TruBlessings -- New Nursery Curriculum!

Tru Blessings

We are extremely committed to teaching ALL our kids about the love of Jesus as soon as we can. We are always looking for the best way to teach them as well.  With Tru Blessings, we think we have found the perfect curriculum for our precious Nursery kids here at Wentzville Christian Church.  Let me tell you more about Tru Blessings.

Foundational Truths

• God Made Me
• God Loves Me
• God Is With Me

Key Features

• As with curriculum in our other children's ministry areas, we are committed to teaching what we call "The Big God Story." The Big God Story is a method of teaching that Bible that walks our kids through the Bible in chronological order on a yearly basis. Tru Blessings is no different.  However, we are jumping in midstream, so we will start with Genesis in September. 
  
• Repetition
• Each part of The Big God Story will be repeated two weeks in a row, but will utilize different large group storytelling techniques and small group activities each week.
  
• Interactive
• Children will use their senses to explore God’s Word through a variety of touch, see, listen, and move activities and visuals.
  
• Remember and Celebrate
• Remember and Celebrate Sundays happen on the 13th week of every quarter (once per quarter) and will be a weekend to remember the three foundational truths and celebrate who God is. These weekends will align with KidQuest and FirstLook Remember & Celebrate’s.
  
• Worship
•  Kids will worship through music provided with Tru Blessings and encouraged in the home as well.
  
• Environments
• Lessons are not written in any one of the 10 environments, but the parent components will land heavily on the environments and how to create them in the home. These environments will also align with what is being taught in FirstLook and KidQuest (See parenting components.)

Parenting Components

• HomeFront Weekly
• We email out the "take home" sheets to parents we have an email address for every Monday morning. If you would like to sign up to receive this great resource, click here.
  
• Inspire, Equip, Support
• Every week in our email, we hope to Inspire you to be the best parent you can be, Equip you with great Biblical resources for your home and Support you however we can.
  
• Child development tips for parents that align with spiritual formation included in our weekly email.

Here is the basic timeline of what your kids will be experiencing while in the nursery.

• Explore: 15-20 minutes
• Kids explore materials that will help teachers introduce the day's Bible story.
• Discover: 10-15 minutes
•  Bible Story Telling
• Respond: 5 minutes
• Worship
• Prayer
• Bless: 5 minutes
• Snack
• Leaders pray over your children while they are eating
• Connect: 15-30 minutes
• Create a craft that connects to the Big God Story
• Free play

If you have any questions about this transition, please email me.

Upcoming Changes and Needs

I am excited to tell you about the latest happenings in FirstLook, our preschool through kindergarten worship environment. 

We have experience tremendous growth over the past 6 weeks.  We were averaging 8-12 at each service and now we are averaging 15-20 at each service! That is exciting news!

With growth comes growing pains.  We need to bulk up our team and we want you! Right now we have 2 adults with our preschoolers in FirstLook, with the recent growth we feel it is in the best interest of your kids to make that 3 or 4 adults in the room at each service.  We would love to keep about a 4 or 5 kids to 1 adult ratio.

Now I know what you are saying, "I don't want to teach." The best news of this email is YOU WON'T HAVE TO TEACH.  We already have our main teachers in place (even me teaching some on video).
We would love to add you to our great team.  If you are interested, please let me know so we can bulk up our team starting January 1! (email Matt)

 

On January 8, we will move into the brand new KidQuest room! We are excited to have our own space and be able to worship there on Sundays in KidQuest and Wednesday evenings in The Challenge.

Other than dropping your child off in a different place, here are some MAJOR points that you need to know about this room switch.

• The New KidQuest room is room 205.
• We will open a new check-in counter upstairs in front of room 205 to be used by KidQuest and FirstLook families.
• We would ask you to start using the back stairway, next to the nursery, and checking in upstairs at the new counter. There will be a self-checkin station and a manned station. We would like to keep the downstairs foyer computer for our guests and visitors.
• With the growth rate we have had, we are also looking for some new small group leader to serve on the children's ministry team. Your job would simply be to ask a small group of kids pre-prepared questions about the Bible Story and lead and activity (game or craft)

God's Son Brings Peace (December 18 -- KidQuest)

Last week we heard how Zechariah who did not beleive the angel when he told Zechariah that his son would be John the Baptist and help get the people of Israel ready for the Messiah.

