A Chillaxing kind of day!

Numbers were really down yesterday in the Zone, a result of some bad weather expected and lots of folks on holiday trips still I guess? That and I am sure many wanting to make it downtown to watch our Colts go for the big 15 and Uh-O! Wait a minute...ya know my heart goes out to all of you who paid big bucks to go see our team yesterday and then them yank out the starters in the 3rd to "allow" the Jets to take home that game yesterday...if your gonna cash it in like that and go all pre-season on folks don't you think the least they could have done is have someone at the door give out refunds for those tickets wasted?

Hmmm..........thinking.............feeling a bit convicted to be honest.

I was gonna talk about yesterday in the Zone how we just chilled, took a break for one week, relaxed. And was going to say it was because numbers were down or we were missing mentors, etc. But to be honest we went all "Colts" yesterday and took it down a notch and I guess what I am saying is...........I'm sorry! We should have had the same "prep" the same "game plan" as we normally do and if some of our "starters" were not there....we still go for the win!

Hey nobody got hurt yesterday and we still are on track to get where we want to be in February....but then again that is what the Colts would say today and look how upset most all of us are at them?

Sigh...I'm gonna go back to the "chalkboard" right now and get to planning for the game...err service this week!

Forget October, what about November and December?

Hey guys so sorry parents and visitors for being such a lame blogger the last few weeks it has been a very crazy/sad/happy time for me and my family the last month or so! It all started the Monday after Trunk or Treat when I got the call that my dad was in the hospital and not doing very well, he had been diagnosed with lung cancer just the week before and was going in for a biopsy on the cancer, when he crashed and it was found out he had suffered a stroke the Halloween weekend prior. He went on to be with the Lord on November the 14th.
So take the first two weeks of November from me and then I get back and come down with the flu that took another week from me and that left me the last month to play catch up on a very busy time here in church life.............enough said on all that except............if you ever get the chance to be in the presence of, hold the hand of a believer as they close their eyes here on this earth for the last time and then open them in eternity with Jesus........do it! I have never been so sad in my life only to feel such joy come upon me, that whole "joy of the Lord" thing really hit me how powerful and real it is! Sigh.........man I could go on and on from here but will just limit this to a few thousand words and move on!
Things here in the elem world at TPCC have never been better, for the last few weeks I have had the chance on Sunday mornings to sneak in and listen in on our small groups as they meet after our corporate worship times and I am amazed at the depth of love and care our adult mentors have for our kids here! We have some exciting things coming up the first of the year with Superstart www.ciy/superstart.com coming to town here in early Feb and then having Yancy www.yancynotnancy.com sticking around to minister to our kids on Sunday Feb 7th in both our morning services. And I cannot wait to see what else God has for us in 2010 I feel so blessed to be here in the Zone right now with the kids and adults we have and know you and your kids do not want to miss a Sunday!
Well I am gonna bolt, still have lots of catching up to do, and want again to wish all of you the Merriest of Christmases as we worship the birth of our risen Savior Jesus Christ! He so rocks!
Later dudes, peeps, people of the world!
Darren

Where Did October Go?

Man you blink and an entire month just flies by! I am sorry guys for not posting the last two weeks....I have just been so busy with "stuff" and Trunk or Treat coming up this Saturday I have let the ol' blog go!

My apologies and lets get caught up shall we? We had the proph Jeremiah come and speak to the kid two weeks ago and what an awesome job our presenter did being the "weeping" prophet...it had the kids (and adults) in stitches!

Then this last week we talked about pursuing holiness and righteousness in our lives...I wonder sometimes if the kids get more out of the lessons or me sometimes, I felt totally convicted!

"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will perform the good things which I have promised." Jeremiah 33:14

How many of us have been promised something by the Lord and then how patient are we to wait on that promise to be revealed or realized? I know that Gods words are like day and night, they will come, sooner or later you know it will be one or the other! Down in verse 2o of that same chapter God says "if you can break my covenant with the day or night then my covenants can be broken..." What God is saying is that we can bank on/trust in/count on/believe in/stand on/stand by/trust in His words in good times as well as the bad! We will be taking this subject on in greater detail with the kids this week...it promises to be, you guessed it, another awesome week in the Zone!

Later dudes

Darren

Oopsie Poopsie!

Sorry faithful followers of the Kids Blast Blog (or the KBB as we like to call it...actually nobody calls it that, lame attempt at being cool) anyway, I am so sorry, I have got so into things this week I totally forgot to blog about this past week and tell you what is up for the kids in the Zone this week!

Last week was (you guessed it) just awesome, well not awesome but "really" awesome! We discussed missions this last week and kicked off our book drive, where our kids are bringing in used books for the kids in the area in various reading programs through the local schools! First hour I had a blast making a "Kenyan Shake" illustrating the things we here in this country take for granted every day and do not think about the things kids around the world just do not have.....most of all Christ!

