God Will Help Me Stand Up Against Temptation!

Today in 123 Go your children learned about the dangers of temptation and how to stand up against it. In this series we are following Kit and Andi on a Treasure Quest, Kit and Andi had their own problems with temptation this week. Andi saw an opportunity to attack some nearby monkeys and retrieve all of the stolen items from previous weeks. Kit cautioned Andi against this idea explaining that this was the monkeys’ territory and attacking them would only make things worse. Andi had a choice to make; do the right thing and listen to Kit or do the wrong thing and ambush the monkeys anyway. Andi gave in to temptation and was soon captured by the monkeys. Eventually, Andi was allowed to return but not before being tied up and covered with banana peels. Kit found the Temptation Stone and puzzle and the newly humbled Andi helped explain the Bible story.

The Bible story for today is found in Matthew 4 and tells the story of Jesus being tempted by Satan. The story begins with Jesus out in the wilderness, fasting and praying to God. He’d been fasting for forty days and was extremely hungry. Satan comes to Jesus and tempts Jesus to turn some rocks into bread. Jesus says, “no,” and quotes scripture as his reason for refusing. Next, Satan tempts Jesus to jump off the roof of the temple, saying God will send angels to rescue Him. Once again, Jesus refuses and quotes scripture saying that we should not test God. Finally, Satan shows Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and tells Jesus that he will give all of it to Him if Jesus will bow down and worship him. Jesus refuses again and quotes scripture saying that we are to worship God and God alone. Andi learned first hand the danger of giving in to temptation. Through the Bible story we learned how to stand up against temptation by using scripture. Knowing what the Bible has to say will help us in any tempting situation we come across.

This Week's Bible Story:

Temptation of Jesus (Matthew 4:1-11)

This Week's Memory Verse:

The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure." 1 Corinthians 10:13 (NLT)

This week, remind your children to make a habit of reading their Bibles and memorizing verses! It is a great opportunity to memorize this weeks verse together. The code word for next week is: SELFISH. Tell me this word next Sunday and you will receive 5 Action Bucks! Don't forget that if you memorize the verse for next week, you will receive 10 Action Bucks!

Church is Where I Learn About God!

This week was week 3 of our 8 week series of Treasure Quest, where each Sunday we learn important things about who Jesus is and what He taught us. We are also following Kit Windswept and her assistant Andi as they search for the treasure. This week Kit and Andi’s journey got off to a rocky start today when Andi unwittingly took a bite of a fruit that takes away a person’s voice. Soon after, the two discovered the “Knowledge Stone” and its puzzle. Normally, Andi was the one who explained the Bible story and solved the puzzle, but without a voice it was impossible. For the first time on this journey, Kit had to read the Bible story and solve the puzzle.

The Bible story this week is found in Luke chapter 2 and it tells a story about Jesus when he was 12 years old. Jesus and His family had traveled to Jerusalem for the Passover festival. When the festival ended, the family started traveling back home. Jesus’ parents thought that He was with the rest of the group, but it turns out that He wasn’t. They didn’t know where Jesus was. Eventually His parents headed back to Jerusalem and looked all over the city for three days. They finally found Jesus at the temple sitting with the religious leaders, asking them questions. He was learning about God. He explained to His parents that he was supposed to be there. Jesus showed us that it is important to learn about God, and church is where we can accomplish that. Eventually, Andi’s voice returned and they set out on the rest of their journey.

This Week's Bible Story:

Jesus in the Temple as a Child (Luke 2:41-49)

This Week's Memory Verse

"To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge." Matthew 13:12a (NLT)

Church is an extremely important part of your child’s life. It is here that your child will make friendships, have fun, and most importantly, learn about God. This will help them have the best life possible. Please help them come each and every Sunday!

This Sunday, Treasure Quest will begin for 123 Go!

Last week, we learned that Heroes are Generous and we should use what God has given us to help others. We looked at three stories from the Bible; Abraham and Lot (Genesis 13:1-11), Five loafs of bread and two fish (John 6:1-13) and the woman who gave everything she had (Mark 12:41-44). Each of these stories shows generosity in different ways, through giving money, giving a choice and giving of what you have. Do you know which way goes to which story? Our memory verse for this week is 2 Corinthians 9:7c, if you have it memorized on Sunday, you get 5 Action Bucks!

This coming Sunday February 7th we will start an 8 week series in 123 Go! The theme is called Treasure Quest, it is an adventure through the life of Jesus leading us to the Cross and Easter Sunday. I would like to encourage you to not miss a week of this important series into the life of Jesus!

The secret code word is: SIN

123 Go - and be Generous!

This week in 123 Go, we learned that God is Generous: I Should Give Back to Him!

We talked about the importance of giving and went through the story of Jacob found in Genesis 28:10-22. In this story Jacob promised to give the first tenth of everything he had back to God. Our memory verse for this week is James 1:22, help your children memorize it and they will receive 5 Action Bucks this Sunday!

Reminder: This Sunday January 31^st is the last Sunday of the month, this means that the store will be open so make sure you have all of your Kosmic Kid (yes they are still good) and Action Bucks ready to spend!

Here is a hint to our theme this Sunday

Secret code word: Superheroes

123 Go!

Jesus came to this world to serve us He came and put others needs first. For the next few weeks, we will be focusing on serving and giving in 123 Go! This week we heard the story of Paul and Silas in jail from Acts 16. Paul put the guard in first, by telling him that all of the prisoners where there so there was no need for him to hurt himself.

Our memory verse is Galatians 6:3 
"If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself. You are not that important." (NLT).

Big news for 4th and 5th graders!

Alpine Christian Camp is hosting our Jr.'s Winter camp February 5th- February 7th! Mr. J will be leading us through an adventure about conquering our fears, for more information click here. This is an exciting weekend you don't want to miss, and if money has been holding you back, this may help you out...

The normal cost of this camp to us is $110 (not the $140 is says on the form), however for the next two weeks, the cost will be reduced to $90 for the weekend! In order to take advantage of this discount you must have your medical release form, (just click the link to print it) and $50 to Alexa no later than January 17th.

Camp is a great experience for kids! Not only does it give them a fun weekend in the mountains with friends, but it also allows them to develop a deeper relationship with Jesus! So, have your son/daughter grab a friend and sign up today!

If you have any questions about camp please contact me at amedina@desertspringsfamily.org or call the church office. See you Sunday!

Upcoming Events in Children's Ministry

We are back from the holidays and it is a new year! I just wanted to take this opportunity to share with you few exciting upcoming events that will be happening in Children's Ministry the next few months that you and your family wont want to miss!

Parent's Night Out is a monthly event that happens from 6-9pm. For $5 a child, your child will get a pizza dinner, craft projects, and games in 3 packed hours of fun, while you can enjoy a night out.

Here are the upcoming PNO's...

January 8th - THIS FRIDAY!

February 12th

March 5th

May 7th

Jr.'s Winter Camp at Alpine!

February 5th-7th all 4th and 5th grade students are invited to join us for a weekend of fun and learning up in the mountains. This is a great opportunity for friends to be invited and double up on the fun experience! Sign up quick as camp is just around the corner!

Highway 45 has an event just for 4th and 5th graders each month, this month it is an Ice Cream Sunday bar, for $2 you can come and have all the ice cream you can eat! Come, bring a friend and let the fun begin!

It's coming... June 21st - 25th 2010 will be SUMMER BLAST! Save those dates, because you and your children wont want to miss "Power Up!" a video game adventure learning about the armor of God with special musical guest Dean-O returning!

Keep checking back here to see what is happening in Children's Ministry at Desert Springs Church!