I hope you had an opportunity this weekend to come out and see our Living Nativity.  We had a great time and there were a lot of cars that drove through the hear and see the story of Jesus' birth. This week in KidQuest we are going to learn about the birth of Jesus as well.  We hope you use this blog to talk about the birth of Jesus in your home this week. The HomeFront Weekly has a great game/activity for you to play in the car as you travel. This game will make it very easy to start a conversation about the birth of Jesus.

Old Testament prophecies describe the Messiah as a Ruler who will bring peace to Israel and the nations. The word for peace in the Greek is Eirene, which translates in Hebrew as Shalom. In the Bible, “peace” refers to more than the lack of conflict; it encompasses the actions one undergoes to bring about restoration and wholeness. This understanding of peace is completely different from the pax romana under Augustus at the time. To the Romans, “peace” meant the subjugation of their enemies and the establishing of order. In short, the pax romana was not real peace at all.

Without Christ, the world cannot find peace. Romans 3:16–17 tells us, “Ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace they do not know.” In Jesus’ kingdom, peace reigns for everyone who believes. God’s Son brought peace through humility. His peace restores the relationship between God and humans, broken when sin entered the world (Genesis 3:16–19). And those who participatein the kingdom life have the responsibility to use their lives, gifts, and resources to be ambassadors of God’s peace.

We pray we are helping equip you to be one of those ambassadors this Christmas!

Jesus is Here (December 18 -- FirstLook)

I hope you had an opportunity this weekend to come out and see our Living Nativity.  We had a great time and there were a lot of cars that drove through the hear and see the story of Jesus' birth. This week in FirstLook we are going to learn about the birth of Jesus as well.  We hope you use this blog to talk about the birth of Jesus in your home this week. The HomeFront Weekly has a great activity that will help you talk about the birth of Jesus at bedtime.

The news that Jesus was here was what faithful men and women had been anticipating since the garden. In the second chapter of Luke, we read how angels announced the birth of Jesus to shepherds—not to kings, or noblemen, or men of religious virtue. Shepherds. These men who lived on the fringe of society were chosen to experience the most incredible testimony given by celestial beings. It was here in this humble setting among the most common of people that the “chosen One of God enters creation among the creation” (IVP New Testament Commentaries).

Shepherds were hired by farmers to look after their flock of sheep. They were typically single men who didn’t have families. The duties of shepherds inhibited the men’s abilities to participate in religious activities with the community. However, this did not prohibit them from experiencing the holy. Some scholars believe the shepherds who witnessed the heavenly announcement were not ordinary shepherds. During the time of Caesar Augustus, flocks of sheep were being raised around the city of Jerusalem to be used as sacrifices in the temple. It is quite possible the men who were tending sheep the night Jesus was born were in fact caring for the temple flock. These men may have been tending sheep meant for sacrifices, and then gone on to be some of the first to meet the Lamb of God, who became the final payment for our sin.

Upon finding the Christ child, the shepherds responded by “glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen” (Luke 2:20). They broke out in praise because God’s promise had come to pass. Jesus is the deliverer, Master, and anointed King. The prophesied royal leader had come to restore the kingdom. God came not for a select group of people, but for all, with the most common people being the first to receive the news. They were privileged with the opportunity to spread the message that Jesus is here!

We pray that we are also equipping you to spread the message that Jesus was born and is alive!

Jesus is God's Gift (December 11 -- KidQuest)

God provided for and prepared His people for the promised gift of His Son. All they needed to do was trust and obediently serve Him. God would continually remind His people of the promised gift via the prophets. One such message for His people was given to Zechariah, through the angel Gabriel. The angel told Zechariah he would have an heir—a son who would turn the hearts of many Israelites back to God. We know his son was John the Baptist, the one would have the responsibility of paving the way for the ministry of God’s promised gift of His Son, Jesus Christ.

