H20 Challenge: Day One

Today we start a 10 Day Challenge:  no coffee, no pop, no juice, no tea.....just water for 10 days.  At first I was thinking this was just a way to save some money and put it towards the $5000 for the well.  But over the past few days my thinking has changed.  Many people have said to me, 'I couldn't give up coffee...but i'll just donate some money to the well' or 'I don't spend that much so I won't save much...i'll just make a donation'.

Giving up our regular beverages for 10 days isn't just about saving money.  It's about sacrifice.  It's about challenging ourselves to think about what it would be like to not be able to drink what we want...only in our case we STILL get to drink clean water.  

My prayer is that during these 10 days  we will grow closer to God as we sacrifice and pray. 

Matthew 22:37-38 tells us to ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 

We are to love God with all of our heart, soul and mind. Sounds simple right?  Yet Today as I have realized just how much I crave what I cannot have, I am wondering if the word crave could be used to describe how I pursue God.  Do I want to know Him, love Him and serve Him so badly that it occupies my thoughts throughout the day (how coffee is right now?) What would it look like if I had to go 10 days without worship, reading my Bible, talking about Jesus, or prayer?  How much do I take simple things like a cup of hot chocolate for granted?  And how much more do I take my Savior for granted?

Every time I have wanted a coffee today I am trying to close my eyes and ask God to help me love Him more and to love things of the world less.


Amy

PS  Hot water in a coffee cup does not give me the same feeling as drinking a coffee….just tried.

The Me Project for Preschoolers

One of the things that I love about preschoolers is how they can read the same book or watch the same movie over and over and over and over.  And their unabashed love for the hero in the story is really cute.  When my Ben was a toddler, he knew everything there was to know about every single Transformer and I had the joy of hearing about how amazing and wonderful they were throughout every car drive, every night at bed, and during every mealtime.  Whether it's Batman, Dora, Cinderella (or the Prince), or Buzz Lightyear, most children have some imaginary character that they love and aspire to be like.  That's why dress up clothes, plastic swords, and light sabers are a favorite of most kids.

One of my funniest mom memories was when Ben, at the age of three, decided he wanted to ask Jesus to come live in his heart.  But the heart-warming moment only last a few seconds before he changed his mind and decided he'd "rather have Batman come live there instead".  huh.

The Me Project Preschool book focuses on helping preschoolers learn more about the best hero of all times - Jesus!  Not only does the coloring book/workbook help kids learn more about the character of Jesus but also how they can be like Jesus.  Just like Jesus is kind, they can be kind.  Just like Jesus loves God, they can love God.  Each page highlights something different about Jesus through a Bible story or a verse, and then they draw a picture about how they can do something to be like Him.

So if you have a preschooler, enjoy the fun years of Spiderman and Fancy Nancy. But be sure to remember that these are perfect years to lead your child learn and love the Superhero who really saves the day!

Why Living Water?

Why Living Water International?

One of the first questions I faced after deciding that our Calvary kids would fund the digging of a well was “Which organization will we partner with to dig the well?” 

Over the past few years, celebrities have brought the lack of clean water crisis to the forefront.  Actors and musicians like Matt Damon, Jewel, Katy Perry, and many more have raised money and awareness about unsafe drinking water in many parts of the world. Their efforts are helping to give a voice to those who can’t speak up for themselves.  They are addressing a problem and offering a solution.

At the same time, missionaries are travelling to areas of extreme poverty and oppression to bring the message of Jesus to those who have never heard.  They are also addressing a problem and offering a solution.

One group is offering clean drinking water.

The other is offering the hope of a Savior.

Living Water International offers both.

Of all the organizations I researched (and there were lots of great ones!), what impressed me most about Living Water International was their strong commitment to both sharing the gospel and meeting the physical needs of the people.  And here’s another cool thing – we had already come up with the “Dig Deeper” name and the concept of searching for “clean water” and “living water” before I came across the Living Water website…but check out their mission statement:

“Living Water International exists to demonstrate the love of God by helping communities acquire desperately needed clean water, and to experience "living water"—the gospel of Jesus Christ—which alone satisfies the deepest thirst.”

What we wanted to do, Living Water was already doing. 

So the choice was made. 

You really need to check out their website and read all about what they do, how they do it, why they do it and how it has impacted communities worldwide.  I am so excited to be working with such a great ministry.  It’s one thing to know that our money is going to provide clean water for children, but it gives me chills to think about the LWI volunteers who will be telling those same children about Jesus while they work side by side with the community, showing them the love of Jesus in word and action.

http://www.water.cc/

The Big Reveal

I am so excited for tomorrow...the BIG REVEAL is finally here.  Each year our children's ministry at Calvary adopts a theme to help us focus on one aspect of what it means to follow Jesus.  This year's theme is our biggest and most challenging yet!

This year our focus in the kidGO Kingdom will be (drum roll please) ....“Dig Deeper”!

There are two parts of this theme, the ME project and the WELL project.

The ME project will involve parents as they work with their kids through age appropriate workbooks that are filled with Bible verses, discussion questions, quizzes, and projects.

For the Well project, our Calvary kids will be raising $5000 to fund the digging of a well in Honduras through Living Water International.

So stay tuned...throughout the year I will be blogging about our progress in both projects.  It's going to be a great year!  So let's dig deeper together!

Amy Anthony

Family Ministries at Calvary