Around the world in minutes!

I always find the song ‘I’ve been everywhere man, I’ve been everywhere’ entertaining and to see how different mediums use the song to tell a story or advertise is interesting to me.

This week in Impact we could be singing the song with new verses…

I’ve been to … Togo, Bhutan, Malaysia, Iran, Chad, Ivory Coast, Sudan, Russia, Vietnam, China, Chile, Columbia, Guatemala, USA, Canada, Iceland, Greenland, France, Papua New Guinea, Thailand, Senegal, Australia, Tanzania, Madagascar, Algeria, India, I’ve been everywhere … and that was just in the Pre-K and Kindergarten classes!

Pre-K reviewed our Bible-less people groups and prayed for them.  We asked God to send missionaries to live with them, learn their language, share the good news of Jesus Christ and write them Bibles in their own language.  We had a large world map on the floor and a ‘place marker’ on each country where our people groups lived.  This was very eye opening for the students as they could see  how many people groups we are praying for and where they live! We had a lot of fun and the students were so excited when it was their turn to ‘pick a letter’ and then we’d talk about them… It was also really cool when they remembered the people group and something interesting about them.

Kindergarten used the same map and we played ‘Pray this Way’.  The students are each handed a card with different pictures that show a need that either a missionary/believer/unbeliever might have. Each person took turns picking a country and we’d talk about the picture and how that need could be prayed for in that country.  EX:  card has a picture of a class of clear water.  We talk about how water is so important to each one of us, and the need for healthy water. The students learned that there are missionaries that go around to different countries digging wells and bringing clear healthy water to villages.  This opens the door for the missionaries to tell the villagers about their creator God and how much he loves them.  The prayers were AWESOME!

1st Grade –  The story of the Apostle Thomas.  Voice of the Martyrs has written a brand new book.   We talked about how the disciples were eye witnesses of all the miracles and teaching of Jesus.  This book shares how Thomas took his own experiences and brought the good news of Jesus Christ to India.  Today, many Christians in India remember and thank God that he sent Thomas to their country.

2nd Grade – While I was gone last week, the 2nd grade watched the Resurrection Story –  we finished it and had a great discussion on what Jesus has done for each one of us

3rd Grade – We began a series on how the Apostle John shared own eye witness account of Jesus Christ.  We’ll continue studying the life of Jesus Christ through John’s story

4th Grade – We finished 2 videos that the students had watched during my Impact Trips.  Richard Wormbrand and Harriet Tubman – We had amazing discussions about the sacrifices people have made to share the gospel. I love it when the story seems too incredible to believe and the students ask, “Is this true?”  yes… it’s true.  These people lived a life of total commitment out of their love and relationship to Jesus Christ.  We watch this to learn and use it as an example to us … we can too!

5th & 6th Grade – We finished the Richard Wormbrand story video curriculum and began ‘special feature’ sections which tell us more indepth the incredible story of Richard, Sabina and their son Mehi!  These are incredible stories that can encourage us, and challenge us to live our faith … boldly!

I’ll be gone next week to Washington, D.C.!  Please join us in prayer for the whole team that everything we do would bring glory and honor to our Savior Jesus Christ. Pray that God would give us special times that we can be his hands, eyes, feet and bless others.  Pray that the trip will challenge us to ‘be more like Him’ and take advantage of every opportunity to ‘pray onsight with insight!

Blessings

Mrs. G

Children Praying for France … it’s a beautiful thing

Everytime I return from a trip, the elementary classes want to see the pictures and hear the stories!  I enjoy sharing them with the elementary because they’ve been praying for us while we’ve been gone.  So it’s great for them to see “Who was I praying for?”  and “What did they do?”  “What can we pray for now?”

What I love most is at the close of the class, I ask the students, “Now who would like to pray for the people of France, and the things we saw and talked about?”

Sometimes I have to help the volunteers, but this last week, when the students prayed, it really blessed my heart to hear their prayers for the unbelievers and the believers of France!

Would you join us as we continue to pray for:
1. The seniors that went on the trip – that they will not forget the things they experienced and the commitments they made to Jesus Christ

2. The missionaries in France – that they would not be discouraged – they will continue to share the gospel and the love of Jesus Christ with everyone God puts in their path/life.

3. The believers in France – that they would not give up praying for God to draw unbelievers to a personal relationship with him.  Pray that they will be strong when others mock or make fun of their beliefs.

4. Unbelievers in France will turn their hearts toward our Creator God, learn and believe in his son Jesus Christ and allow the Holy Spirit to rule and reign in their lives!

Hearing your children pray … so moving!  so precious!  I believe God got great pleasure in hearing them call on him to draw his people closer to him, and to turn the hearts of the unbelievers to Him!

Prayer – Make it Fun! – Save those old game boards … cards … blocks …

Before you get anxious … let me explain where I’m coming from.

