GIVE SAVE LIVE

Hi Parents and students of Jesus Kidz Children's Ministry!!!

The latest lesson learned by Jesus Kidz students is the concept of GIVE SAVE LIVE. As a part of ALM's Summer of Change, the students had the opportunity to learn some key concepts in money management. The smart way in which we should handle finances, even as children, is found in the Bible!!!  When children learn to be persistent in smart money management by following God's law first, they are setting themselves up to be free from a life ruled by money...either by having too little or too much. The bible tells us in Luke 16:13 that we cannot serve God and money. The serving that is discussed here could happen when we feel like our money is ours (Pastor Yassah called that stingy) and  refuse to give or give with a grudge or when we don't have enough and are afraid to let even the smallest amount go out of fear of not having enough once the little bit is gone.  Both ways are bad because our God loves a cheerful giver (regardless of how much she has to give to begin with)!!!

So this is what we learned...

Take 3 used (it is more fun that way) jars. Label one GIVE, one SAVE, and the other LIVE. Get creative here in decorating and labeling your jars. Keep them in the order of GIVE, SAVE, LIVE. The order is important because we all know that it is better to give than to receive!! Read as a family the scriptures for each jar! Learn them and search the bible for more biblical explanations of each one! If you are a parent reading this, encourage your child(ren) to give a tithe and an offering each time they receive money, even it is $.75 from the $5.00 they earned for the weeks' allowance. Although the amount may seem minor on the grand scheme of things, you are encouraging an incredible obedience to the Lord that will cause your children to be blessed!!!! The GIVE jar can even be used for missions and charity! After a portion has been put into the GIVE jar, a portion should be placed in the SAVE jar. This is where you want to focus more on long term savings and short term goals. For example, saving for college (long term) and saving for a new Xbox game (short term goal). The joy that comes from saving and accomplishing goals helps us grow!  Our children are no different, so help them set long and short term goals to plan and save for. Finally, after giving and saving, the LIVE jar can be filled! We all want to have a little fun...sometimes a lot! This jar will be filled with spendable money for things such as movie admissions, special treats, unplanned shopping trips, etc. Yes, we should encourage our children to pay for some of the things that they like! Remember that we must train up our children in the way they should go so that when they are older they will not depart from it (Proverbs 22:6). Giving them an allowance is a great training tool to help them learn the concept of GIVE SAVE LIVE. While we have the ability to buy it for them, take care of it, you know how it goes, we must consider the principles that we want to teach our children. Do we want to teach them that someone else will always do it for them or to be responsible youngsters who blossom into responsible adults? Think about it!!

GIVE- 2 Corinthians 9:6-7; Malachi 3:10; Proverbs 11:24; Luke 6:38
SAVE- Proverbs 6:6-8
LIVE- John 10:10

Halloween Rejects If you thought that the 'worlds' of the dead and living overlapped on October 31st and the dead had come back to life to cause diseases and ruin everything that you have worked for, would you let your kids walk around, knock on strangers doors and ask for candy? Would you let your little ones dress up in costumes and masks, if you had knowledge that doing so was to gain the attention of evil spirts? How comfortable would you be walking around at night with your babies knowing that bonfires were burning to attract bugs because they attract bats? I know, it is very easy to say, "that's not what Halloween is about now and I went trick or treating when I was a kid", but I am sure you would answer no to the questions above. That is the history of halloween and the question we need to ask ourselves is, are the entire history or ideals of halloween promoting the Word of God? Let's choose to show our children that we are not like everyone else and choose to reject the world's halloween. Just so you know, this day is banned in several locations and some countries have "adopted" there own versions, but the root still remains. Let's educate our families together! The information on the history of halloween above was retrieved from www.halloweenhistory.org. They said it, not me!

Stay Connected!

