This entry will be pretty much a report on the events during our campaign. This year we had a group of 15 UK young adults as well as 6 of our Peterhead young adults make up the group. We kicked off the campaign on Friday 3rd June and finished up this past Sunday 12th June. The campaign was fantastic!
Everyone arrived in time for the teen class on the Friday night. It was a fitting start to the campaign and there was an instant connection between our teens and the group. When we circled up at the start of the class time the circle was BIG! With the 15 in the group and our own group there was a crowd :) We sang for a long time, everyone had so many requests, great way to set the tone for the week ahead - lovely! Enoch led the devo thought and did a great job.
On the Saturday we got stuck into the school program prep. It was evident early on that we had a great program for the kids. We spent the morning going over what the script should say and how the story should be told. By lunch time we had the parts allocated and were running through the three main acts. The first act was focused on the King and his willingness to give gifts to all. The second scene focused on the "Taker" and his evil role in taking away the gifts the king had given. The third act focused on the children of the king making their choices to follow either the King or the Taker. In between the three acts we put in a time for interactive singing and a question and answer time. The song we chose was "Love is the flag". We did some further rehearsals in the afternoon and broke up for supper.
On the Monday we had our "Sneak Peek" and had a blast! For the first half we set up three stations inside the building, Craft Station - the kids made a crown and decorated them with various glitters and sticky things. Movie Station - Daisha had "The poisoned Chalice" movie. We set up one of the classrooms as a mini theatre with the projector. Active Station - the kids played various versions of tag and tails, using our specially constructed dungeon for those captured. Everything engaged the kids perfectly and going by the kids reactions I think we got the balance just right :) After some hot dogs and sandwiches we spent the rest of the time outside. We had face painting, bouncy castle and slide, Blindfolded Jousting, Fire the Catapult, Pugil sticks. The four hours passed SO quickly and before we knew it the parents were in the car park ready to pick up their children! The day was very good and there were so many opportunities to make connections with the kids and share friendship. After the children were safely away there then began a wee water fight. It is maybe a sign of old age, but I didn't seem to have my usual appetite for giving and receiving a soaking. The teens however, had plenty appetite and after about 45 minutes we called a truce and got everywhere tidied up and then went home for supper. In the evening we got together for a couple of hours to build more confidence into the school program, ready for our first school early the following morning.
Between Tuesday and Friday we visited 9 schools, two more than last year. This year we had the joy of going to Longside School where Mr Imlah, formerly of Central School, is now the head teacher. We were also delighted to be with Buchanhaven School this year too. It didn't take long to realise the story we presented to the schools was connecting with the kids and the message was being brought home powerfully. The part that got the kids most excited and engaged was when the confused princess asked the audience what she should do, either choose to join the "Taker" and do like she does or to follow the example of the king and be like him. I have never seen such passion expressed in an assembly before! The kids were shouting and pointing in the direction of the king to persuade the princess to make the right choice and follow him. When the princess would walk toward the Taker, the kids would scream "NO!" The message of the assembly was so simple, yet managed to get pull a great response from the children :) I will never forget the way every school responded to that part of the play. At the end of the enactment of the story we would ask the children questions to see if they made the connection between the king being in fact God, and they did every time. They also got the point we were trying to make via the prince and princesses in regard to the choices we have to make between right and wrong. I love thinking back and knowing that through the story we were able to elevate God in the minds of every child and challenge them to think about the fact that we are ALL sons and daughters of the King! I need to mention a couple of memorable moments linked to our times in the schools. Firstly, at Central, which was our first school, the drama teacher asked if the cast would stay and help teach her class! So, the group were able to re-tell the story using the primary 6's as the cast. It was a lovely additional blessing. Secondly, when we were at Longside School the school sang, "My God is so Big" for us. A true testimony to the leadership of the head teacher, Mr Imlah :) Thirdly, when we were at Anna Ritchie School we were treated like royalty and the group loved visiting the classes and getting to talk with the kids more intimately. I can't mention everything that the group were blessed by, but it was clear the children there touched our lives deeply. To sum up our week in the schools it would be true to say that the group gave selflessly of themselves, but were blessed richly in return!
We had some "Coffee Shop" down times where we just relaxed, talked and debriefed. On the Tuesday night we shared a time of fellowship down there. The shop was full and there was plenty of laughter and friendship. We really appreciated Paul, the owner of the Coffee Shop, opening after hours for us - THANK YOU :)
Possibly the highlight for me over the week was the Friday Night. The group decorated the Fellowship Hall. What a transformation! There were candles everywhere and stars dangling from the ceiling. You really did walk through and say, "WOW!" Before the guests were shown to their tables they had to go and get their photo's taken first. They walked up the red carpet and were seated on their thrones. It was so much fun. The cooks had spent much of the day preparing the food and they didn't disappoint. We had chicken stuffed with cheese and wrapped in ham, with salad and cheesy potato. For desert there was a choice of Pavlova or Sticky Toffee Pudding - truly a feast fit for a king! During the meal there was a talent show to entertain the guests. We had a magic act and singing. I am not exaggerating when I say that the quality was outstanding! It was a beautiful night and our church was truly made to feel special by the service and love shown to them by the group :)
On the Saturday we had a PICNIC! We went out to Crichie Park and spent most of the day there. The weather was not to great, but the day was radiant! There were all generations there from the families who come to the Mother and Toddlers group that meets on Friday mornings right through to our golden oldies. There were a couple of memorable highlights worthy of mention. Firstly, the races! We got a bunch of mums and toddlers to race. We had the 5 through 10 age group racing and then for some fun we paired up the kids with the young adults for some silly races - Happy Times! Secondly, we had a big game of rounders! Alison Geddes, Stuart, Ryan and Claire's mum, challenged me to pick an opposing team. What a laugh! With the grass being a wee bit wet, due to the light rain, there was a lot of sliding going on! In the end Alison claimed victory, but I'm not so sure we were even keeping a record of the runs scored. The day was simply filled with fun and fellowship and you can't get better than that :)
I must mention Paddy's lessons! Paddy very kindly agreed to run a series of lessons throughout the week that tied in with the theme. Our souls were well fed! The lesson that stood out in my memory was one that talked about God as the author of the story. During the lesson Paddy put up some photo's of people we knew and have strong connections with. He asked us to think about the person and we shared some of the memories and ways our lives have connected over the years. Paddy then put up a slide with only a white outline of a person and inside the outline was the word God and a question mark. Paddy asked us to fill the blank space with what we thought about God. It was quite powerful at the time and stopped everyone in their tracks. We were challenged to ask ourselves if we had a relationship with God or simply information about who He is. I can sit and listen to Paddy teach till the cows come home!
In closing. I am excited to see what "Increase" God will bring knowing a great deal of watering and planting has been done for the good of the Kingdom in the name of the KING.
P.S. We even let the group become honorary members of our wall and trier hands are now proudly displayed for us to look back in years to come and remember with joy the campaign we shared this year :)
God Bless.
