A Winner at kidVenture Island

We have been challenging the kids in K-4th grade to memorize the verse for UpsideDown Town. It's long and challenging but we think they can do it. We have been reviewing it in Large Group and kidLife Group, sending it home on the passport, and encouraging them to give it a try on the stage!
One kid per gathering has a chance to come on stage and recite it. If they do it, they win a big raft. The best part about the raft is that we already blew it up for you!

Go ahead and memorize it with them!
Luke 6:27-31

"But here is what I tell you who hear me. Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who call down curses on you. And pray for those who treat you badly.Suppose someone hits you on one cheek. Turn your other cheek to him also. Suppose someone takes your coat. Don't stop him from taking your shirt. Give to everyone who asks you. And if anyone takes what belongs to you, don't ask to get it back. Do to others as you want them to do to you."

Questions Questions Questions

At kidVenture Island, we think it is really important to ask kids questions. We ask questions in Life Group and in Large Group. We ask them questions that make them think. Tonight we began the Salvation Weekend at kidVenture Island in Ages 3-4th grade. We asked kids questions like, "If your sister got into trouble for stealing money, would you want to take her punishment?" "Do you know that someone took the punishment for all the wrong stuff we will ever do?" " Did you know that Jesus loved you so much that he died for you?" Remember this weekend you can join your child in K-4th grade as we talk to them about becoming forever friends of Jesus.
We also like to ask kids questions that help us know what they like about kidVenture Island. Take a moment and ask your kids the question above. We love questions...and answers!

5 Questions Kids Ask About Salvation

At kidVenture Island, we are presenting the salvation message June 19/20th on all the campuses in 3's-4th grade. We hope these nuggets can help guide conversations that you may have with your kids. We would love for you to join your kids in K-4th grade environments during that special weekend.

5 Questions Kids Ask About Salvation
Kids are full of questions. They ask questions about everything:
• Can you believe she said that to the teacher?
• Did you know he could hit a ball that far?
• What are you going to wear to school tomorrow?
• How can the Bible help me today? It was written so long ago.
Kids want answers. They want to know who? what? when? where? why? and how? They are curious and eager to know. They do not want to miss out on anything.
As a kidLife Group Leader or a parent, you are fortunate. You have some important answers to the most important question, “How do I become a Christian?” Read the following questions and answers related to Christian conversion. You can be ready with the answers. Your source?—the Bible, of course.

1. What is sin?
The Bible contains God’s rules of behavior. When you choose not to follow God’s rules, you sin against God.
• Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins (James 4:17).

2. Will God punish me for my sin?
Yes. When you choose to disobey God, you do not feel close to God or happy with your life. Without God’s forgiveness, punishment continues after death.
• For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23).

3. Will God forgive me for my sin?
Yes. When you ask God for forgiveness and trust in His Son, Jesus, your sins are forgiven by God.
• For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).

4. What does it mean to trust in Jesus?
To trust in (or believe in) Jesus means trusting Jesus to save you from punishment and choosing to follow Jesus’ example. By His behavior, Jesus showed us how to live in God’s way and how to follow God’s rules.
• Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me (John 14:1).
• We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are (Acts 15:11).

5. How do I tell God I want to be a Christian?
The Bible says that you must be sorry (repent) for your sins. You must pray to God and ask God to forgive your sins. You must trust in Jesus to save you from the punishment that you deserve. Then you must promise to follow Jesus’ example and do your best to live in ways that honor God.
• If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).
• If you love me, you will obey what I command (John 14:15).

Helping kids Grieve

This past week, we had a change up of events in our household. My dad, who is only 64, went into the hospital and had a few scary days of being extremely sick. It was the first time that our family had to deal with someone close to us being so ill.
As I sat in his hospital room on Saturday afternoon, when he was close to being intubated for breathing, I started thinking about how I would tell my kids if his conditioned deteriorated. We haven't had to deal with such critical issues in our family, as of yet. Therefore, I felt unprepared.
Thankfully he is beginning to turn the corner, although his disease will remain, and he will leave this earth. I want to be prepared to know what to say to my kids. I began researching on the web for books and articles. I found a simple article with some easy steps. Focus on the Family  I hope it is useful to you. Here is a link to some simple books that may be useful. Helping Kids Grieve Books
Most importantly, some of you may have walked through this before. You may have some wisdom. So please comment below and share with us your experience. As a church, let us do LIFE together.