Zechariah was one of about eighteen thousand priests serving Yahweh. Priests served in the temple only twice a year, and it was extremely rare for a priest to have the honor of entering the holiest place within the temple. “Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside” (Luke 1:8–10).

The opportunity to enter the Holy of Holies was considered a once in a lifetime opportunity, and Zechariah had no idea God would deliver a message of promise on that special day. Of Zechariah’s son, the angel said, “He [John] will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (Luke 1:15b–17).

Jesus is Immanuel (December 11 -- FirstLook)

Our God was drawing near to us through the Savior in the form of a man. It was so important for us to understand our Savior’s lineage that each of the gospels record the genealogy of Christ with a unique perspective. Matthew lists the generations from King David and traces Jesus’ royal lineage through Joseph. Luke traces the bloodline from Adam to David, and his genealogy from Abraham to David is identical to Matthew’s account. Luke diverges from Matthew after David, tracing the lineage not through Solomon but another son of David, Nathan, to Heli, the father of Mary, Jesus’ mother. The significance is that the combined genealogies establish Jesus’ absolute right to the throne of David through the bloodline of Mary (Luke 3:23–38) and by title through Mary’s husband, Joseph.

The genealogy of Jesus shows God’s hand orchestrating His divine plan of  redemption, but names also play an important role throughout Scripture. They intentionally point to the character and role a person will play. There were several names given to the Lord before He came to earth as an infant. These include: Jesus, “Savior” (Jehovah is salvation); Christ, “Anointed” (the Greek equivalent to “Messiah”); and Immanuel, “God with us.” Each of these names defines His title, purpose, and identity.

God came to earth and dwelt among men. He gave up His kingly rights to become a servant to all. He is the Messiah and the Savior of Israel and the world. He became God incarnate. The name Immanuel, God with us, was prophesied in Isaiah 7:14: “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” Jesus’ names announced His arrival and His purpose: God Himself will save us from our sins. He is with us. He has come.

Jesus is Immanuel!!!

Nerf Night!

We are so excited to announce the date of Nerf Night 2012!
There will be more info about teams and rules coming in January!

God Gets His People Ready to Meet His Son (December 4 FirstLook)

We pray that you had a great Thanksgiving with your family! We have so much to be thankful for!  Now its time to transition into the Christmas season.

In FirstLook, that means we take a break from our chronological study of the Bible to learn about Christ's birth.  As you gear up for Christmas this year, please use this and future posts to help talk about Jesus in your home.

Believe it or not, God prepared the people for the birth of Jesus before he was even born. In FirstLook this week we will open to Luke 1 and see how God used Zechariah to prepare the way for Jesus. Also make sure you check your inbox later this week as I send out the December Children's Ministry E-Newsletter.

 As God was preparing the people to meet His Son, He chose Zechariah, one of about 18,000 priests serving Yahweh. Due to sheer numbers, priests served in the temple only twice a year. It was extremely rare for a priest to have the honor of serving the Lord by entering the holy place within the temple. Those chosen were selected by casting lots (a practice often used to determine God’s will in given situations). This opportunity to enter the holy place would probably happen once in a lifetime.

Luke chapter 1 says Zechariah offered incense as a sacrifice to the Lord, representing the prayers being lifted to God. During this time of service, he would have lifted up prayers specifically for Israel. Psalm 141 says, “May my prayer be set before you like incense; may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.” As the incense rose, these were holy moments. While Zechariah lifted his prayers for the nation, the other priests prayed and waited outside.

