Tribute to Anne Frank on International Holocaust Remembrance Day
(January 27 is the date, in 1945, when the largest Nazi death camp in Auschwitz-Birkenau in Poland was liberated by Soviet Troops.)
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
now how I remember you
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Sunday School Annual Report 2008
This has been an incredibly transitional year for our Sunday school program. Most notable was the close of Shannon and Deborah H-'s faithful children's ministry in early 2008. Sharon and Ralphie R- stepped into this difficult role, staying consistent with the methods and curriculum the H-s had incorporated. Emily G- and Jessica J- aided them and also continued to work with the Chinese Sunday school in the afternoons.
A Safari Party kicked off the summer, and attendance soared, particularly the week after the congregation-run VBS. This was also the season with the most change: in early August, Jessica returned to Minnesota after completing her Utopia year. Around the same time, Sharon announced her pregnancy and subsequent retirement from Sunday school. She and Ralphie finished out the summer, alternating with Emily every three weeks, until I began teaching in September. I'm eternally grateful to Sharon, Emily, and the entire L- family, all of whom were incredibly helpful, giving, and patient as I adjusted to so many new responsibilities!
In October, a new Sunday school model was proposed and eventually approved. Although the old system hadn't been unsuccessful, some noted a disheartening trend in our children once they surpassed Sunday school age: rather than make the natural progression to the adult service, many teens had stopped attending church altogether. In an effort to bring unity and make the transition more fluid, an earlier start time was proposed for Sunday school. This would allow not only the kids to attend our regular service, but the teachers as well. Suggestions for youth and adult classes were also accepted, and the idea of a Spanish class proposed. It was decided that the new schedule would start January 11th, 2009.
The kids decorated a "Blessing Box" the first week of November and filled it every week after that with praises written or drawn on strips of paper. Thanksgiving week, we passed the box around during prayer, letting each child read one paper at a time. In December, we focused on how God kept His ancient promise by sending His Son to save us. Janet W- volunteered to help us sign three of our favorite songs: One Way, Joy to the World, and Christmas in My Heart. It was great to see the kids from both services singing and signing together at the joint Christmas service! This was also a great introduction to the New Testament curriculum we started in January.
Currently, we're in the first month of our new Sunday school schedule. As of January 25th. 2009, we have four classes meeting at 9:30: my regular children's class, downstairs; a youth class taught by Chris W- in the pastor's study; a young adult class in the office, taught by Emily; and an adult class in the mother's room, taught by Kurt L-. At 10:30, everyone gathers in the sanctuary for our regular worship service. During this time, we hope to eventually disperse every child among the congregants in ongoing mentoring relationships. A few individuals and families have volunteered, but until then the front left rows are reserved for Sunday school. Emily creates a weekly children's bulletin and Pastor Tony leads a special kids message before each sermon. Although this system is far from perfected, I feel we've already been blessed by having every generation and age of our church represented and united in worship!
Every change that has been made this year, in staff and schedule, has been the result of prayerful searching and discernment. Our goal is to truly connect kids with Christ, and the best way to do that is to show them His love through our lives. Please keep the entire ministry in prayer as we continue to adapt our program to better serve this purpose.
Grace and peace,
Rachel O-
A Safari Party kicked off the summer, and attendance soared, particularly the week after the congregation-run VBS. This was also the season with the most change: in early August, Jessica returned to Minnesota after completing her Utopia year. Around the same time, Sharon announced her pregnancy and subsequent retirement from Sunday school. She and Ralphie finished out the summer, alternating with Emily every three weeks, until I began teaching in September. I'm eternally grateful to Sharon, Emily, and the entire L- family, all of whom were incredibly helpful, giving, and patient as I adjusted to so many new responsibilities!
In October, a new Sunday school model was proposed and eventually approved. Although the old system hadn't been unsuccessful, some noted a disheartening trend in our children once they surpassed Sunday school age: rather than make the natural progression to the adult service, many teens had stopped attending church altogether. In an effort to bring unity and make the transition more fluid, an earlier start time was proposed for Sunday school. This would allow not only the kids to attend our regular service, but the teachers as well. Suggestions for youth and adult classes were also accepted, and the idea of a Spanish class proposed. It was decided that the new schedule would start January 11th, 2009.
