In 107 days, it will be Christmas!! YAY!

I know, that there are a few holidays before then, but with only 107 days until Christmas that means we have less than that until this year’s Children’s Christmas Musical!!

We are starting musical rehearsal this Sunday, September 13th during the 9am service. Like last year, you have the option to go to Sunday School if you are not interested in being in the musical, but we would love to have all of you in the choir this year!

If you have any questions about this year’s musical, you can contact April at the church.

I can’t wait until Christmas! It’s going to be great this year!

-PS

It is getting close to that time again, the dreaded time when we say good-bye to summer and hello to the classroom!

Yes school starts next week! And to go along with that, we are having a special back-to-school lesson on Sunday, August 30th! You don’t want to miss it.

We have lots of things happening around here in the next few weeks. As you get ready to go back to school, we are getting ready for move up Sunday. What is that? Move up  Sunday is when you go to your new Sunday school classes or when you move from 321 to 456! Move up Sunday is also August 30th.

Are you nervous about going to a new class? How would you guys like to come and meet your new teachers and see your new classrooms? On Friday, the 28th, we are having an Open House for the entire Children’s Ministry. You can come, see me and the whole gang, meet your new teachers, explore your new rooms AND even have some dessert! If you have any questions, you can call April at the church office.

There is so much more to tell you all about, but I need to go! Keep reading the blog to learn more about what’s happening in our Children’s Ministry at Calvary!

PS

From July 20-24, Pastor Sherri and an amazing group of 14 leaders took 63 kids to Camp Dixie in Fayetteville, NC. We went to the NC District Kids Camp hosted by Pastor Randy Thompson and his KidzAblaze team. There we were joined by other churches from around North Carolina. In total, there were 310 people at camp this week. Calvary’s group being the largest.

The camp theme was Holy Spirit Musical II: The Time Machine. It was a continuation of last year’s theme and a play off of the popular High School Musical franchise. The class nerd, Tim, built a time machine (out of a porta potty!) and took his history class back to different decades of the 20^th century. Every night they went somewhere new.

So much went on last week that I cannot even begin to describe everything that happened. So in an attempt to give an accurate account of camp, I will give a brief rundown of what we did every day.

Monday:  The bus and vans were loaded by 11:20am and at 11:30 we took off heading down 421 toward Fayetteville. The weather was cloudy but looked promising…until we were about to stop for lunch. Five  minutes away from the park Pastor Sherri looked at me and asked if what just hit the windshield was what she thought it was. Yes, it was a huge raindrop. As we pulled into the park, the sprinkles started and as soon as all the kids were unloaded the heavens opened and it rained the entire time we were there. Have you ever tried to keep 63 kids under a picnic shelter when it’s raining and there are mud puddles to be jumped in? It was tough, but the kids did great. They didn’t want to be wet and muddy for the rest of the drive to Camp Dixie.

Once we got to camp, moved into our cabins, it was off to dinner then service. They wasted no time with entering into the Lord’s presence with the kids. The message was about running back to God and the response was amazing.

Tuesday: Every morning after breakfast, all 310 of us would go to Bible Mania. If there was one word I had to use to describe this it would be “messy”. Think water balloons, Cheetos, shaving cream, and Kool-Aid. Then add in some chocolate syrup and whipped cream. That is Bible Mania. The kids love it. So do the leaders, but more about that in the Thursday recap.

Tuesday evening’s service was about being the person God wants you to be, not who the world wants you to be. Again, the response to this was sensational. To see the children recognize that they need to be who God wants them to be and to not care about what the world says is something we call could learn from.

Wednesday: Wednesday was a big day in camp. Not only did we spend most of the day on the blob but it was what they like to call “Holy Spirit Night” in service. The entire service was about the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and teaching the kids what it is. The musical cast went back to the Azusa Street Revival and joined in with the crowd there to feel the presence of God. That night, pretty much every child at camp was down front seeking God for His baptism. It was a sight to see.

Thursday: Bible Mania today was the worst of the week. And by “worst” I mean most fun and most messy. Since it was the last day of Bible Mania, there was a massive shaving cream fight. After getting dirty playing the games, there was a full on battle between every person in camp. Kids after leaders…leaders after kids. It was nuts. People were covered in shaving cream, chocolate syrup, ketchup, mustard, and anything else that would stain. I have never had so much fun in my life. The best part was that the kids had a great time making a mess of their leaders.

Service that night was amazing as well. The worship turned into an altar and prayer time which then turned into a time for the leaders to come up and cry out to the Lord for a deeper and renewed passion to reach the children in our churches and communities. When you get a room full of children’s pastors and workers praying, you had better watch out. They will turn that room upside down. The urgency in their prayers combined with God answering the cry for a renewed passion is still giving me goose bumps thinking about it.

Friday: We woke up, cleaned the rooms, went to one last service and said “good-bye” to Camp Dixie and our new friends. After service, we had a time for everyone to sign each other’s camp shirts. This is another highlight of the week: getting as many signatures on your shirt as possible.

We loaded up, went to McDonald’s and made our way back to Greensboro. The ride back was long for the leaders. Some of us were tired and couldn’t move a muscle while the kids were ready to turn around and go back. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Some final thoughts before I end this recap:

-          When worshipping with kids, be prepared to jump, dance, spin, shout, get on the ground, and just plain sweat. Their endurance and energy is something we could all take note of.