Friday, August 31st, 2012 Hi, JesusKidz and Parents! How fast the summer has come and gone! Before you know it, we'll be saying goodbye to another school year. But while we're getting adjusted to new classrooms, classmates, and teachers, now is a great time to remind our children of what God's Word says about them in times of uncertainty. Proverbs 3: 5-7 says: "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths. 7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD and depart from evil." Discuss with them the importance of not becoming friends with others simply because everyone likes them, because they may be tempted to compromise. Counteract the opinions of others with the Word, and God will bring it back to their remembrance when they really need it. On another note, those of you whose children were blessed to go to camp should be receiving a CD of key events that they participated in within the next week or so. Now would also be the ideal time to set aside a minimum of $20 a month per child for the next few months if you'd like to send them again. We also encourage those who couldn't send their kids to begin planning now. There are some exciting activities coming up for our Children's ministry... Keep your eyes and ears open. And by all means, STAY CONNECTED. THE BODY NEEDS US ALL!!!

Helping Our Children GROW

Tuesday, July 3rd, 2012 Hey, Parents of all the young people who are at camp. Great job working together to provide this awesome opportunity for them! We've made the investment to GET them to a place where they can HEAR the Word On their level. Just some food for thought: while they're away, how can we make our HOMES a little more similar to the environment they're in now? How can we keep them motivated and excited about the things of God on a DAILY basis when they get back? We can POSITION ourselves daily to be the support system for the Word to grab hold of -- REALLY embrace and dwell inside of us so that we can be that resource of answers they'll need for all the BURNING QUESTIONS they'll have about God when they come home. Let's ask God to prepare our hearts so we can FOSTER, ENCOURAGE, and STRENGTHEN their hunger to grow in the ways of God rather than STAMP OUT their fire by keeping things the same way they've always been. Let's help our children grow even more than before.

Summer Camp is Almost Here!

Hey, Jesuskidz and Parents! In exactly 7 days, the Amazing Race (Summer Camp 2012) will begin! Here are the items you will need for camp: 1. Your Bible 2. Bedding and pillow 3. Toiletry and personal items 4. Towels, washcloths and soap 5. Comfortable clothes and shoes 6. Modest bathing suit 7. Old clothes for crafts and paintball 8. Flashlight 9. Money for Snackbar Do NOT bring cell phones, computers, video games, movies, TV's or anything electronic. NO drugs, alcohol, tobacco, guns, knives or weapons of ANY kind. We're expecting God to move in such a powerful way among our young people! Please have all balances turned in by Wednesday, June 27th. Be sure to talk to Pastor Yassah this Sunday, June 24th, if you have any questions or concerns.

Fifth Sunday "Children's Church"

Fifth Sundays in Children's Church is not just another day at ALM. It's a time for the pre-teens to apply what they've learned by creating skits and other activities to share with the younger kids. This month, they learned about the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, so they wanted to act that out. But they wanted to include the part where some of Jesus' disciples turned away from Him, betraying and denying Him when He needed them the most. Some questions that arose during our discussions this month included one like this: "Didn't His disciples see Him heal the sick and even bring people back to life? Why didn't they just believe He really was God's Son?" Of course, they're children, so they don't have any filters to screen their faith through. They simply believe when they hear the Word. What we as parents could learn from our children! If you hear them talking about this after church this Sunday, be prepared to discuss any questions your children may have. Pray about how you can minister to them outside of church. We're excited about our 5th Sunday "Children's Church"!

Hi, JesusKidz and Parents!

We're excited about the new procedures that are being put into place for our children's ministry. In addition to our mandate to teach your Kidz,we have recognized the growing need to ensure their safety while at Children's church. In order to make this happen as smoothly as possible, we just wanted to help you be prepared for the changes that you're going to see. More on that to come.

We do want to send our love and prayers to all students Grades 1 through 5, as well as 6th through 12th, who will be testing in some form for the next two weeks. We cover you and speak success over your life. May this year be the best year yet on the FCAT! We believe our God can do anything. Be blessed...