And how our missionaries not only address the physical needs of the kids we reach out to but the spiritual needs as well!

Second hour the fabulous Dougini was at it again with his incredible powers of illusion (not magic) in illustrating the same message!

This week our very own Cole/Melissa will be back from their trip from Kenya with our missions team and I am looking forward to a report from them and seeing all the pic's they took while there. And most of all telling of the great things God is doing there!

Cool! Hey have to keep this short but did not want to forget...well not totally forget to keep you up with what is happening in the Zone!

Later dudes!

Darren

4 Corners!

Well this week we had (again) another fabulous, wonderful, awesome week in the Zone! I know, I know, "you say that every week!" Yeah, I guess I do...but it is what I have come to expect from each week in the Zone! Perfection? No discipline problems? No pukes/bleeding? No shows for classes? Hey we got all that and more! It's children's ministry man...it's dangerous, hilarious, fun, scary, messy and every other colorful word you can think of I am sure it applies in some way! But it is awesome for one reason and one alone! We ask and expect God to show up each week and totally (try) to let the Holy Spirit lead and direct our morning...and with that kind of start I don't care what happens it is going to be a "good, good, good, good, good, good morning" man that song gets stuck in ones head!
On to this next week, first, we are breaking up the team and sending reps all over the world, Cole is heading out to Kenya for 10 days to take the kids offerings and stuff they collected to the kids in the slum we will be adopting...I am heading off to Dallas to see/listen/hear/allow God to pour into me what He has for us next here and am so excited about that! And this week upcoming we will be talking about sacrifice!
Kids get it, we all as kids were in a sitch where someone "took the hit" for something we did and rightfully deserved punishment for. And this week we will examine the greatest of all examples of such sacrifice and that is Christ's punishment for our sins...pray with us we can make this come alive to the kids and they will leave with a full understanding that the sacrifice of our Savior Jesus Christ should result in nothing less that a total sacrificial abandonment to the Lord every day of our lives!
Later friends, thanks for the kind words, thoughts and prayers! I look forward to being with the kids next week in the Zone and sharing what God reveals this week in Dallas...I need a hat!
Pastor Darren

Obedience/Everlasing God!

What a great Sunday we had this last week...I had hoped to show a pic of the kids and all the stuff they had collected for our church's mission trip to Kenya in just a few weeks (will have to get that posted later).
But what a great week learning about the blessing of obedience to Jesus...as I taught the second hour this last week I truly believe it takes more effort and alot less benefit to disobedience than to just submit and obey God when he calls and asks of us!
This week we will be telling the kids of how worthy God is of our worship, and He is when......

• He has paid for our sin.
• He levels rough ground and smooths rugged places in our lives.
• His Word will eternally stand.
• He is a powerful, sovereign Lord.
• He is a gentle, loving shepherd.
• He measures earth's waters and weighs it's mountains.
• He needs no counsel or instruction.
• H sits on His throne above the earth and spreads out the heavens.
• He brings leaders and rulers of this world to nothing.
• he is unequaled on earth and in heaven.
• He created all the stars in the heavens and summons them by name.
• He is the everlasting God and Creator of the whole earth. He never tires and never grows weary.
• He infuses the weak and weary with His power.
• He renews the strength of those who place their abandoned hope in Him.

All this from Isaiah chapter 40 (and I wish I could claim this but copied it from a devo for our mentors in this week's curriculum!) But is it not awesome to think that God is all these things and even more? I pray we are able by God's Spirit...His Holy Spirit to be able to get this message across to the kids this week and that (even more) you would get this message down in your hearts, that OUR GOD IS AN AWESOME GOD!

Later for now, looking forward to having a Blast this week in the Zone!

Congrats to our kids on a wonderful job of reaching their goal in our Kenyan giving project and cannot wait to tell you in a few weeks about our special book drive to support a local school here in Z-ville!

Darren

WARNING

I am forgiven because of Jesus.

I am guided by God's Word.

I am created for a special purpose.

I am loved and accepted by God.

I am strong with God's help.

We began a new unit of study this last week and will last till the first of December, and it is on the three major prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. And the point of the three prophets was to bring warnings from God to His people Israel! This last week we focused on repentance and this week we will be taking up the topic of obedience! And we had the prophet Isaiah come and hang out with us this week and tell us about what it was that God had for him to tell the people!

We had a blast this last week and way to go kids in raising over 1200 dollars for our Kenya trip in just a few weeks to help the kids of the community we are adopting over there! With that money we will be buying supplies for the kids there to share the gospel and to help fix up a school over there for the kids, and we also raised over 700 boxes of crayons for the kids! Way to go kids and way to go Cole in sacrificing your head (he got a mohawk) to inspire the kids to reach their goals!

See ya this week as we will have a Blast again worshipping God and praising Jesus!

Darren