These priestly rituals had been carried on for centuries. In the time between the Old Testament and the New Testament, there is no record of God speaking to His people. This is often referred to as the period of silence or the 400 Silent Years. Then, “God renewed His activity on behalf of His people in light of promises made long ago” (InterVarsity Press Commentary). God sent a message for His people to Zechariah. The angel Gabriel declared, “Your prayer has been heard” (Luke 1:13). There were two parts to the message that was given. While it is clear that Zechariah, as an elderly Jewish male with no descendants, must have frequently prayed for an heir, Gabriel is also addressing his prayers for the nation. This is clear in the angel’s prophetic message of John’s life. He assures Zechariah that not only will he have a son, but that his son will turn the hearts of many Israelites back to the Lord. God had chosen this holy, pious moment to unveil His plans for Israel.

The Lord is Our Righteousness (KidQuest December 4)

We pray that you had a great Thanksgiving with your family! We have so much to be thankful for!  Now its time to transition into the Christmas season.

In KidQuest, that means we take a break from our chronological study of the Bible to learn about Christ's birth.  As you gear up for Christmas this year, please use this and future posts to help talk about Jesus in your home.

Believe it or not, Jesus was prophesied in the Old Testament. This week in KidQuest, we will look at Jeremiah's prophecies about the coming of Jesus. Also make sure you check your inbox later this week as I send out the December Children's Ministry E-Newsletter.

God gave Jeremiah a prophecy, saying, “‘The days are coming … when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our Righteousness’” (Jeremiah 23:5–6).

In Jeremiah 23:1, Jeremiah denounced the leaders of Judah for the evil way they had ruled God’s people. He said they had been “‘shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep,’” instead of ruling them justly and righteously as God would. Then, he spoke the words of the above prophecy—foretelling of the king of God’s choosing in contrast to the kings who had sat as impostors upon the throne.

Through Jeremiah, God reminded His people that no matter how dark things had become, He would restore the legitimate order of the Davidic kingship and bring a king who would rule justly and bring peace. By sending His Son, God brought a King from the Davidic family line—the righteous branch, the rightful heir to David’s throne. He brought the Good Shepherd who cares for the flock. And most amazingly, He brought a King who not only rules His people righteously, but also puts His righteousness into His people’s account!

Jesus, the Lord, our righteousness, did for His people what no earthly king or the people could do themselves. Jesus took their sins and declared them righteous before God (Romans 3:21–5:11).

Makayla's Journey Through The Eyes of Her Mom

Makayla is a girl in our ministry who was diagnosed with leukemia July 23, 2009.  Here is that 2 year journey through the eyes of her mom as she goes to her LAST chemo treatment!  We are so excited for you and your family Makalya! 

The entire journey form start to finish can be read on her CaringBridge page (http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/makaylam).


I still remember July 23rd, 2009 like it was yesterday. I remember the conversations that occurred, the people in the hospital room when we got the devastating news, the first six words out of the doctor’s mouth and the uncontrollable emotions that came afterwards and the days following. That was 856 days ago. My heart was broken and my eyes were filled with tears of sadness. I listened to the doctor as he explained what this meant and the course of treatment. I nodded my head as if I understood when really I had no idea what to expect. I have watched my daughter cry, be scared, be held down while screaming,  have held her down, have watched poison (chemo) be injected into her, have seen her swell up from steroids, watched her go under anesthesia 15 times for spinal taps,  watched as her hair fell out, watched her as she combed and blow dried her bald head wishing she had hair, have seen kids and adults point and stare at my daughter, have seen her on morphine, have seen her so hungry from not eating or drinking for days but too scared to eat, have seen her miss special occasions because she was too sick and have dealt with more throw up then I care to remember……

BUT, we have kept our faith in God, have prayed, have been prayed for (more then we even know), have seen the strength and bravery overcome the fear in Makayla,  have been helped financially, have had our families drop what they are doing to come help us when we need it, have been blessed with family giving up every Thursday of their week to take Makayla to treatment, have had family watch the kids for us when we have taken her to treatments or stayed in the hospital with her, have had our church family overwhelm us with their generosity, have celebrated milestones during her treatments,  have had great friendships strengthen and blossom AND we have made it to the end! Makayla will be going for her last chemo treatment today and we are so excited. We have waited for this day for so long and it is here.
We could not have made it on this journey without our faith, prayers and support from our family and friends. We are so blessed and I would just like to PRAISE GOD and say THANK YOU to each and every one of you. 

