Quest for the King – Kids Camp 2014
Our epic adventure, with 220 children and 140 volunteers, over five days has come to an end …but it’s really only the beginning. This past week we hosted our 2014 Kids Camp where we focused on the King Jesus, each day unveiling a new clue to His identity and the key to entering His eternal Kingdom. The children learned that our King was foretold long ago by the Prophets, that He alone has power to rule and reign over nature, the spiritual world, sin, and death. We learned that He is a shepherd King who laid down His life for us, and that He defeated death and the grave by rising on the third day, and that by coming to Him in faith we enter His eternal Kingdom. Finally, we closed the week with the exciting news that Jesus the King is building His Kingdom through each of us in His Church.
We want to thank everyone who volunteered, who prayed, and who gave towards making this time a blessing to so many children. Thank you to everyone on the RBC staff who set aside significant amounts of their time to make this week extra special for the children. Having the privilege to see many young people come to Christ in faith, and others deepen their understanding of their faith, is a reward beyond what we could ask or imagine. Thank you!
– Mike Meyers, Children’s Ministry Director
Photo credit: A huge THANK YOU to Agung Fauzi of Seize the Day Photography for volunteering his time & talents to give us such excellent photos of this year’s Kids Camp!
Update: Clothing Exchange 2014
There were over 100 people lined up and waiting in the rain when we opened the doors last Saturday morning, and within the first hour we had given away more than 300 bags of clothing. (The photo above is after we opened the doors – the photo below is literally one hour later.)
We saw specific needs met over and over. Thanks to the generosity of our people, along with serving our body, and the local community, we were able to send clothing to missionaries in Japan and Ethiopia, and to a Christian rehab center here in Virginia. There were about 30 bags of clothing left at the end of the event, which went to SACS, the thrift store we partner with.
Beyond the Book Drive
If you have ever wondered what might have happened to the books that were leftover from RBC’s book drive for Guilford Elementary last Spring, then you will love this story. Open Arms Worldwide (OAW) is a mission supported by Reston Bible Church that works in low income or otherwise at-risk neighborhoods in Brazil. Open Arms works to mobilize and equip local churches to reach and teach children who are in their community, but outside their church family. This year, Open Arms has started working in the U.S. as well, and their first project is right in our backyard. In partnership with Sterling Park Baptist Church, we have begun building a relationship with another Sterling Park elementary school, Sully Elementary.
At the beginning of the month, Sterling Park Baptist and Open Arms held a book drive with the goal of providing 2-3 books for every child at Sully to read over the summer. In the spirit of unity in the body of Christ, RBC gave the effort a huge head start by donating around 1,000 books that were left over from the Guilford drive last Spring. Your gifts have been multiplied and the body of Christ has been glorified! Win, win!
Read more about this story on the Open Arms website.
“I in them, and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” – Jesus in John 17:23
As You Walk Along the Way
On May 2, RBC held a Marriage Booster event featuring Mike Meyers, our Director of Children’s Ministry and the president of Open Arms Worldwide. If you missed the event or would like a refresher, you can listen to the audio here. Below is an outline from Mike from his teaching.
The greatest battle that the church family currently faces is the knock-down drag-out fight with Satan over the hearts of the next generation. Raising a generation that knows Christ and makes him known will be the greatest gift & legacy we leave for the world.
Key Verse:
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” Deut. 6:5-7
Considering our passage in its immediate context,
- Verse 5 – Preceded by the “greatest command”
- Verse 6 – It is a matter of the heart
Notice in Verse 7,
- Not a request – The imperative form is used. This is a command.
- “Impress them on your children” – Teach them diligently.
- Life on life discipleship
7 Principles for Walking Along the Way
Principle #1 – Don’t Freak Out – “Concern is healthy; panic kills.”
- Take the long view because God is writing a story in the life of your child. It’s a movie not a snapshot.
Principle #2 – Be Real
- Walking along the way means not being a pretender. You may fool a very young child for a little while, but they will find you out it will shake their faith to its core.
Principle #3 – More lens, less shield
- Spend more time giving our children the proper lens through which to see this world, and less time sheltering them from it. If we don’t someone else will.
Principle #4 – Enter their world – Jesus entered ours (Phil. 2:5-7)
- Make it a point to know the young person you are walking with.
Principle #5 – The target is the Savior, not behavior – Adjust your aim
- Lead them to the gospel (Romans 3:23, 6:23)
Principle #6 – Be joyful
- “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” 3 John 1:4
Principle #7 – No excuses
- Excuses may be valid, but they will be overcome when generational discipleship becomes a priority.
I hope that you found something here to challenge you and to encourage you to take seriously God’s call to generational discipleship and ask yourself the question, “What legacy are we leaving?” “Will we be mentioned in anyone’s story of faith?”
