General

Each week our building is filled with the excitement and activity of lots of children! In fact 33% of Calvary families have children under the age of 12 and it is the privilege of the Children’s Ministry team to minister to these families each week. The vision of Children’s Ministry is to touch the lives and hearts of children with God’s love while they are still children. It is our passion to see kids know God personally and to develop a deep love relationship with Him while they are young. It is our conviction that kids can grow and mature in their walk with the Lord and be involved in prayer and ministry. Each week more than 50 volunteers and staff minister to kids and nurture spiritual growth in kids through Children’s Ministry activities.

Our littlest ones are introduced to God’s love through KidCare which is a place where they can feel safe and loved while Mom and Dad get involved in church life. KidCare is led by Renita LeCrone, an experienced director, and her wonderful staff of KidCare teachers, half of whom have been at Calvary for more than 9 years! On Sundays, week nights and during special church events this staff of dedicated ladies welcome the little ones into a colorful room filled with toys, puzzles, books and pictures to engage the imagination of the child. Our teachers know kids by name and create a warm, loving place for kids to feel safe while playing, making friends, hearing Bible stories or singing songs. Dolores Guests says that her grandchildren love to come to KidCare when they visit her!

A strong foundation in biblical truth is provided for kids of all ages in Kids Bible Study. On Sunday mornings kids enjoy kid oriented Bible study classes where they learn the Bible through activities, songs, puppets and stories. These classes, organized by age and grade, are taught by experienced teachers, most of whom have taught kids at Calvary for more than 5 years and 4 of whom have taught more than 10 years! These precious men and women teach kids with passion, love and dedication, and they are dearly loved by the kids.

Kids Church is a place where kids are encouraged to apply biblical truth in practical ways and have an opportunity of encounter the Lord in worship, prayer, and ministry time. Knowing what God says and believing His Word is the basis for kids to grow and mature in their faith and to get actively involved in ministry. In Kids Church kids have a safe place to pray for one another and to participate in ministry time. We have seen a room full of kids quiet and reverent for an extended period of time in response to the tangible presence of the Lord. We have had 90% of the kids respond when invited to come to the front to pray for a person or a special need. Kids may be little and young, but they know that God is real and they respond to His presence. We rejoice at the spiritual hunger and sensitivity of the children and pray that God will increase it mightily.

Memorizing the Bible is something we value highly in Children’s Ministry. Kids are encouraged to learn God’s Word in many ways and through different Children’s Ministry programs. One very successful way has been the Bible Memory Program in Kids Church where kids are rewarded with Honor Awards and special prizes for their accomplishments. In the past year, kids were challenged to memorize 15 verses, the names of the books of the New Testament, and the fruit of the Spirit. Thirty-two kids participated by memorizing verses and 4 kids completed the entire Bible Memory Program for the year. In May every kid who completed one level of the Bible Memory Program enjoyed a wonderful ice cream sundae party to celebrate their accomplishments in addition to the prizes they earned.

Kids in the 1^st - 5^th grade love coming to Kids Club on Wednesday night during the school year. Boys Club is beginning its 11^th year this fall under the leadership of Tom Petry and his team of men. This team utilizes fun, fellowship and faith building activities to encourage boys to grow into young men of faith and character. A new activity is planned for this year under the leadership of Anthony Bennett...cooking for boys! Boys earn points for their participation, including Bible memory, and at the end of the year awards are handed out at the Boys Club Overnight. Girls Club is beginnings its 3^rd year this fall under the leadership of Sandy Lynn and Marcella Rundio with their team of ladies. Girls are encouraged in their development of faith and character through a variety of activities, Bible memory, and journaling. The girls also have lots of fun doing crafts and cooking. They end the year with a Girls Club Overnight and some special Mother-Daughter activities.