How do we choose good movies for our kids?

Last Friday night, my kids wanted to snuggle in together and eat popcorn and watch a movie. Recently we got a nice big plasma TV and had the option to purchase "On Demand Movies." This opens up a whole new world of having movies at our fingertips. While some may say this is an added benefit to making quick family decisions and not having to travel out to find a movie, it does put us in a position to make quick parenting decisions.
My kids range in age from 5-12 so they don't always agree on the choice of movie. The 5 yr old would like to watch some princess cartoon movie while the 12 yr old would like the typical love story/friend saga or mystery movie. Certainly trying to please everyone has ended in our family once we gave birth to our 4th child. The process that we go through is narrowing down some G and PG rated movies. Only within the last 2 yrs have we considered PG movies. The funny part about parenting is that as your kids grow, the standards seem to change. What we let our 5 yr old watch is not what we left our oldest watch at the tender age of 5!
So we flip through the "On Demand Movie" choices on the screen. The downside of the choices at your fingertips is that you have to flip through some of the visually inappropriate choices too. And when I am talking inappropriate, I mean PG-13 these days!
The upside is having many choices. However, for my husband who does not really want to be involved in the choice, this is the time that he heads upstairs to get the goodies ready for the actual movie.
When we started on the journey of allowing some PG movies, I found it hard to choose. The PG that you and I are used to is not the same anymore. In fact, some PG movies from the 80's should be rated R today. Therefore, we need to be careful about those "old movies that we watched when we were kids." Thankfully I must have forgotten ignored some of the language because I was disappointed that Steel Magnolias was quickly off my list for my kids to watch. Good story line...but not worth my kids having to hear the language.
I was excited to come across a great website called www.pluggedin.com. This site is developed from Focus on the Family and is a tremendous resource to parents. You can search for movies (theater and rented) and read full reviews to help you choose.
The categories that they review are: Positive Elements, Sexual Content, Drug/Alcohol Content, Crude or Profane Language, Other Negative Elements, and Conclusion. They spend time watching the movie and breaking down the important elements to help you decide. This site also has reviews for music, TV shows, and games that kids play. While it doesn't have a review for everything out there, we found it pretty stacked and resourceful 95% of the time.


So next time your husband is popping the popcorn and filling up the soda cups, grab your computer and take it to him while you make an informed decision on what your kids will watch. Who knows, you might even learn something yourself.  My kids always say, "Mom bring your laptop down to see if we can watch this movie." Sometimes I wonder if they think my laptop tells me how to parent. Mmmm...might be a blog topic for next time.

Rice and Beans Day 3 and still surviving...yet hungry for popcorn now!

Rice and Beans Challenge Day 1

This morning our family began the Rice and Beans Challenge. My 5 yr old started out with an serious, yet innocent statement, "Mom, I just don't think I am going to be able to do this."
Inside, I couldn't help but to agree with her. I like Rice. Beans are good too. However, 5 days, 3 times a day. Not so sure I like them that much.
I kept remembering David's words last night about Ashleigh. I guess it helps me when I actually know someone who is eating R/B everyday in Haiti. I could picture in my mind those "food wars." It helped my 12 and 10 yr old to understand since they knew Ash too.
All that said, it has still been difficult.
I loved how the communicators and kidLife Group Leaders reinforced this challenge in Treasure Cove-4th grade. Since we are talking about giving God our best, it tied in nicely with this week's Deal in K-4. In Treasure Cove, we learned that "I Worship Jesus." This is certainly a way to worship. Not sure my 5 yr old can understand that, but I can't deny knowing it.
The question is, can I Live It Out?
How is everyone else doing so far? Would love to hear. Post a comment.
We are heading to LIFE Group where will eat.....you guessed it.....R/B.