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Five days, over 500 children, 200+ volunteers, 2500 snacks served, tons of fun,  more than 4,000 combined volunteer hours and, best of all, God showed up!  Can it get any better than that?  If you have never participated in an RBC Kids Camp (formerly VBS) then you are missing a unique experience in the life of this church.  Kids Camp has always been a time for the children of the church to grow in their faith, but with 180+ visitors at this summer’s event, this has become one of RBC’s largest evangelistic outreaches as well.  This year the children at Kids Camp were learning to “fly” at the Amazing Wonders Aviation flight school.  They learned that in order to “soar on wings like eagles” they must be fueled by the power of God and that His power extends over nature, our circumstances, our sin, and our lives.  Our desire is to see them make a smooth take-off and a God glorifying flight.

We were blessed to see so many sweet stories unfold throughout the week.  Let me share just two of them with you.  First time Kids Camp volunteer Curt McGowan decided to take off a week of mornings from his full-time job to be a small group leader.  In no time he and his group of cadets were a tight squadron.  Seeing them all march in with the very cool aviator shades that Curt had picked up for them was priceless.  His enthusiasm grew throughout the week and by the end he was talking about plans to tell other men of the church how they can join him next year and share in the blessings.

This year we were privileged to host a large number of children from Guilford elementary school at Kids Camp.  Thanks to the hard work of Barb Ruffner and her team, these special visitors were treated to a delicious lunch each day following camp.  By day two this had turned into a banquet for the students, their parents, siblings and grandparents in some cases!  Each family received a Bible as well as a personal invitation from Children & Family ministry Director Jason Goetz to return and visit Quest at our weekend services.  Imagine our excitement when several of these families showed up Sunday morning.

Jesus said, “whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.” At Kids Camp 2012 the body of Christ at Reston Bible Church welcomed the presence of Jesus in a big way!

Last Sunday, our church family was privileged to see eleven families publicly proclaim their desire to raise their kids for the glory of God at our Parent-Child Dedication, held during the 11am service.

At RBC, dedicating your child allows you to proclaim before our congregation your desire to raise your child(ren) for the glory of God. Dedications serve as a vessel for parents to express gratitude to God and to acknowledge their responsibility before Him in raising their children. Dedications are done during a weekend service and follow in the spirit of Hannah who offered her son Samuel completely for the Lord’s work (1 Samuel 1:27, 28).

For more information on Parent-Child Dedications at Reston Bible Church, click here.

In the spring, a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of (sigh) baseball.

It’s true.  But before spring hits, February 14^th peeps around a wintery corner and we find an affectionate group meandering the Children’s Ministry halls for the 2^nd annual Father / Daughter Dance.  This is my personal favorite event of the year for our little ladies who come with hair curled, cheeks blushed and a curtsey-worthy gown for a night of fun and conversation with their fathers or special date (who also dress the part in a suit and tie).  The evening starts off with fathers tokening their young ladies with corsages and a formal photo shoot.  From there, it’s delightful chaos as they spend their evening walking through a couple hundred helium balloons while visiting crafts rooms, eating desert, and finally, dancing the night away!

Yes, it’s meant to be fun and enjoyable (and I think it’s safe to say, it is!), but there is something much deeper at work on this special night.  Gavin Long, an RBC dad who attended with his lovely ladies, shares from his perspective:

“The worlds of a father and his young daughter can sometimes be vastly different. Dads are battling in the marketplace, while their daughters are concerned about who likes them at school. Dads are anticipating March Madness, while his daughter is dreaming of a new dress. The Valentine’s Dance creates a common experience to let those two worlds converge. Dads are not always the best when it comes to expressing their feelings, but events like the Valentine’s Dance provide fathers with an environment to connect with their daughters in an intentional and intimate way. Simple events like this go a long way in bridging the potential divide between the worlds of fathers and daughters, providing us, as fathers, with a powerful, but accessible way of communicating love to our little girls. It is that experience of fatherly love that dramatically shapes how our girls think about themselves, their families and God throughout their lives.”

Last year, we received numerous responses back from dads telling us that this night was a springboard for them to initiate a deeper relationship with their girls.  Praise the Lord! This year, I was able to see some of the benefits before the night even ended.  You’ve got to love overhearing a 2^nd grade daughter asking her dad, “I have three things I really like about you.  Can I say more than one?”