Questions for further discussion:
- If I could be remembered by my children or grandchildren for only one thing it would be…
- If you looked back at your life using Mike’s metaphor of the “snapshot” what period of your life might have given the adults around you reason to despair? How has God used that time period in the broader narrative of your life?
- Have you ever thought about your relationship with the children in your life as one of teacher-disciple? Why/why not? How might this perspective change the way you parent or engage with young people close to you?
- Did you ever view your relationship with your parents as one of disciple to teacher? Why or why not?
- In what ways does the teacher-disciple relationship change as children grow up and in what ways does it stay the same?
- How are you, or could you be, living out God’s command to “walk along the way” with the next generation?
ESL & Emergency Preparedness
With all that it takes to become comfortable and productive in Northern Virginia culture, it occurred to me that the internationals in our English as a Second Language program would benefit from understanding how to handle emergency situations. One of our teachers, Ron Colan, has a son who is a deputy with the Loudoun County Sheriff’s office. Deputy Colantonio was only too happy to come in and share basic knowledge with our students. I also contacted the Loudoun County Fire and Rescue Squad and they sent a very capable public education manager, Lisa Braun, to provide training in all matters having to do with fire safety and calling 911.
For our two lower-level classes, I had to provide translators in order to ensure clear understanding of this important information. Thankfully, I was able to find the right people for all the major language groups. The presenters deftly maneuvered talking then pausing, over and over again, in order to allow the translators to work effectively.
Ms. Braun provided a 911 simulator which looks like a telephone and has a recording of the likely dialog that would be heard from the 911 operator. It was great for the students to try to answer the dispatcher’s questions and listen for instructions. When one is in a stressful situation, this may not be so easily done – even for a native English speaker!
Deputy Colantonio talked about what to do if one is pulled over by a police officer and also the procedure to follow should one have a traffic accident. Students had many questions on other matters pertaining to the law that have either been misunderstood or not known.
We strive to give our students practical information about how to live here as responsible citizens. Part of that is helping them to acquire the language and part of that is providing cultural insight including understanding the law. The more we show our love and concern for them, the more likely we will have a platform for pointing them to the ultimate need they have in their lives – knowledge of Jesus Christ and His relevance to every person, whether born here or elsewhere.
Event Recap: 2014 Women’s Retreat
For the third year in a row, the ladies of Reston Bible Church converged on the Sterling Doubletree Hotel for a weekend away from the pressures and stresses of everyday life. We gathered together – freed from the distractions of families, careers and simple things like making our own beds and meals – ready to hear from the Lord through Shawn Lantz, who taught on the subject of Living with Unmet Desires.
Shawn is the daughter of missionaries who moved to the Democratic Republic of Congo when she was ten, and now resides in Nashville with her husband and three children. Throughout the course of our three days together, Shawn led us through the four core issues of jealousy, taught us to expose the true idols of our hearts, and learn how to forgive ourselves and those who we feel have sinned against us. Shawn’s message was a balm to many hurting hearts, and her delivery was clear and concise. She shared many moving anecdotes about her time in the Congo and was transparent about her own personal experiences and struggles with the topic at hand, which was refreshing and encouraging.
After each teaching session, we talked through what we’d learned in small groups. Sharing in our small groups was a great way for women to share with and encourage each other, and form new connections.
On Saturday afternoon, a chunk of free time afforded us the opportunity to participate in a service project for the RBC Food Pantry or attend a special interest meeting. We were also given the opportunity to buy handcrafted bags to support Napada, a ministry in Bangkok that employs women from low-income communities. The proceeds (and there were many!) went directly back into the ministry (and the bags were gorgeous). Some women took the chance to head out to the outlets for some shopping or worked out together at the gym. And I think a great many of us took naps.
Once again, the RBC women’s retreat proved to be an extraordinary time of teaching, connecting with other women, and hearing powerful messages from the Lord. Please pray that the Lord would continue to bear fruit from our time together at the retreat.
– Emily Cassee, Retreat Planning Committee
In this video, shown during the retreat, Jan Stevens shares about the loss of her son, David, and God’s redeeming hand throughout his life. Her story is a powerful testimony of our Lord’s grace & provision in the midst of the most difficult of unmet desires.
Foster Care “Fill-a-Bag” Update
When children come into foster care, they are often removed from their homes in an emotional and chaotic scene.
Their biological families pack their belongings in whatever bags they may have handy, including garbage bags. Sometimes, families don’t have any large bags to give children to carry their things, as many of these children come from low income families. Many times children come into foster care with nothing that first night. To have a bag of their own, filled with items that are just for them as they enter a world that is not their own, can offer a small but powerful comfort.