The kids decorated a "Blessing Box" the first week of November and filled it every week after that with praises written or drawn on strips of paper. Thanksgiving week, we passed the box around during prayer, letting each child read one paper at a time. In December, we focused on how God kept His ancient promise by sending His Son to save us. Janet W- volunteered to help us sign three of our favorite songs: One Way, Joy to the World, and Christmas in My Heart. It was great to see the kids from both services singing and signing together at the joint Christmas service! This was also a great introduction to the New Testament curriculum we started in January.
Currently, we're in the first month of our new Sunday school schedule. As of January 25th. 2009, we have four classes meeting at 9:30: my regular children's class, downstairs; a youth class taught by Chris W- in the pastor's study; a young adult class in the office, taught by Emily; and an adult class in the mother's room, taught by Kurt L-. At 10:30, everyone gathers in the sanctuary for our regular worship service. During this time, we hope to eventually disperse every child among the congregants in ongoing mentoring relationships. A few individuals and families have volunteered, but until then the front left rows are reserved for Sunday school. Emily creates a weekly children's bulletin and Pastor Tony leads a special kids message before each sermon. Although this system is far from perfected, I feel we've already been blessed by having every generation and age of our church represented and united in worship!
Every change that has been made this year, in staff and schedule, has been the result of prayerful searching and discernment. Our goal is to truly connect kids with Christ, and the best way to do that is to show them His love through our lives. Please keep the entire ministry in prayer as we continue to adapt our program to better serve this purpose.
Grace and peace,
Rachel O-
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Sunday school report
Theme: Prayer
Morning Sunday school:
Once Chris recruited 5th grade and up for his youth class, I had about six kids, which was great for this particular lesson. We went through the Lord's Prayer, tackling the tough words and then listing prayer requests pertaining to each section (physical needs under "daily bread," etc). Each of us spent time praying for our families, friends, and schools, and I encouraged the kids to do that on their own each day that week. After discussing the importance of learning to recognize God's voice, we played an active listening game. That was followed by snack and then worship upstairs. The kids sat well during that, and I think having a chance to play a game beforehand helped.
Afternoon Sunday school:
Since the kids in this class tend to be a bit older, and the service longer, we were able to go a little more in depth than we had in the morning. I had the kids "translate" the Lord's Prayer into their own words, and we went through the meanings one-by-one. I had the older kids look up and read other passages on prayer, like Ephesians 6:18 and Philippians 4:6. We also played another game: before discussing the Lord's Prayer, I paired the kids up and gave them three minutes to interview each other. Afterwards, I asked questions to see what they had learned. While many could now, for example, name their partner's favorite food, no one knew anything too deep or obscure – of course. I explained how, if we only spend a few minutes with God every so often, we won't learn much about Him; we have to read our Bibles, go to church, and pray regularly in order to form a true relationship. They really seemed to get the analogy, and I like that it works not just for prayer but for all Christian disciplines.
Morning Sunday school:
Once Chris recruited 5th grade and up for his youth class, I had about six kids, which was great for this particular lesson. We went through the Lord's Prayer, tackling the tough words and then listing prayer requests pertaining to each section (physical needs under "daily bread," etc). Each of us spent time praying for our families, friends, and schools, and I encouraged the kids to do that on their own each day that week. After discussing the importance of learning to recognize God's voice, we played an active listening game. That was followed by snack and then worship upstairs. The kids sat well during that, and I think having a chance to play a game beforehand helped.
Afternoon Sunday school:
Since the kids in this class tend to be a bit older, and the service longer, we were able to go a little more in depth than we had in the morning. I had the kids "translate" the Lord's Prayer into their own words, and we went through the meanings one-by-one. I had the older kids look up and read other passages on prayer, like Ephesians 6:18 and Philippians 4:6. We also played another game: before discussing the Lord's Prayer, I paired the kids up and gave them three minutes to interview each other. Afterwards, I asked questions to see what they had learned. While many could now, for example, name their partner's favorite food, no one knew anything too deep or obscure – of course. I explained how, if we only spend a few minutes with God every so often, we won't learn much about Him; we have to read our Bibles, go to church, and pray regularly in order to form a true relationship. They really seemed to get the analogy, and I like that it works not just for prayer but for all Christian disciplines.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Sunday school report
Lesson: Attitude, according to Jesus
Scripture: Matthew 5:1-12, Philippians 2:1-5
Verse: Philippians 2:5 - "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus."
