Hello Chapel Hill Families!

Trunk or Treat was such a great event! I loved seeing the kids all dressed up, and seeing families I have not seen in awhile. I am so grateful for everyone who donated candy and trunks. We had 30 trunks and over 20,000 pieces of candy donated. A big shout out goes to Heidi and the CH Youth for all their help with the games and candy counting and bagging. Randy Peters was so helpful in coming up with the idea to use the golf cart for candy distribution, and our security team was excellent as always. It was a “tad” bit windy, but a good time nonetheless.

This month, our Faith Word is SEEKING, which means to look and discover faith in God. Our memory verse is, “The Lord sees into the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7b)

Here are the lessons for October:

• October 2nd – “David Plays Music” (1 Samuel 16:14-23)
• October 9th – “David and Goliath” (1 Samuel 17:1-51)
• October 16th – “David and Jonathan” (1 Samuel 18:1-5; 20:1-42)
• October 23rd – “Solomon Prays for Wisdom” (1 Kings 2:1-4; 3:1-15)
• October 30th – “Solomon Builds the Temple” (1 Kings 6:1-8:66)

Information for our new families:

• Our volunteers are supposed to arrive by 9:00, but life happens and sometimes they are running late. Please try to drop off kids between 9:15 and 9:30 AM to avoid waiting on them to arrive.
• Please walk your children back to their classrooms at drop off. We want our volunteers to see who goes with which kid to help speed up our pick up time.
• Don’t forget your pick-up ticket. You will show this to get back to the children’s wing and again to their teacher to pick them up.
• Remember that kids are now promoted to their next grade level so check that their name tags show they are in the right group. Please let Ryan know if it is incorrect.

We sponsor cousins, Neema & Kikwete, who live in the Angel House Orphanage in Tanzania, Africa. We have pledged to give $90/month in order to provide food, clothing and schooling to these children at Angel House. Each Sunday, kids have the opportunity to bring money to put into our offering for Neema and Kikwete. Would you help us meet our goal by sending your child with $1.00 each week? Our former Director of Children’s Ministries, Raegan Brane, has visited Angel House in the past. You can find out more information about the Grassroots Organization and Angel House by clicking HERE.

REMINDER:

If you have a 3rd, 4th or 5th grader that has a Deep Blue Bible, please help them remember to bring it with them to Sunday school each week! We don’t have many extras of that particular version at the church and they will be looking up and reading scripture every time they come to church from now on.

Don’t forget to check our Chapel Hill Kids Facebook Group regularly for the most up to date information. If you haven’t checked your child’s information on the birthday post, please make sure you do so as soon as possible. I have marked it as an announcement so you can easily find it. If you have moved in the last year, please contact the office so that we have your correct address on file so they can receive some birthday mail. The office number is (316) 684-1117.

Blessings to you and your children,

Allison

Celebrate Wonder is a Sunday school curriculum that engages children’s natural sense of curiosity to help them understand God’s love. It creates a safe environment for kids to ask big questions — helping them explore the Bible in ways that feed their imagination and encourages creativity. Through carefully-selected Bible stories, songs, videos, and hands-on activities, Celebrate Wonder gives children the tools to explore their faith while incorporating it into their daily lives.

Each month, our weekly stories will align with a Faith Word. The Faith Word for the month of October is “SEEKING”.

Almost five hundred years after the Exodus, and four years after he became king, Solomon decided to build a temple. Building a house for God was originally King David’s idea. God, however, had other plans. God told David that building a temple was a good idea, but that he was not the one to do it. God chose Solomon, David’s son, to build the temple. It is interesting to note that although David asked God to build a temple, God told David no.

The building of the temple was a massive undertaking, lasting seven years. The Bible provides a detailed description of the dimensions and layout of the temple. Since the temple itself is no longer standing, one must imagine what it would have looked like based on the detail given in these Scriptures. The reason the temple was built was to serve as a concrete reminder of God’s presence.

Solomon sought to have a place to praise God. Solomon was possibly seeking a closeness with God, and our places of worship can bring us just that. Every church that is built serves as a reminder that God is present among God’s people. We know that God is with us wherever we are and does not need a physical dwelling place. However, God’s people built the temple as a special place and a special reminder that God was in their midst. The temple was for the Israelites, as our churches are for us, a reminder of God’s constant and unfailing presence with them. When the temple was finally built, Solomon thanked God and celebrated the new and beautiful place of worship.

This week create something for God. You can build, write, sew, or something else. As you create, remind yourself of the Bible story. Solomon helped create something beautiful as a gift for God, and you can too!