The highlight of the summer is ArtReach, a 5 day arts camp that touches not only our Calvary Kids but kids from the community too. Of the 200 kids who came to ArtReach2007, 74% of them were from the community. During ArtReach2007 kids got to discover how they are marvelously made by God and to explore their own creative talents and gifts by enjoy art, music, Bible time and one workshop (Dance; Drama; Music; Prop Art; Creative Writing.) At the end of the week, we had the awesome privilege to pray with 67 kids to receive Jesus as Savior. On Friday night almost every family returned to see their kid participate in the Parent’s Night Program! It was incredible to see our Worship Center filled with family and friends! Numerous parents told us how much their kids love ArtReach camp which explains why we had the maximum number of kids we could accommodate by the first day of ArtReach. We are already working on ways to increase our enrollment capacity for next year so more kids can come to ArtReach2008!

Children’s Ministry is built on the love, dedication and talents of Calvary volunteers and the Children’s Ministry team. More than 50 volunteers minister to kids each week and during ArtReach the number of volunteers increases to more than 100 teens and adults! Men and women of all ages spend hundreds of hours praying, planning for activities and ministering to kids and their families. Week after week Calvary people faithfully serve the purposes of God in ways that are significant for the Kingdom of God. We are passion about seeing children know and love God now. We have seen God’s faithfulness during Calvary’s 25 years, and we anticipate greater things in the future.

Art Reach: Releasing Creativity & Capturing Hearts”

In the summer of 2003, the youth of Calvary joined with Christ Redeemer Episcopal Church in Houston ’s inner-city to provide a week-long creative arts day camp for the children in that area.  It was a great success within the community as parents and neighbors poured out into the streets on the last day to enjoy the live music and carnival atmosphere.  This fresh, creative expression of God’s love captured the attention of the children and our youth.  It also made the typical “VBS” format that we had been following for years seem rather bland.  The summer of 2003 showed us the power of the arts to help young and old connect with THE Creator in relevant, new ways. 

Therefore, the following summer of 2004, Calvary created its own ArtReach program entitled “Famous One” for the Copperfield area.  Jeff Chapman and Sheryl Busch combined forces to provide a VBS-type experience unlike any other.  They created specialized workshops children could choose based on their creative interests: Drama, Dance, Costumes, Set Design, Stage Building , and Music. All of these areas, including the art projects, Bible stories, and PowerPoint© presentations helped to create a sense of awe and wonder about God. Approximately 200 kids signed up for Calvary ’s first ArtReach in 2004.  One hundred volunteers, including approximately 70 Calvary teenagers, joined forces with Jeff and Sheryl and served all week.  A huge 50-foot stage was built on a hill next to Calvary’s Prayer Garden for the closing program.  On the last evening of ArtReach 2004, over 200 children performed original songs, skits, and worshipped their Creator amidst banners and balloons and free hotdogs and drinks.  It was a beautiful expression of God’s heart for the community as we showcased these energetic children and their God-given gifts and talents. 

Since then, we have created, from “scratch”, original ArtReach programs every summer: 2005-“King Joyous and the Dark Shadows of Dullness and Doubt”, 2006- “Seasons of Wonder”, and 2007-“Marvelous Me Created by Thee.”  Attendance has increased every year.  This year, 201 kids enrolled in ArtReach, with 117 awesome Calvary volunteers, 68 of which were our amazing youth.  This was the first year we reached capacity in ALL of our workshops; we shut down registration because there was no more room! 

Every year God has revealed His creativity and heart for children in new and profound ways.  The objective of ArtReach is not just to teach children about God but allow them to be touched by God as they explore their creativity and discover Jesus’ love for them.  ArtReach provides an effective and compelling bridge for the gospel to be shared in a new light.  Over the past four years we have witnessed dozens and dozens of children surrender their lives to Christ, and have seen families join Calvary as a result.  In fact, 67 kids prayed to receive Christ at ArtReach this year!  We rejoice and stand in awe of God’s ability to capture hearts.  We are praying and planning to increase our enrollment to 220 kids at ArtReach 2008.

Another exciting facet of the ArtReach model has been the opportunity to export it to other countries.  We have taken ArtReach in some form or another to Hungary , Guatemala , China , and most recently to England .  What a wonderful testimony of God’s creative love He has for the nations!  We will continue to provide ArtReach to the community (and to the nations) as long as THE Creative One keeps releasing fresh ideas and avenues to showcase the wonders and beauty of Jesus Christ!