This was the first Sunday on the new schedule, and the early start was not aided by icy conditions outside. At 9:30, only our three most faithful kids were at church: Norman, Hi, and Javiy. We started on time, but with craft, which is usually at the end of the service. By the time the original three had finished their foam creations, the round table was more or less full. Chris showed up to claim the older kids, but all except Norman and Jorge opted to stay. They're Sunday school regulars, so I understand their reluctance, but I think next Sunday they need to at least try the jr high group. After craft, I passed out Bibles and we read the Beatitudes together. This was a great change from the bigger Sunday school model, where we have more kids than NIRV Bibles and not enough time to help each find one breif passage at a time. The kids at church today could all read well and followed along easily. We discussed some tricky concepts - many of which corresponded well with the Romans 12 sermon, although I didn't plan that intentionally. By the time we finished the Philippians passage, all we really had time for was snack.
Emily lined the kids up for "Big Church," handing out paper bags of "sermon supplies" - crayons, kids bulletins, leftover candy canes, sharpened pencils - before filing the group up the stairs and into the our designated spot in the sanctuary. The paper bags proved to be a mistake: the children pulled out the bulletins immediately and had them half completed before the first song began, and even small amounts of bag rustling during the sermon sounded distracting. Next time I think we'll try ziplocks and wait to pass them out until after the kids' sermon. Other than that, though, everybody sat well and listened fairly attentively, scribbling answers to the questions Emily wrote on their bulletins. I especially loved seeing the kids' enthusiasm during worship: they clapped, nodded, and bellowed along even to unfamiliar songs. It was really cute and encouraging!
We probably had about eight kids downstairs (although at least three of those should have been with Chris), but by the end of the upstairs service our reserved row had spilled over by at least four. I think it worked pretty well, and will hopefully get better as the families adjust to the earlier time. A tighter schedule for Sunday school will also allow more variety: I'll have to rotate some of the "extras" (craft and game, for instance) to alot enough time for the lesson, worship, and memory verse. I'm excited to see how the mornings even out!
Chinese Sunday school was okay, but not great. Pete helped me run an extended version of the morning lesson and nine kids came - eight boys and one very lonely girl.
Friday, January 9, 2009
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Sunday school report
Lesson: Growing Like Jesus
Scripture: Luke 2:39-52 - Boy Jesus at the Temple
Verse: Luke 2:52 - "Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men."
Since we'd been talking about Jesus' birth all December, and the new curriculum (started the 11th) begins with the Sermon on the Mount, I decided to teach about Jesus as a boy. As I perused books and websites for ideas, I got excited about "showing" the kids what it might have been like growing up when Jesus did. Thankfully, Emily, Eric, and Pete all agreed to help me staff various "stations" showcasing different aspects of Jewish life. We split the kids (between 20-25) into four groups and, after songs and introduction, sent each set to a seperate section of the room, rotating every 10-15 minutes after that. Emily read the Bible story and asked application questions; Pete helped the kids learn the memory verse, including using coloring sheets and measuring the kids' "stature" on the wall; I taught about scrolls and led a craft for each child to make their own (with Luke 2:52 on it); Eric ran the "carpentry shop" (wooden blocks) and talked about Jesus' family. Afterward, everyone gathered at the tables for a traditional snack of seeded grapes and matzoh.
The only thing I'd do differently is to plot the timing better - we took our time during the first rotation, and had to rush the next three to make up for it. I loved getting to implement so many learning styles and so much history! Hopefully the kids will be able to relate with the stories we're learning even better now that they have more context. And, if not, it was a fun way to shake up the routine and make use of Emily's and my guests!
I followed the same setup for Chinese Sunday school, except it was just Pete and me. That made it a bit more chaotic, but it still ran fairly smoothly and the kids seemed to get a lot out of it! I'd definitely like to be able to do more lessons like this in the future!
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