This was the challenge that we presented to our body back in January. Let us be the hands and feet of Christ by providing shiny new duffel bags filled with the necessities that a child whose world has just been turned upside down would need, plus some extra goodies so they would feel valued and loved. We can’t measure the effect that holding a teddy bear that will be theirs to keep would have on a child that first night away from the only home they have every known.
We are grateful to God that our people are a generous people and embraced this opportunity to love a child they will probably never meet. We had over 200 bags donated, which filled two 15-passenger vans. The bags will be distributed to several local foster care agencies and will meet a tremendous need.
Update: Daddy-Daughter Dance
It’s a very special night, the Daddy Daughter Valentine’s Dance. RBC is transformed into a magical place where little girls and their Daddies create lifelong memories. For the past five years, I have helped my daughter prepare for this much-anticipated event. We shop for dresses, try on shoes, curl hair and paint nails. She comes down the staircase and joins her Daddy for a quick photo shoot, and then off they go. This year, however, my daughter was past the age of being able to attend so she asked if she could serve. As we left for the dance, my husband said goodbye in a difficult moment where we gave each other that “she’s-growing-up-too-fast” look.
The theme of this year’s dance was Enchantment Under the Sea. A treasure map led Dads and Daughters through an undersea world with something special to encounter at every turn, including seafaring crafts, treats, and decorations and plenty of dancing.But the most wonderful thing about the evening was watching the interactions. I did not see Dads absorbed in conversations with one other or checking their phones or watches. Rather, I saw dapper Dads proudly hoisting their girls into their laps for a picture. I saw Dads elbow-deep in glitter creating pretty crafts. I saw Dads enjoying ice cream sundaes and clam cookies complete with a candy “pearl.” I saw a sea of Dads on the dance floor clapping to the chicken dance and cradling their girls in their arms to songs that remind them how precious and short the time is. It was a beautiful night.
Amid the enchantment, I saw little girls whose self-esteem soared. Little girls who felt so loved as their Dad fully engaged with them and entered into their world. Little girls who looked up to their Dads proudly. Bravo to all of you Dads who came and gave the gift of making your daughters feel like the most special little girls on the earth (or under the sea.)
– Vickie Wennemark, Family Ministry Assistant
An International Connection Thanksgiving
The RBC Club House room was packed with international faces and languages – children, adults, seniors – all chattering and eating. The annual Thanksgiving Dinner for International Connection (our ESL, or English as a Second Language program) was a chaotic but lively and warm gathering! We welcomed 168 guests, which made it shoulder-to-shoulder in that space.
The buffet area was set up with two rows of international cuisine – tamales, rice pilaf, spring rolls– mixed in with traditional dishes of turkey, mashed potatoes and stuffing. The International Connection volunteers (plus extra helpers) provided the traditional Thanksgiving fare to give our students a taste of North America. The students proudly contributed the bounty from their home countries. What a feast!
After dinner, the children were dismissed to take part in their own supervised activities while the adults remained to enjoy the program. Pastor Ed Nalle led us in singing “Give Thanks with a Grateful Heart” and then performed “Be Ye Glad” to a rapt audience. We watched a short video that presented the history of the holiday. Then there were class presentations and individual student speeches – the highlight of the evening. From the choral readings to the personalized expressions of why they are thankful, it was a time to count our blessings and then focus on the greatest gift of all – Jesus. Mike Meyers, Children’s Ministry Director, reminded us to stop and recognize the good things right in front of us that are easily taken for granted.
Our students come from about 25 different countries and 14 language groups. They are sometimes mystified by the new culture in which they find themselves but when they come to English classes here at RBC each week, they find an oasis where they can practice their language skills in a safe and caring environment and where they can learn about how to adapt to life in this country. Many come for the English but come back for the friendship and more. May God give us grateful hearts this holiday time as we think of those who are struggling to survive in the midst of so much upheaval
Event Update: Community Yard Sale
Thank you to all who donated items, picked up furniture, sorted and priced, and worked the day of our recent Community Yard Sale. We raised over $6500 to put into our Community Ministries – but even more importantly, we saw God meet specific needs in the body.
In spite of the rain, we had a great turnout and people were blessed to be able to purchase clothing and household items for their families at very affordable prices. I was able to help one woman choose Christmas presents for her extended family – things that were beautiful and special but that she would not have been able to afford to buy from stores. We watched as a young family purchased furniture that they desperately needed, plus a few toys for their young children. One woman bought armfuls of clothing to send back to her homeland, where even after she pays the shipping costs the clothes were still less expensive than if her family members bought them in their country.
It was a lot of work, but the Lord used it for His glory and to further His kingdom. Thank you to all who played a part in making this event happen.