KidQuest would like to thank the family for aloowing us and the kids to be a part of your journey! We love you and we hope we can continue to show the same love and support to you in years to come!

SuperStart 2011 -- "What Am I Made For?"

I love SuperStart! If you have a 4th, 5th or 6th grader at WCC and have not sent them to SuperStart they are truly missing out!

Every October SuperStart is held in St. Louis. However, every third year I have made a decision to take our kids to one of the other stops on the SuperStart tour and give them a road trip experience.  This gives every student who walks through the children's ministry here to have an opportunity to have this road trip once. 2011 was the year of this road trip, so we left for Louisville, KY and Northside Christian Church (actually in New Albany, IN).

This year's stage theme was one that included science demonstrations like a HUGE nitrogen cloud which all 1000+ preteens thought was awesome. The whole science demonstration theme revolved around the theme question of the weekend, "what am I made for?"

SuperStart based the whole weekend on Romans 11:36.

"For from him and through him and for him are all things.To him be the glory forever! Amen."

There isn't a better topic for our preteens to learn about as they are about to enter Jr. High. As our preteens sit in classrooms and in front of their mutiple screens (TV, computer, Ipods, DS, etc.) they are being contantly bombarded with the idea of being impotant and successful. Not only are they being bombarded by the media, they are also starting to become more aware of themselves as individuals.



As the speaker got on stage and started talking about the verse of the weekend, the 5th grade boy I was sitting next to me, looked up and me and amazingly said, "Last night, I was praying about what my purpose is." He was in awe the rest of the weekend as he discovered that God made him to be all about God, God saved him to be all about God and God gave him what he had to be all about God!  In one of our small group sessions, I had a chance to talk to him and I could really see him starting to figure out that no matter what the world is telling him to be, God wants him to live for God!

I also was able to have discussion with our group of boys about how they can use their athletic abilities for Christ, and keep him the focus of practices and games.  We discussed how easy it is to put our sports above God, but how God is the one who created us with those abilities and we need to honor him by the way we play the game. The things THEY brought up were they way we honor our teammates, how they treat the other team, and how they react to the officials.  It was a really good discussion about how to honor God in everything we do.

I also know that in our girl small groups, some of our girls really started asking TOUGH questions.  After session 2 (God Saved Me to be All About Him), my wife and I were brought to tears from a very sincere question from a 5th grade girl.

Her question was "why would God save me, I have never done anything special to deserve God's love?"

These are the types of questions our preteens have that they might be afraid to ask.  I am so glad my leaders were able to invest in this precious girl this weekend and instill God's saving truth into her live for 2 days!

Make sure your 4th, 5th, or 6th grader goes to SuperStart next year in October, because it could be life changing!

God Wants Us To Say Yes To Him (November 20 in FirstLook)

This week in FirstLook we get to talk about one of my family's favorite Bible story! We love this story so much that we named our first cat Gideon.  Its funny the name of this lesson is "God Wants Us to Say Yes to Him" because when we went to pick a cat, Gideon was the only cat that purred when Stephanie picked it up. Gideon wanted us to say yes to him and God wants all of us to say yes to him!

Although we know God wants us to say yes to Him, this was a hard concept for the Israelites to grasp. In Judges 6, the Israelites had once again turned from the one true God and sought fulfillment through the worship of false gods. Because of their disobedience, God permitted neighboring countries to overpower Israel. Each time the people attempted to plant crops, the Midianites and Amalekites would sweep in and destroy what had been planted. After years of stubbornness, the Israelites finally cried out to God.