-          Seeing a child fully engage in worship or watching them fall on their face before the Lord will make you cry. No doubt about it. The sincerity combined with seeing it click in them what worship is will stop you in your tracks.

-          Having the cleanest room means first in line for food.

-          Turning your cabin into a pig sty intentionally does not earn you the most creative cabin award…even if it is the most creative.

-          I haven’t skimmed the surface of all that happened at camp. Many memories were made for both the leaders and the children. If you want to know more, ask someone who went. They will be full of stories that will make you laugh, cry,  and be amazed by the power of God

Be on the lookout this fall for information about camp next summer! We want to take as many kids as possible so that they too can experience God like never before!

-April

Do you know what “huzzah” means? It means “hooray”!

A long time ago in the middle ages, people used to say huzzah all the time. The next few weeks we will be saying this all the time. Our new lessons series Huzzah to the King takes us back in time to the Middle Ages where we learn about godly character traits from some fun and interesting characters.

Last week, we talked about wisdom. Our verse for the day was Proverbs 9:10 and our Bible story was Matthew 7:24-29. The entire day was focused on making wise, godly decisons. Jorge the Jester helped us learn this by telling a story. Do you remember what it was? **Hint: It had something to do with jumping over a candle!** To help us remember to make wise choices, we also made candles! Every week, we will be making a craft to help us remember our lesson. You don’t want to miss it!

Be sure to be here Sunday! We will be giving out the devotion prizes for May!

HUZZAH!

Summer is almost here! It is only 19 days away and we are already having some very hot days. And what about those rain storms? That is, maybe, one of the coolest things about living in North Carolina. You can be standing outside and it rains for 15-20 minuets then it’s gone like nothing every happened. In Washington, it just rained all the time. That made things like going to camp not too fun.

Speaking of camp! We have all of our applications in and they have been sent to the District office to be processed. I am very excited for camp this year, it is going to be great! Keep an eye out for a parent’s meeting that we are having in July. This will let you know what you should and shouldn’t bring to camp, what we will be doing the entire week, and all sorts of other information that moms and dads need to know.

What are your summer plans? Going anywhere on vacation? Do you have family or friends that you are going to meet someplace or are they coming to see you? Let me know!

Ok, ok, sorry for the cheesy title. I can’t help myself sometimes!

I wanted to remind everyone that Mother’s Day is coming up THIS SUNDAY, May 10th. Make sure that you all get your moms, grandmas, aunts, great-grandmas, great-great grandmas…well, you get the picture! Make sure you get them something really nice. It could be a card that you make or buy from the store or some flowers or chocolates. Or maybe a necklace or jewlery or something. I haven’t decided what I am going to get PS (you all know that she is my mom right?). If any one has any suggestions, please let me know!

Also, be sure that you are here on Sundays. We are doing this really cool series called “Operation: Enduring Courage” it talks about , well, courage and we are learning about the story of Daniel. You don’t want to miss it!

We have some important dates coming up! Check these out!

May 16th: Extreme Nitro Kids (and Family!) Night -  come on out for a night of crazy games, funny skits, and a pizza dinner. Our friends from KidZAblaze Ministries will be with us that night. You don’t want to miss it! If you can’t make it out Saturday, then be sure to be here Sunday the 17th because they will be with us in 321k and 456!

May 17th: Deadline to turn in your camp deposit and registration forms - Kids Camp is July 20-24 at Camp Dixie. Be sure to have your $100 deposit and registration form turned in. You can drop them off when you check-in, leaving, or if you see Pastor Sherri, Steve, James, or Christina (I won’t be here that day ). You can even take them to the Help Desks!

If you have any questions about Extreme Nitro, Kids Camp, or if you have an idea about what I can get PS for Mother’s Day you can leave a comment or e-mail me at awolter@calvarytriad.com

See ya!

-April

Easter is only two days away! There are lots of fun things to do around this time of year. Have Easter Egg hunts, dye eggs, get baskets full of candy, and if you are my kids, go on a scavenger hunt to find your Easter basket.

All of these things are great and fun, but do you know what Easter is all about? The Bible tells us that Jesus died to take away our sins. I know that sounds sad, but there is a exciting part to the story. Three days after He died, Jesus rose from the dead! Because Jesus lives, we can have eternal life! That is really cool.

So, this Sunday while you are eating your big chocolate bunny or the yellow ducky peeps, take some time to thank Jesus for dying for you. Then, be sure to tell Him you are glad that He lives and one day we will get to be with Him forever!

Happy Easter!

PS

Hey Everyone! It’s officially spring! YAY!

You know what that means right? It’s time for baseball, flowers blooming, Easter, and of course Spring Break!

We have lots of events planned for this spring.

Boys, be sure to talk to your Royal Ranger Commanders about upcoming campouts and trips.

Girls, make sure that you talk to your M’Pact leaders about all of the events you have planned for this spring too!

All of this talk about spring is making me think about summer, even if it is a few months away! We still want to be ready for it too though. All rising 3rd-6th graders are invited to go to camp with us this summer! Pick up your application on Sundays or see April. If you have any questions about camp, ask April.

That is all for now! Keep doing your devotions. We will be giving out the prizes for March on April 19th in the 10:45am service.

PS

This Sunday, March 8th, we will be handing out the devotion prizes for the month of February during the 10:45am service. You don’t want to miss it!

-PS

Sunday, March 1st, is the last day to turn in all of your Family Devotions for the month of February!!

We will be giving out prizes on March 8th during the 10:45am service.

PS