March Newsletter

In this issue:
Cookies and Pizza
Schedule
Easter
Safe Sanctuaries
Calendar Additions
Schedule

Cookies and Pizza
Thanks to Debbie McGinnis, we are having a special event for children on April 8 (this is the Saturday before Palm Sunday). Debbie has found a special recipe for resurrection cookies, and she wants to bake them with our kids. Each ingredient has a biblical meaning. The cookies are placed in a warm oven and left overnight. The kids will tie the oven closed. In the morning, during Children's church, they'll open the oven. When they break the cookies open, they will find that they are hollow -- and empty. Cool, huh?

A time has yet to be set, but the kids will meet in the church kitchen, and then after the cooking is done, we'll get together for a Pizza party in the Social Hall.

What can you do to help? Glad you asked!
1. Keep the date on your calendar if you have children so that you can bring them in to have fun.
2. Debbie will probably need a help on April 9 during Children's church. This is Palm Sunday (read extra kids) and Kids Klub is singing, so if you can be her helper during Children's Church that day, let me know.
3. Anyone want to help with the pizza party?

Schedule Needs Updated
Please remember to go to http://jmchildren.blogspot.com to schedule a time to lead the children's church. March 26 is still open (eek!). Note: If leaving a comment on the blog is not your "thing," just send me an email or stop me in church. We'll get you signed up even if we need to use a pencil.

Easter
We will not be having Children's Church on Easter. It's such a great time in the worship service that we'll keep the kids in with us.

Safe Sanctuaries
Here's your second dose of "Safe Sanctuaries." The leader of the workshop warned us to avoid activities which provide fun for everyone except the one child who is "the butt of the joke." He told a story about an activity he used to do at camps. Three volunteer children would be taken from the room. The game was that each volunteer child would be brought back into the room to find a soup ladle. The ladle would have been hidden somewhere in the room. As the searcher came closer, the crowd would cheer. As the searcher got farther from the hidden ladle, the audience would get quieter -- sound being the clue the searcher used to find the ladle. Fine and dandy. For the third volunteer to come into the room, the camp leader would hide the ladle in his belt at the small of his back. You can imagine how much fun this would be. The leader would move around the room, so that sound clues would change for the searcher depending on how close he was to the leader.

Anyway, this was great fun for everyone involved exept, perhaps for the searcher. This wouldn't bother most children. But for that one child out of 100, who has been told all his life that he was unworthy -- not loved, this kind of activity would prove that the church held him in low esteem, as well. Not the message we want our children to receive.

So as you plan activities, please be aware of the games that are fun for everyone except the one child who is the "butt of the joke." We want everyone -- especially the ones who have always felt unloved -- to know that at church, they are loved!

Calendar Additions
Please add the following dates to your calendar:
April 8 -- Sat -- Cookies and Pizza
April 9 -- Kids sing in church
April 30 -- Kids Klub program during worship service and Youth service (I think I have this right -- someone stop me if I'm wrong.) If I'm right, then we will not have Children's Church.
July 31 - August 4 -- Vacation Bible School

Treasure Seekers Children's Church Schedule
March 12 -- Mary and Jeff
March 19 -- Suzi
March 26 -- empty
April 2 -- Kim
April 9 -- Debbie and helper?
April 16 -- Easter -- no Children's Church
April 23 -- Maudie
April 30 -- Kids Klub / Youth service -- No Children's Church?