Back to Basics

When we look at the life and teaching of Jesus, we’re reminded how important it is to go back to the basics. Luke gives us some insight into how Jesus grew up. Luke 2:52 notes that Jesus grew in wisdom and in favor with God and others. Throughout our lives, we should also circle back to these ideas as we seek to live like Jesus.

These are the basics: Wisdom—I need to make the wise choice; Faith—I can trust God no matter what; Friendship—I should treat others the way I want to be treated.

When we return to these ideas, we can begin to discover what God is doing in us to change the world around us. This summer we’re heading back to Base Camp where we’ll learn from the life of Jesus, His teachings, and His example.

The monthly memory verse is: “And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and men,” Luke 2:52, NIrV. When we respond to God and follow where He leads, we will see ourselves develop in wisdom, faith, and friendship. Then we will be able to set the example for other people.

In Week One’s biblical principle, Luke tells us how Jesus grew up (Luke 2:52). Jesus grew closer to God by growing in wisdom, faith, and friendship. Our Bottom Line is: God is doing something in you to change the world around you. We can’t change the world until we allow God to change us on the inside and make us more like Jesus.

By Jessica McKee ©2013 The reThink Group. All rights reserved. http://www.ThinkOrange.com *Used by permission.

Kids Kids Kids

Let’s get real

Let’s get real… Who wants to be out there, in Chicago weather, going from door to door asking for cheap candy??? Don’t let this Halloween be another miserable night for your kids. If you are looking for excitement, then take them to a haunted house. If you are looking for tons of sugar for multiple visits to the dentist, then take them trick or treating. But… If you are looking for excitement, laughs, interaction, contests, giveaways, Taffy apples, slime-ade, glow in the dark cupcakes, candy, and bragging rights at school, then bring them to SLIMED 2012. Slimed’s focus this year will be FEAR NOT! We’ve realize that there are many things in life that we can do, but because of fear, we are hesitant to move forward. Don’t let your kid be a normal kid, bring him/her and see how their lives will change. Plus it’s too cold in Chicago to walk around with just a costume- and we all know that trick or treating with a coat on over your costume is lame.
See you there.

Maranatha house of God
4301 W Diversey
Chicago, IL
Pre-Slimed party begins at 6:30pm
Show starts at 7:15pm
October 31st 2012
Cost: free
Ages 3-12, family welcomed.

SLIMED 2011

Just a recap from last years “SLIMED”
This was one of the best parts last year.
This year we have so much more in store.
Come out on October 31, 2012 at
4301 W Diversey, Chicago IL. Doors open at 6:30pm, show starts at 7:15 sharp. If you are going to miss any part of the show, don’t miss the beginning.
Admission is free.

SLIMED 2012 presents- FEAR NOT

SLIMED is an awesome event where hundreds of kids come together on Halloween, get to dress up, have taffy apples, drink slime-ade, have a glow in the dark concert, sit back and laugh as they watch kids getting slimed, crazy awesome skits, and walk away with candy, all in a safe environment. This year we are bringing many new things to the table, and hope that your kids, and the rest of the family don’t miss a second of it.

October 31st 2012
@ 4301 W Diversey, Chicago IL
Pre-Slimed party 6:30-7:10pm
Show starts 7:15pm
Show ends 8:30pm
For ages 3-12, but family is welcomed

See you there,

Carlos.

Fear Not!

In 2010, we did an event for our kids ministry, to keep the kids off the streets on Halloween. It was something we never did before, and we had a pretty good turnout. Even though it was a success, within the last couple of years we’ve decided to change the program.
I’ve realized this year that if my focus is only on Halloween, then they walk away with nothing of substance for the rest of the year. For this reason, we are putting all our focus on fear. Fear is not just something they deal with in the month of October, but something that tries to over power them, and stops many from having a vision and living a dream. Fear is not an emotion, it is a spirit, so it is not something we should take lightly. We have spent many hours planning and praying that this event, will be something that these kids will never forget. Help me spread the word, and bring as many kids as you possibly can, to see something change in their lives.

In love,

Carlos.

Buttons, Buttons, and more Buttons.

Love seems to be in the air. We’ve spoken about how we love our bible, we love bread, and now… We love buttons. Buttons are really cool because if placed strategically, they can be used as heart shields, Chinese stars, or simply just buttons. I guess the reason why I decided to do buttons, was because I was intrigued to know that George Washington started
Using them for his election. I have now found a new hobby, and to top it off, I just found out that I live less then 3 miles away from a button museum. So here it goes, the first 100 kids to make it to Genesis Kids this Sunday, will get a button. It might not sound like such a big deal, but you just don’t know if we begin to make buttons for every series- Collect them all!

Mr. Carlos

God’s word is like Bread!

So I went to a great friends wedding last night, and I have to say that they had the best wedding food ever- a full slab of ribs. It doesn’t end there, this wedding also made me cheat on my no carb diet. They had the best bread to complement the dinner. As much as I tried, I could not say “no” to warm, buttered bread. That’s where our lesson today hit home. “I love my bible because God’s word is like bread”.

God’s word is like bread, when we mix it with faith.
We can have all the ingredients, measured perfectly, but if we don’t mix in flour, our bread will not rise.

Opening up your Bible to read is a lot like baking bread, you have to have the right ingredients. If we prepare the right way, our time reading the Bible can become like Bread to our soul, but we have to mix in our faith.

Before reading the Bible, take a moment to worship God and thank Him for His Word. Ask God to reveal Himself to you when you read.

For supporting verses, we used
Matthew 4:4 (also Deut 8:3)
“Jesus answered them, it is written, man does not live on bread alone, but on every word than comes from the mouth of God.”
Also Hebrews 4:2 talks about how some people hear God’s Word and it profits them nothing… because they don’t mix it with faith.

I have to admit, this is one of the best series we’ve taught the kids, Thanks to Church On The Move for such great resources.

Mr Carlos.

We love our Bible…

We are very excited to begin our new curriculum this coming Sunday. We will be using a curriculum made by “Kids On The Move” kids ministry of COTM in Tulsa Ok. The series is called I love my bible. It’s got a great song, and the lessons have hands on object lessons that bring the point home. I am positive that these next 7 weeks, will transform the way your kids see the bible. As you can see, the band is pumped and ready to go…

“By Faith”

Today was an awesome day. We began to implement ideas from Seeds conference, and our staff and children were excited. Be on the lookout, as we blog about the ideas that we are implementing. We encourage every person in Kidmin to attend Seeds next year, it will change your world.