Children's Ministry Blog

SpringTown & Treehouse (Preschool)

This week began our Christmas series. Over the next six weeks we will pretend to be the live studio audience of the Reindeer Radio Show as we sing along with some cool Christmas tunes and learn lots of good news from God’s word.

Today’s Headline (Need to Know): We Need Jesus!

We Need Jesus because of what happened when Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s very first rule in Genesis 2-3. Because Adam and Eve ate from the tree God told them not eat from, they could not be his friends anymore. They needed someone to fix their friendship with God. 

When we disobey and do wrong things, it hurts our friendship with God, too. Just like Adam and Eve, we need someone to fix our friendship with God. Today we learned that Jesus is the only one who can fix our friendship with God—that’s why we need Him, and that’s why God sent Jesus to us at Christmastime!

We also started practicing our new Remember Verse. Remembering God’s word is a great thing to do as a family! If your child has the verse memorized on January 3, 2010, he or she will win a prize! Here is the verse and the motions we do along with it:

“God (arms open to the sky) sent his Son (hold a baby) to be the Savior (arms stretched out wide) of the world (make a circle with arms above head).” 1 John 4:14 (hold up four fingers)

ImagiNation, Jump Street & Shockwave (Elementary School)

This week began our Christmas series. Over the next six weeks we will be the live studio audience of the North Pole News where the headlines are hilarious and the news is just what we Need to Know.

Today’s Headline (Need to Know): We Need a Savior!

Just like we have rules at home, Genesis 2-3 tells us that Adam and Eve had a rule to follow when they lived in God’s garden, The Garden of Eden. A sneaky snake persuaded Adam and Eve to disobey God’s rule, and right away they knew they had done something wrong. The wrong things we do are called sin. When Adam and Eve sinned it hurt their friendship with God and they could not live in His garden anymore.

When we do wrong things we are sinning just like Adam and Eve. And when we sin, it hurts our friendship with God. Today we learned that just like Adam and Eve, we need someone to save us from our sin and fix our friendship with God—We Need a Savior!

We can trust that God has a Savior for us because our new memory verse tells us so. Help your child practice it at home so that he or she can win a cool prize the week after Christmas. Here is the first part of the verse we started learning today:

“God sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.” - 1 John 4:14

Motions for younger elementary kids: “God (arms open to the sky) sent his Son (hold a baby) to be the Savior (arms stretched out wide) of the world (make a circle with arms above head).” 1 John 4:14 (hold up four fingers, then a one and a four at the same time)

SpringTown & Treehouse (Preschool)

Need to Know: I Will Be Patient
Bible Story: David is Patient, 1 Chronicles 22, 28-29  
Memory Verse: “Teach me how to live.  Lead me along the right path.” - Psalm 27:11
Motions: “Teach me how to live (hold hands out like holding a Bible/book). Lead me along the right path (march in place).” - Psalm 27:11

Review
On our last day of training at Ten Hut we talked about being patient soldiers. Patient soldiers calmly wait on things and people with a happy heart. Our Bible friend David showed us how to be patient.

Mardy shared David’s story with us and Spike, a not-so-patient islander on Canyon Island, to complete his final mission.

David wanted to build a temple, or a church, to tell God thank you for all that He had done. But God did not want David to build the temple—God wanted David’s son, Solomon, to build it.  Since Solomon was only a boy, David would have to wait patiently for the time when Solomon could build the temple. By being patient David was able to store up most of the building materials Solomon would need. David’s patience helped him be a part of God’s plan for building the temple!

When we are told to wait, we should have a happy heart and wait patiently just like David, Solomon and their friends. God will reward us for being patient!

This Week At Home
Allow your child to help you bake a yummy dish for your Thanksgiving meal. Practice being patient as you wait for your hard work to bake in the oven. As you enjoy your dish, thank God for its deliciousness and for helping you be patient as it baked. Talk about other times when it is good to be patient.

ImagiNation, Jump Street & Shockwave (Elementary School)

Need to Know: God Invites Me to Follow Him  
Bible Story: Joshua Tells Israel To Serve the Lord, Joshua 24:1-18
Memory Verse: “Here is what I am commanding you to do. Be strong and brave. Do not be terrified. Do not lose hope. I am the Lord your God. I will be with you wherever you go.” - Joshua 1:9

Review
In our last week of Ten Hut we heard how Joshua challenged the Israelites to follow God and worship only Him. God tells us this story in the Bible because He wants us to follow Him, too. Following God like Joshua and the Israelites is as easy as ABC. Today we learned how to start following God by praying these ABCs:

• A = Admit to God that you have sinned and need to be forgiven.
• B = Believe that Jesus died to take the punishment for your sins and that God raised Jesus back to life.
• C = Choose to let Jesus be the boss, or as the Bible says, the Lord, of your life and your best friend.

