent Ideas

Advent begins the 4th Sunday before Christmas (December 2nd)
Focus:  Increasing anticipation as we approach the celebration of Jesus' birth.  

1. Advent Wreath - We will have an Advent wreath display at church.  In addition, each family with preschool children through 5th grade will have their own advent wreath to take home.   Here is a picture of the craft.  Included in your bag will be the green circle, red heart, 5 candles, pipe cleaners, red beads, and a plate.  These Advent Wreath kits will be available on Sunday, December 2nd.  


There are 4 green pipe cleaners and 12 red beads. As a family you can add beads to the green pipe cleaners and wrap around the green foam circle.  Some of the ends of the pipe cleaners are sharp.  The foam circle and heart already have spaces for the candles.  If you need to make the hole bigger for the candle to fit you can use a screwdriver.  The heart is to add in the center of the wreath for the white candle on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. The white candle is lit to remind us that Jesus is the light of the world. 

Each Sunday at church beginning on December 2nd there will be card stock candle ornaments hanging from a Christmas tree.  Following the service, each family is encouraged to take one ornament from the tree.  The ornament will give you the details for that specific week for the advent wreath.  The ornament will share what color candle to add to your wreath along with the symbolism and explanation for it. Each week during Advent new ornaments will be added to the tree. 

2.  Advent Chain - Use construction paper - red, green, and white if you want to be festive.  You will want to cut the paper into strips approximately 1"x6".  You will need to cut 24 strips of paper to make one chain.

On one side of the paper number the days beginning with December 1st and ending with December 24th.  On the other side you can include Bible verses to look up to help children understand Christmas, fun activities to be done such as decorating Christmas tree, make Christmas cake, writing messages to friends, etc. Connect all the pieces to make a chain.  Glue or staple ends of paper together to make a ring and connect with next ring and complete a chain.  Hang the chain and each day of December have your child rip off one ring and read the back and then complete activity listed. 

3. Service Idea - Check out the following blog to see how to make shepherds pouches - this is a great way to emphasize service to others.  Shepherds Pouches

4.  Excellent resource for your home is The Advent Jesse Tree:  Devotions for Children and Adults to Prepare for the Coming of the Christ Child at Christmas by Dean Lambert Smith.  This is available at the resource table at church.  

Monday, November 19, 2012

Follow Up to Sunday Community Time

Adventurers (4th - 6th Grade)
This week I wanted to start with our oldest group of children the Adventurers Class (4th - 6th Graders) They just completed all their lessons on a chronological study for children of redemptive history.  The 40th lesson discussed these themes:

  • God desires to save sinners through what Jesus has done on the cross.
  • God has written all people into the story of the Bible - it has a personal message for each of us. (pg. 311)
You could discuss the following application question with your child as an extension from their lesson this past Sunday.
  • "Review John 3:16-18 and 36.  How many responses are there to Jesus? What might rejecting Jesus look like? Read and talk about the following five examples.  Emphasize that unbelief and rejection of Jesus takes many different forms.
    • A boy says he is not interested in the Bible - it's boring.
    • A girl says she will wait until she is older to decide.
    • A woman says the Bible is just a make-believe story.
    • A man says Jesus is okay for some people-those who think they need help.
    • A boy says he is sort of interested in Jesus, but he is interested in other things too, like sports - and those things are really important
Ask:  Do any of these examples sound like you?  Are you believing in Jesus right now?  If you are, how is this shown in your life?  Who do you believe Jesus is?  Are you depending on Him to forgive all of your sins and make you right with God?  Do you believe with all your heart that He will give you eternal like in heaven?  Do you feel at peace with God or do you feel as if He is angry at you? Rad and discuss 2 Corinthians 5:20-21;6:1-2"
(Children Desiring God Curriculum pg. 315)

Seekers (2nd - 3rd Grade)
The lesson this week was on Matthew  8:5-13 - A soldier's faith in Jesus
"For further discussion with your child you could explain the following: "We do not know how much the centurion understood about Jesus' ultimate identity. He probably did not understand how Jesus saw himself as the fulfillment of Israel's hopes. He certainly could not be expected to understand Israel's history and how Jesus fit into that history.  And this is a central point in this story:  as little as he knew compared with what the Jews should have known, he trusted Jesus to be able to heal his servant. And Jesus responded that the "subjects of his kingdom" (meaning the nation of Israel) would be left out of his kingdom, a kingdom where faith it the mark of inclusion, not ethnic identity". 
(Telling God's Story by Peter Enns pg 35-36)


Explorers (Kindergarten & 1st Grade)
  The Bible story used to teach this lesson was Philip Preaches to a Stranger (Acts 8:26-40) 
Aim:  To teach that the Holy Spirit will be with us when we are witnessing for Jesus.  
During the lesson they discussed how important it is to listen for God's voice.  The teachers shared how He will put thoughts into our minds.  They discussed how He always speaks to us through the Bible.

Sprouts (Preschool)
The preschool class discussed a Thanksgiving lesson.  
Psalm 100:4-5 Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.  For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. 
Discuss with your children three reasons why we should say Thank You to God based on Psalm 100:4-5.

Then we made a Thankful Hand for each child.  The teachers discussed the different things we have to be thankful for and we listed them on the fingers:  Parents, School, Church, Jesus, Health.  Use these hands at home to encourage your young children to give praise to God for the many things they have to be thankful for each and every day.