The Lord heard their petitions and sent a judge to lead them to victory over their enemies. Ironically, God chose to use a simple farmer to redeem Israel. A farmer! Gideon was not trained in the military, and yet the angel of the Lord called him “mighty warrior.” The Hebrew translation of the word gibbowr describes the warrior as strong, mighty, and impetuous (aggressive and fast-moving). A warrior is also described as having hunter-like qualities and capabilities.

There are some interesting parallels between the calling of Gideon (Judges 6) and the calling of Moses (Exodus 3). In Exodus 3, Moses protests his fitness to be the deliverer of God’s chosen people. He asks the question, “Who am I?” and highlights for God (as if He is unaware) his weaknesses. Gideon responds in a similar way, pointing out to God that not only is he from the weakest tribe in Israel, but he is the least of the weakest. God’s response to both Moses and Gideon is the same—“I will be with you.”

It was not Gideon’s skill and experience that made him fit to be a warrior; it was the Lord God. A simple farmer became a strategic warrior. Gideon was used by the Lord of Israel to redeem and save her from her enemies when he said yes to God.

God wants us to say yes to Him.

God is Almighty (November 20 in KidQuest)

This week in KidQuest, we are going to fast forward a little to the life of Samuel. Samuel is an amazing figure in the Old Testament from his birth all the way to his death! This year we are going to spend some time looking at his life in KidQuest and discover how god used him.


God is mighty to save, mighty to heal, and mighty to love! Hannah called God the “Lord Almighty.” This was the first time this name for God was used in Scripture, though it was used many times afterward. “Lord Almighty” is translated Jehovah Tsaba, which means “Lord of Hosts.” The mood of this word in the Hebrew language describes a person who would go first or “before” into battle and fight for you—someone who is mighty and you would want to follow. It is interesting that this name—Lord of Hosts—first appears when Hannah cries out to God during her vow to dedicate her unborn child back to Him.

At the time of her prayer, Hannah had no idea God would answer her anguished cries and not only give her the child she prayed for, but also give her a child who would eventually lead Israel into a new era in which godly leaders modeled obedience to God for the people. Her son’s name was Samuel. It was Samuel who would anoint David, God’s choice for a king, the lineage from whom Jesus Christ would someday ascend.

In this way, God was not only mighty to answer Hannah’s prayers and give her a child, but also mighty to accomplish His purposes as a Sovereign ruler who went before His people into new life. Here, God’s plan for Israel’s future redemption met with Hannah’s anguished and righteous cry for a son.

So in this pivotal moment of Israel’s history, between the time of the judges and the monarchy, God granted Hannah’s request and brought forth the next step in His plan for His people—in which Samuel led the people as an obedient servant of God. God was mighty to use Samuel to usher in a new era for His people, and did so by answering the prayer of a barren woman of faith.

New HomeFront Monthly -- New Access Point

We're pleased to announce that parents have a whole new way of accessing, HomeFront Monthly!
The new HomeFront app lets your parents gain access to each issue of HomeFront right on their iPhone, iPad or Android device.

This free app not only gives them quick access to the HomeFront pdf, which they can send to iBooks to print and archive, but also pulls out different sections of HomeFront for quick and easy access, including the current Remember Verse, Food & Fun activities, Storytelling and more.
The app also includes videos and text describing all of the Ten Environments.

Use the keyword search "Tru Home" to find this app in the store.

New HomeFront Monthly -- Modeling

In our children's ministry an environment is a common goal or focus we can use to create environments in the home and at church which draw us closer to Christ.  We change environments every four weeks.  Along with this environment change, we also give you a brand new parenting resource called HomeFront Monthly.

The HomeFront Monthly includes ideas for a Family Food Time, Game Time, Storytelling, Prayer, and a Blessing. You can download this edition of HomeFront Monthly by going to http://wentzvillecc.org/621738.ihtml.

For the next 4 weeks we will focus on the environment of MODELING. Here is our description of MODELING:

Biblical content needs a practical living expression in order for it to be spiritually impacting. This environment serves as a hands-on example of what it means for children to put their faith into action. Modeling puts flesh on faith and reminds us that others are watching to see if we live what we believe.