Prayer is intimidating, laborious, effective, without end and FUN!  When I began to truly understand how important prayer is I began to study it and practice it!  I would try to find ways to be around people when they were praying to see … how did they use this incredible tool God gave us?  I read the scriptures and would find myself relating to the disciples in the garden …thinking Jesus must surely be saying, “Can you not stay awake?”  AUGH!  Then the introduction of prayer walking came in to my life! It changed my prayer journey making it even more exciting!

Starting with Pre-K classes, sometimes I bring a different element of fun to our prayer time! For instance, a few ideas:

• Take an old game board like Candy Land and turn it into Jonah’s Travels, or Prayer Land!
• Use 2 large blocks, and on one block paint each side a different color. Decide what the colors will represent. Blue-family, red-friends, yellow-church, etc. When you roll the color block pray for what that color on top represents.  The second block you put different ‘sounds’ on it.  Ex:  write …yodel, oink, meow, bark, etc.  After you pray, then roll the second block. EVERYONE in the prayer group makes that sound.  It’s fun being silly, and the next person can’t wait to pray!
• Make your own prayer cards and draw one each morning or evening.

Secondary – We use prayerwalking on all our trips! Praying on-sight with in-sight!  Asking our Creator God, what is his heart for a community, situation, a people group?  We then pray what we sense God is saying to us.  We pray scripture! We pray that if the people don’t know God, he would bring someone into their life to share the gospel of Jesus Christ… get where I’m going with this?

• Prayer walking – take a walk around your neighborhood. a park, a city sidewalk, a place of business. We pray for the people in the homes, the park, in the buildings, etc.
• You don’t have to know the names of people you pray for.  If God impressed you to pray for someone – peace, health, finances, just do it, leaving the results up to God.
• At the stop light, pray for the people in the cars around you. Ask God to be with them, and with they don’t know their Creator God, ask God to bring someone into their life and introduce them.

When you expand your ‘prayer point’ to things beyond your home/school/church  it’s amazing how your perspective of God’s heart for the whole world will change!

I know you’ll agree with me that as our students – your children,  learn to pray and their prayer times mature, it’s amazing to hear their hearts pray!

The most FUN part of prayer?  Knowing God hears us and answers us!

Prayer Takes Us There!

This week in Impact Class …

Pre-K  – Pray for the Safwa People of Tanzania!  “lions, giraffes and the red-billed oxpecker…oh my!”   The Safway people have very little Christian literature and do not have a Bible in their own language! Pray for Bible translators to live among the Safwa people to learn their culture and write them a Bible in their own language!

Kindergarten – We reviewed some favorite Bible stories. I love how God’s word is timeless don’t you?  The truths of David and Goliath and Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are still the same today!  Even though they were young, God did powerful things in and through their lives!  I remember how incredible these stories were to me at a very young age.  I loved how one of the students said, “Mrs. Ginger, is this true?” I hold up a Bible and tell them, “This story is in this Bible and YES … it is true!  It is ALL True!” “Wow”  … yes … we serve a “WOW” God!

1st Grade – Up Up and Away … to Japan!  The tsunami that hit Japan last year brings long lasting devastation.  We remember Katrina and the devastation it brought our own nation!  We’ll hear from missionaries that are there, right now bringing hope to the hopeless. Pray for the continued struggle of the Japanese and those that are helping them rebuild.

2nd Grade – “Fasten your seat belts and bring your trays and seats into the upright position…”  we are heading to Amman, Jordan! We’ll visit the ancient city of Petra.  The main religion is Jordan is Sunni Islam. Only about 6% are Christian. Pray for the believers in Jordan to be courageous to share their faith.

3rd Grade –  Pray for the Malay people of Southeast Asia. The Malays live in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore! The main religion of the Malay people is Islam. Many girls learn batik while the boys learn to be fishermen, silversmiths or potters. The whole family might work in the rice fields! The Malay are Muslim.

4th Grade – The Crow Indians … do you have a “joking relative” in your family? I have about 3 of them. Ask your 4th grader what this ‘part’ in the Crow culture means for the family.  Pray for the Crow to discover that our Creator God loves them.

5th – We are continuing to learn about William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army!  Booth was a ‘General’ in God’s Army … armed with only Bibles, musical instruments and an unflinching faith in God, William led his army of believers into dangersous areas in London to bring healing to hurting souls!

6th – Ticklish Reuben and Cool Luke!  The 6th graders are continuing to perfect the art of puppeteering as they prepare for their next time to minister in chapel and the nursing home…  We’ll keep you updated!

Pray for Unreached People’s Groups!

Join our Pre-K class in praying for unreached people groups around the world.  Each week as the Pre-K class learns a new letter – we learn about a Bibleless- people group that has not been reached with the gospel of Jesus Christ.  We pray for God to send a missionary/believer to them, to live with them and write them a Bible in their own language! We know God answers prayers!

In my class we use: Akebu to Zapotec Bibleless People   A Book of Bibless People   Wyclifee Bible Translators

Parents, here’s a site for you.  Would you think about adding these people groups to YOUR daily prayer list?    http://www.pioneers.org/Send/UnreachedPeoples.aspx