Kids Council concludes on high-energy, deep praise note
By Kara Chase
On Friday night, August 7, the 2009 Kids Council went out with a bang - well, maybe more of a SNAP.
SNAP, the Kids Council evening session, gave parents an opportunity to attend General Council services alone, while their children learned about God through services designed specifically for them. Nearly 600 children turned out each night for Kids Council SNAP.
For the first time ever, Kids Council offered two separate services for lower-elementary (kindergarten-third grade) and upper-elementary (fourth-sixth grade) students.
“The most effective thing that we’ve done was splitting the services,” Children’s Ministries Agency Leadership and Development Coordinator Brandon Diehl said, explaining that this allowed SNAP to provide very age-specific ministry.
SNAP lower-elementary speaker was Robin Garvin, a ventriloquist who used a variety of animal puppets, including Georgie the monkey, to share Bible stories and explain character-building principles. Garvin challenged children to learn a nightly Bible verse, helping them commit the passage to memory by acting out the words.
Steve and Sandra Hogue ministered to upper-elementary students. Their Discovery Lab stage incorporated multimedia elements, science experiments and lots of interaction to help kids discover truth in God’s Word. During the four nights of SNAP, upper-elementary children discovered the truth about sin, “me,” faith and giving.
Both SNAP services kicked off with high-energy songs and fun, faith-shaping activities to engage children’s attention. These interactive portions of the service were followed by worship and lessons on important spiritual truths, tailored to the children’s understanding.
While adults and youth experienced spiritual breakthroughs in their respective services, children attending SNAP also encountered God’s power. According to Diehl, during Thursday night’s upper-elementary service, Steve Hogue felt God prompting him to have a time of prayer for healing. Upper-elementary students and their leaders prayed over 20 children who needed to be healed in some way. Leaders later told Diehl that it was one of the most incredible services they had ever been a part of.
SNAP leaders emphasized the importance of giving to missions throughout the week and on Friday night, children gave an offering to BGMC. In only a few days, they raised hundreds of dollars. Diehl said two second grade boys raised approximately $600, simply by walking through the convention center while carrying a sign asking others to give to BGMC. The SNAP offering will help Family Circus Children’s Ministries, an outreach to impoverished children in the Philippines, purchase supplies needed to bake and provide bread for Filipino kids in need.
As SNAP leaders concluded their week of Kids Council ministry to elementary students, many expressed that they were in turn impacted by the children’s growing faith, compassion for others and eagerness to worship God. And for the hundreds of kids who attended the nightly services, if offered the chance to be a part of the 2011 Kids Council in Phoenix, the decision would likely be a . . . snap.