This Week At Home
Talking to your child about Jesus is one of the most important things you can do as a parent. This week at church your child should have made a bracelet that spells out the ABCs we talked about. Without pressuring them, ask your kids if they have or want to start following Jesus by praying these ABCs to God. If so, talk about the ABCs in more detail, then offer to silently pray with each of your kids as he or she prays to start following God. Don’t forget that the next step is baptism! Call the NewSpring offices at (864) 226-6585 for more details about the next baptism at your campus.

Practice your memory verse this week! Next week, if you have it memorized, you will win a prize!

SpringTown & Treehouse (Preschool)

Need to Know: I Will Thank God
Bible Story: David’s Thankful Song, Psalm 136; Psalm 9:1-2
Memory Verse: “Teach me how to live.  Lead me along the right path.” - Psalm 27:11 (NLT)
Motions: “Teach me how to live (hold hands out like holding a Bible/book). Lead me along the right path (march in place).” - Psalm 27:11

Review
We have lots of things to thank God for, especially since EVERYTHING we have comes from Him. Because God is so good to us, today we learned I Will Thank God! We remembered that our Bible friend, David, thanked God in the good times and bad times of his life. David’s family sang songs (Psalms) to help them remember to be thankful for everything God has done. We can also show God how thankful we are by telling Him when we pray and by being happy with what we have.

Mardy completed his seventh mission as he told a dark, gloomy & not-so-thankful Berry Blast Islander what we learned today!

This Week At Home
This week your child should have made a “Thankful Hand” with pictures of things he or she is thankful for. Place his or her “Thankful Hand” in a place where your family will often see it. When you see it, tell God how thankful you are for the people and things pictured on the hand.

ImagiNation, Jump Street & Shockwave (Elementary School)

Need to Know: God Will Keep His Promises  
Bible Story: God Keeps His Promise to Caleb, Joshua 14:6-15
Memory Verse: “Here is what I am commanding you to do. Be strong and brave. Do not be terrified. Do not lose hope. I am the Lord your God. I will be with you wherever you go.” - Joshua 1:9

Review
Sometimes people make promises they don’t keep. But there is one person who always keeps His promises, and that’s what we learned about today—God Will Keep His Promises! Sometimes we have to wait on God’s promises to come true, but we can always believe that He will do what He promises to do. We saw how Caleb believed this in Joshua 14:6-15, and now know that we can trust God to keep his promises to us, too.

In Large Group, Boston and Beans finished their final test to earn their Nameless Brigade medals, only to discover they had to wait a week to get them! When they learned that the Sergeant Neice was the hold up, they devised an elaborate pie trap to pay him back. Their plan backfired when Sergeant Neice startled them, and they fell into their own pie pit! Sergeant Neice explained that the medal ceremony is a big deal and that sometimes we have to wait for the things that are promised to us, just like Caleb had to wait for the land God promised him. 

This Week At Home
This week we talked about some of the promises God makes us. Review these with your child. Help your him or her learn to trust in and rely on God’s promises on good days and bad days.

• Matthew 28:20
• Psalm 12:7
• Psalm 35:28
• Psalm 34:19
• Philippians 4:19
• 1 John 1:9
• Isaiah 41:10

SpringTown & Treehouse (Preschool)

Need to Know: I Will Share With Others
Bible Story: David & Mephibosheth, 1 Samuel 20:14-17, 42; 2 Samuel 9
Memory Verse: “Teach me how to live.  Lead me along the right path.” - Psalm 27:11
Motions: “Teach me how to live (hold hands out like holding a Bible/book). Lead me along the right path (march in place).” - Psalm 27:11

Review

Today we learned about sharing. Sharing is something God wants us all to do, so in Small Group we practiced it! We talked about how we can share what God has given us when we see someone who needs what we have. And one day we may need something, and someone will share with us.

In Large Group we helped Mardy take our message to the people on Cookie Island. The people there were very hungry and grumpy. But there was one person on the island who had food—lots and lots of cookies. His name was Chip. We helped Mardy tell Chip what we learned today: I Will Share With Others!

Mardy showed Chip how to share by teaching him about David. David was good at sharing, because he knew that everything he had was a gift from God. He shared all that God had given him with his best friend’s son, Mephibosheth. David shared his house, his land, his food and his time.

This Week At Home

As your child plays ask him where the things he is playing with come from. Remind him that these are all things God is sharing with us. Encourage him to be willing to share what he has since God has shared with us.

