Go Crazy With Kindness January 28, 2011
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February’s virtue that we’re teaching in Elementary classes is Kindness: showing others they are valuable by how you treat them. Below is a message from Melanie Williams, editor in chief of 252 Basics, the company that writes our curriculum, on Kindness:
Go Kinda Crazy
Come February, we’re going to be talking about kindness in 252 Basics. Now, I don’t know what comes to mind when you think of kindness. If you grew up with rough and tumble siblings, you may have come to the conclusion that nice guys finish last. If you work in a cutthroat environment, you know it doesn’t pay to be seen as Mr. or Ms. Milk Toast. If your children watched Barney (of purple dinosaur fame), you may have the desire to pull your hair out if you hear that song one more time. You know which one.
Rest assured, we will not be going there! Kindness is not insipid, limp wristed, or ineffectual. It takes (and makes) some real muscle to be kind. It often requires an iron will. It may insist that we roll up our sleeves and get our hands dirty. It even necessitates, on occasion, radical action. Jesus was kind, of course. But He definitely wasn’t namby-pamby. The Jesus who took those little kids in His arms and blessed them was the same one who ran off the moneychangers and called out the Pharisees–not the actions of a weak person, which unfortunately is often how kindness is perceived.
We need to paint a truer picture of kindness for our kids, one that sets the bar higher than merely responding to someone else in kind. One that kindles consideration of others, that stirs up empathy for their needs, that ignites a generous rather than a fighting spirit when they do us wrong. In short, one that looks more like Jesus. So we’ll be exploring what Jesus did and said about kindness, which is showing others they are valuable by how you treat them:
Do to others what you want them to do to you. The gold standard of kindness, from Luke 6.
Treat others the way Jesus would treat them. Jesus gave others (including kids!) His time and attention, from Mark 10.
Treat others as if they belong to God. When you do, it’s as if you’re treating Jesus that way, from Matthew 25.
Do for your enemies what they wouldn’t do for you. Give them another chance, from Acts 9.
Challenge kids, and maybe even other leaders on your team, to go kinda crazy and surprise those around them with kindness.
Peace, Melanie Williams, Editor in chief, 252 Basics, The reThink Group
By Melanie Williams. © 2010 The reThink Group * www.rethinkgroup.org * All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Want to more? Hear Reggie Joiner speak on how Kindness is a reflection of God’s character working in us to change the world around us. He then explores how the 252 Basics Bible stories will work together to unpack God’s truth in a way that makes the virtue come to life.
VIRTUE VIDEO: KINDNESS (February 2011) from Orange on Vimeo.
Also, bring your family and friends to KIDstuff on Sunday, February 6, at 12:30 pm in the Smith Center for worship, drama, fun, and games centered around teaching this virtue of Kindness. The take-home application tool at this KIDstuff will be something your kids will go crazy for!
What’s Happening In Preschool January 25, 2011
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Preschool is currently finishing up their January So What Q & A: “Who is Jesus? Jesus is God’s Son!” Here are the details about the lessons they’ve been learning:
January Treasure Box Verse: “Jesus is the son of God.” Acts 9:20b
Jan 1/2: Boy Jesus in the temple. Luke 2:39-52. Application: Jesus obeyed God and His parents.
Jan 8/9: Healing of a nobleman’s son. John 4:46-54. Application: Jesus can do anything.
Jan 15/16: Blind Bartimaeus. Mark 10:46-52; Luke 18:35-43. Application: Jesus can do anything.
Jan 22/23: Jairus’ daughter. Mark 5:22-24; 35-43. Application: Jesus has power over death.
Jan 29/30: Jesus calms the storm. Mark 4:35-41; Luke 8:22-25. Application: Jesus has power over nature.
The next So What Q&A coming up in February is “What does God want most? God wants me to love Him!” Here are the details of each week’s lesson:
February Treasure Box Verse: “Jesus came to seek and to save what was lost.” Luke 9:10
Feb 5/6: The rich man’s question. Matthew 19:16-30. Application: Jesus is better than all my stuff.
Feb 12/13: Zacchaeus. Luke 19:1-10. Application: Jesus can help me do the right thing.
Feb 19/20: Mary and Martha. Luke 10:38-42. Application: Jesus wants me to love and spend time with Him.
Feb 26-27: The Greatest Commandment. Mark 12:28-34. Application: Jesus wants me to love Him and others.
Experience Serving…Short Term January 21, 2011
Posted by rshort in : 7-Volunteer , comments closedLast November our elementary kids learned about the virtue Service: lending a hand to help someone else. To date my kids are still talking about this virtue and applying it to their daily lives. In fact, it has become so ingrained in our family that when they need help they say to each other, “Can you do service for me?” While humorous to hear, it pleases me to see them remembering that helping each other out, whether the request be big or small, is a good and Godly thing to do.
The lessons of service are not just for our kids. So now it’s our turn to dive more deeply into this virtue and respond to God’s call, “Can you do service for me?” For the last two weekends Pastor Lon Solomon has been sharing with us a 3-part series entitled, “Christianity is a Team Sport” which he’ll be wrapping up this weekend, January 22/23. If you’ve missed any part of the series click here to catch up.