Sunday, November 18, 2012

Parent Resources/Spring Meeting

I wanted to make you aware of some  materials for parents.  This can be an uncomfortable topic to bring up with our children but one that needs addressed...talking to our kids about sex.   We will be meeting in March (March 16th in the morning - more details to come) to have a discussion about this topic- plenty of time to become experts - Right?!?! There will be a panel of parents to talk to in addition to small group time to discuss topics that arise.  You do not have to purchase these materials to attend the meeting but they are an excellent resource to have for your family.  

Resources:
These links are from Christianbook.com
How & When to Tell Your Kids About Sex:  A Lifelong Approach to Shaping Your Child's Sexual Character  (currently on sale for $7.00 - a great price) by Stanton and Brenna Jones 

God's Design for Sex Series (You can purchase as a bundle the series of books 1  - 4 which focuses on ages 3 - 14 or buy them separately). The price for the bundle is $33 or individually for about $8.50/book.

I was just talking to a friend today about how quickly our kiddos are growing up and how it surprises me the time is here to bring up this topic.  I want their first experience with this material to be from Brad and I rather than friends/school/tv, etc. 


Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Compassion

Abdias (Compassion International) 
We received  a letter last week from our sponsored child: Abdias - We read the letter to the children during children's worship. If your child missed the letter I wanted to pass along the details:

From Abdias:

I live in the mountains.  My mom's name is Sophonie.  My best friend's name is Anderson.  My favorite food is rice and black beans. I like to have fun the most.  My favorite verse from the Bible is Psalm 23:1.  

  • Favorites:
    • song = Ozana
    • subject = Drawing
    • game = Soccer 

His uncle who wrote the letter asked for prayer for Abdias and his school, family, and his good health. 

Thank you for the cards and pictures to send to Abdias.  I will be sending the letter tomorrow along with the cards.

I received a short article specific to Haiti - titled step into your child's world.  I will place this handout on the table with the Sunday Community Display Board.  I encourage you to take a minute with your child as you enter or leave church to look through this handout together.  

On the back of the handout are the following prayer requests for Abdias' Community:

  • Pray for parents in the urban areas to find employment to care for their children.
  • Pray for abundant harvest  for rural families who depend on farming.
  • Pray that children will have educational opportunities to overcome poverty. 
  • Pray for protection of families from natural disasters such as flooding and earthquakes.
  • Pray for Compassion staff members.
I also encourage you to check out the Compassion website at http://www.compassion.com/ to learn more about other children that need sponsored.  



Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Grace Kids Update


Check out the Scoop for the Memory Verses for this month:  Nov/Dec Newsletter
Memory Verse for Explorers (Kindergarten - 1st Grade)

Missions project for children:  Visit the following link to Sign Up Genius if you are interested in contributing to Operation Christmas Child:  sign up genius-operation Christmas child.  One thing not indicated on the sign up list is the donation for shipping cost. If you are interested in donating please make a check out to Samaritan's Purse for $7.00 with OCC in the memo line.  I will be collecting donations this coming Sunday, November 11th.

Resource Table
Don't forget to check out the Resource Table as you enter church. There are a ton of books and cds available.  The Snazzy CD is available for $10.  The Bible Book Bop is one of the songs on this cd.  During Grace Kids Worship time, the children have been singing the Bible Book Bop to help with learning the books of the Bible in order.  There are several other fun songs on the cd.  Trust me...my family listens to this cd over and over and over!!! 

Children's Worship
Catechism Questions:  This coming week the PRESCHOOL Class will have an opportunity to answer catechism questions.  It is helpful if you could work with your child on reviewing/learning one or two catechism answers. 

Abdias (Compassion International):  A letter will be sent next week to Abdias. If your child would like to draw a picture for Abdias or include a photograph please provide that to me on November 11th. Other items that work well to send are bookmarks or stickers.  I also encourage you to check out the Compassion website at http://www.compassion.com/ 
to learn more about other children that need sponsored.  








Thursday, November 1, 2012

Jesse Tree Kits


**Reminder: Jesse Tree Kit request deadline is 11/18**

It's hard to believe that we are close to Thanksgiving and Christmas.  In preparation for Christmas we have Jesse Tree Kits for your family.  We have previously done these kits during children's worship, but this year we will be using a different resource during church.  The Jesse Tree Kit is a simple kit geared for preschool and early elementary children.

The Advent Jesse Tree is a way to show Jesus’ coming in the flesh at Bethlehem nearly two thousand years ago. It also explains His coming with the New Covenant and His second coming when He will return to judge all mankind. The Advent season is a time to prepare for these "comings."  This is a great opportunity to have your children involved in understanding the true meaning of Christmas!

This year we are offering Jesse Tree kits for anyone who does not already have the paper tree and ornaments!  This will save you much time in pulling together the various materials you will need to assemble the ornaments.  Do not be intimidated – these ornaments are very simple and require minimal daily craft assembly.  The cost of the kit is $5.  The book that accompanies the ornaments is The Advent Jesse Tree:  Devotions for Children and Adults to prepare for the coming of the Christ Child at Christmas by Dean Meador Lambert.  The book is available for $12.00. 

You can check out the entry from 12/19/10 on this blog to see a sample of the completed tree.  If you are interested in purchasing a Jesse Tree kit, please let me know by Sunday, November 18th (julie@gcpres.org).