ImagiNation, Jump Street & Shockwave (Elementary School)

Need to Know: God Hears My Prayers  
Bible Story: God Hears & Answers Joshua’s Prayers, Joshua 10:1-15
Memory Verse: “Here is what I am commanding you to do. Be strong and brave. Do not be terrified. Do not lose hope. I am the Lord your God. I will be with you wherever you go.” - Joshua 1:9

Review
Today we learned about a crazy prayer Joshua prayed. We saw how God heard Joshua and answered him. We can pray just like Joshua did. When we ask God to do big things, it shows Him that we trust Him and believe that He is big enough to do such big things. We learned that when we pray God does hear us, and that we should believe that He will do what is right in that situation at the right time.

In Large Group Boston and Beans faced the Transmission Tower Assembly Time Trial. They had 24 hours to build a working radio tower! It got dark and they ran out of light, but they remembered how God heard Joshua’s prayer to make the sun stand still. After they prayed, Beans remembered seeing some night vision goggles, and soon they were able to finish the tower assembly!

This Week At Home
Share with your child some of the “crazy” things you have prayed, and how God answered your prayers. Help your child learn pray for big things (Ex: healing someone who is sick, protection during something scary, help inviting 10 people to church or obeying a leader who is hard to obey). Encourage him or her to believe that God has heard the prayer and trust that God will do what is right in that situation at the right time.

It’s cold and flu season, and there are a couple of things we would like for parents to know…

We go to great lengths to keep our KidSpring environments germ free.

• In the nursery, our volunteers sanitize each toy in between services and immediately when it has been in the hands of a child.
• A volunteer team also does a thorough cleaning of all toys and equipment before each Sunday.
• Hand sanitizer is available at the entrances to each environment. Sanitizing your child’s hands is suggested and may be helpful in reducing the spread of germs.

In an effort to provide a healthy environment for all kids, here’s what we need you to do. Please keep your child at home if he or she has shown any of the following symptoms within the past 48 hours:

• Vomiting
• Discharge in or around eyes
• Green or yellow runny nose
• Excessive coughing
• Diarrhea
• Questionable rash
• Any communicable disease
• Fever

If your child becomes ill during church time, we will notify you promptly by flashing your parent identification number on the screen in the adult service.

We are striving to make KidSpring cleaner and more germ free than any other place outside your home! Thank you for helping make KidSpring a safe place for kids to learn about Jesus on their level!

SpringTown & Treehouse (Preschool)

Need to Know: I Will Be Happy Because God Loves Me
Bible Story: Review of David’s Life & David Becomes King, Psalm 57:7-10; 1 Samuel 16-20, 2 Samuel 5:1-4
Memory Verse: “Teach me how to live. Lead me along the right path.” - Psalm 27:11
Motions: “Teach me how to live (hold hands out like holding a Bible/book). Lead me along the right path (march in place).” - Psalm 27:11

Review

Today we learned that we have the best reason to be happy! Knowing that God loves us should make us happier than anything else! In Small Group we talked about the things God has given us that make us happy, and how if we didn’t have those things, we can still be happy because God loves us.

In Large Group Mardy shared David’s story with the sad people on Balloon Island. He told them that our Bible friend David did not know what God had planned for him, but he knew that God loved him. Because David knew God loved him, he chose to be happy and follow God through all of life’s ups and downs. The Balloon Islanders soon learned that they should be happy because God loves them!

We can be like David and be happy no matter what is going on in our lives because we know that God loves us!

This Week At Home

Ask your child to tell you about some good things and bad things that have happened in his or her life. Then talk about how no matter what happens to us, we can be happy because God loves us.

ImagiNation, Jump Street & Shockwave (Elementary School)

Need to Know: I Will Remember That God Has Done Great Things For Me
Bible Story: Israelites Battle Ai & Remember What God Has Done For Them, Joshua 4:15-24, 6:24, 8:3-35
Memory Verse: “Here is what I am commanding you to do. Be strong and brave. Do not be terrified. Do not lose hope. I am the Lord your God.” - Joshua 1:9 (to be continued)

Review

All the great things that happened in the Bible, happened because of God, and all the great things that happen in our lives, happen because God makes them happen.  Today we talked about how continually remembering the great things God has done for us will keep us strong in every battle we face.

In Large Group, Boston and Beans faced their toughest task yet, the Field Manual Memorization Stress Test.  They had to memorize an entire manual, complete physically challenging tasks and answer questions from the manual. Eventually, with God’s help, Boston and Beans were able to pass the test! Sergeant Neice gave each of them a “memory box” with items from past challenges inside to help them remember all the great things God had done for them.

This Week At Home
Your child should have come home wearing a bracelet. Ask him or her about the bracelet, and what it reminds your him or her of. Encourage your child to use the bracelet to remember all the great things God has done, especially in his or her life.