The Bible is clear in its teaching that service is central to God’s purpose for every Christian. Scriptures demonstrate how Jesus devoted himself to service for others and tell us that we are expected to emulate him by doing likewise. Jesus was emphatic that the greatest – and, the second greatest – commandments call us to love and, in serving, we are fulfilling scriptures by loving God and others in practical ways. So if you’re not already serving regularly somewhere, it’s time to “try out” for the team and experience serving. And guess what, you’re going to make the team! MBC’s Core Value #7 states that “every Christian has a God-given ministry.” God has given you very special spiritual gifts and natural talents to be used for His purposes. There is a place for you to experience serving.
Over the next two weekends, January 22/23 and January 29/30, MBC Tysons will be hosting the “Experience Serving…Short Term” Expo. Representatives from various ministries will be present in the main auditorium lobby to get to know you and share specific short-term opportunities, about 8 weeks, for you to experience serving.
Why short term? Sometimes you have to explore several options to discover your gifts and find the place God has for you. The short term format gives you a chance to experience serving in a ministry without making a long term commitment. If, at the end of your time, you find that ministry to be the perfect place for you, you can talk about options for staying on longer. If you feel restless after your experience, then it may be time to explore another service opportunity. Just don’t give up!
Kid’s Quest will be at the Expo, sporting our bright yellow shirts – you can’t miss us! We hope you’ll consider serving with us as one of your options. Here are the short term opportunities we’ll be specifically hi-lighting but feel free to talk to our reps about all the options we have in Kid’s Quest which extend beyond these.
Positions that Interact with Kids
- Nursery/Toddler Apprentice: partner with an experienced leader to care for kids newborn to 3 years and help them see God’s House as a safe and caring place.
- Preschool Apprentice: partner with an experienced leader to care for kids 3-5 years and help them with foundational learning about who God is.
- Elementary Small Group Apprentice: partner with an experienced leader to help kids learn how to apply the Bible to their lives through activities and discussions.
- Elementary Worship Apprentice: partner with an experienced leader to engage kids in worship by singing and leading movement motions.
Positions That Interact with Adults:
- Elementary Technical Support Apprentice: partner with an experienced Tech to cue sound, lights, and media to support what happens on stage in Large Group.
- Elementary Baptism Support: assist with children’s baptism ceremony and reception.
- Event Planner for Easter Outreach: assist with preparations for The Rock That Rolled Easter Party, an Easter-themed family carnival and outreach.
- Event Planner for Volunteer Celebration: assist with preparations for Volunteer Celebration, our annual teacher appreciation party.
- Supply Distribution: join the team that prepares and packs supplies and resources for Kid’s Quest classes.
- Weekend Hospitality: assist in creating a welcoming atmosphere for new families by greeting them, answering their questions, and escorting them to their kid’s rooms.
The Experience Serving…Short Team Expo is a part of Start Where You Are, a Tysons Campus initiative to encourage our congregation to take advantage of opportunities to love our neighbors – anyone God has brought into your life – by a) doing something good that meets a practical need, b) sharing practical advice from the Bible, or c) explaining the message of Christ in a way that makes sense.
The R-U-N (Are You In?) Challenge January 18, 2011
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DETERMINATION: Deciding it’s worth it to finish what you’ve started.
Sometimes we have to decide if it’s worth it to finish what we start. This month the elementary kids are learning about the value of Determination and how God can use our perseverance to accomplish great things. To help illustrate that tackling challenges can lead to results we passed out a take-home activity with a challenge tailored to each age group on the first weekend of January. In case you missed it, click on the appropriate link below:
It’s not too late to start the challenge! Each card has an age-appropriate list of verses and Bible facts to memorize. We’ve asked kids to challenge their families to see who can race to accomplish the challenge faster. Your kids will love having the chance to compete with you and we encourage you to jump in and participate. But more than just a friendly competition, these verses can be great conversation starters to teach your kids more about God, and that’s definitely worth it! You might learn something, too. So, are you in?
KIDstuff Kindness January 12, 2011
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The winter break is over and KIDstuff is getting ready to present another fun and engaging creative arts production to teach elementary children and their families about God and what He has to say about our next virtue:
Showing others they are valuable by how you treat them.
How about putting this virtue into action now? Show your friends how much you value them by inviting them to join your family for the next KIDstuff, Sunday, February 6 at 12:30 pm in the Smith Center. Perhaps make their day by treating them to a late lunch in the café afterwards and talking together about the virtue you just learned about! For more info about KIDstuff go to mbctysons.org/kidstuff and enjoy a look back at a scene from our last KIDstuff focused on the virtue Service.
AND…stop by the Kid’s Quest store in the Smith Center lobby before or after KIDstuff to check out CUE Box, a resource to help parents continue to build Godly character in their kids and spark further conversation at home. We’ll have the Kindness CUE Box available for $11.99 as well as previous month’s CUE Boxes. Full details, pictures of the contents, and an overview video at mbctysons.org/cuebox. We’ll have kid’s worship CD’s (featuring songs heard in KIDstuff) and t-shirts available, too.
