The Best Christmas Gift (12/8-12/10)

"For God so loved the world that He gave His son, Jesus." -John 3:16 Jesus was the very first Christmas gift and He continues to be the very best Christmas gift of all. This week Scruffy can't wait to give his special gift to me, a rice baby Jesus. Keeping with ELP's tradition, each boy and girl also gets to make his or her very own rice baby Jesus to take home and place under the Christmas tree. "And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom His favor rests.” Luke 2:8-13. After the boys and girls make their rice babies we will rock them while we sing Away in the Manger and Mary Had a Baby. My prayer is that you and your family will bask in the warmth of God's love for you as you go about preparing for the celebration of Jesus's birthday. -Melinda

Good News! (12/1-12/3)

December is here and with its arrival we learn a new Bible verse, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His son, Jesus." -John 3:16. This week in chapel as I told the nativity story I focused on God choosing Mary and Joseph specifically to raise His son. While individually, they had many good qualities that would make them wonderful parents, together they were loving and patient, faithful to His word, and devoted to each other. You can be sure that your Heavenly Father saw qualities in you that that make you the ideal parent for your child, too and there is no doubt you have been uniquely blessed with characteristics making you the perfect fit for your own family. Isn't it nice to know that nothing is too big for God to handle, yet nothing too small for Him to care about? After our chapel lesson, we all took turns bouncing around the room on Hoppity Hops and played a game matching baby animals with their mommies and daddies. To wrap things up, we sang and danced to Everybody Everywhere and My God. Enjoy the rest of your week as we get nearer to Christmas crunch time! Just do yourself a favor and remember to relax, breathe, and focus on making memories with your kids as you teach them about God's magnificent gift to the world. Melinda

The Big Picnic (11/17-11/19)

In this week before Thanksgiving, we're celebrating our annual Big Picnic in conjunction with chapel. Families are invited to join in the fun as the children, all decked out in Bible- time clothes, sing songs, watch a short skit and chow down on fish sticks, bread, and gold fish crackers. Our show comes from a story recorded in the New Testament in which Jesus fed a hungry crowd of 5,000 men (plus up to another 5,000 to 6,000 women and children!) using a young boy's lunch of 2 fish and 5 loaves of bread. The boy could have thought that what he had to give was too trivial to offer, that what was in his sack was insignificant. But then he would have been doubting God's capacity to bless his small offering. All God ever desires is a faithful heart and He will take care of the rest. After Jesus lifted the offering to give thanks to His Father for providing nourishment for the people, the 5 loaves and 2 fish were multiplied beyond anything anyone could have ever imagined. Amazingly, even the leftovers outnumbered what was started with.....and nothing was wasted in the end, either. The surplus was then gathered and used elsewhere. "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good." - Psalms 136:1. May you enjoy a blessed Thanksgiving surrounded by people you love! Melinda

David and Goliath (11/10-11/12)

This week in chapel we're learning about how God calls on people of all ages and sizes to do big jobs. All He wants is a faithful heart. It's the story of David and Goliath, when a young shepherd boy defeated a 9' tall, ruthless giant with one God-directed stone thrown from his sling. On the surface it seemed like an uneven battle, but David wasn't afraid because he knew he possessed the greatest weapon of all. He went into battle wielding the power of the Lord. This boy who had been spending his time protecting his father's sheep from fierce, wild animals was well trained. "The LORD who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.” - 1Samuel 17:37. After he defeated Goliath, David grew up to be a great king all because he continued to trust in the power and direction of the Lord. After we finish our story, pre-k and transition children will get to take turns using sling shots to sail paper stones at our 9' picture of Goliath. Younger children will use bean bags to pretend to be David fighting the giant. Then once the bully has been soundly defeated in the name of the Lord, we'll sing and dance to JESUS IS THE ROCK and SUNDAY SCHOOL ROCK. 'Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good.' - Psalms 136:1. Blessings! Melinda

Daniel in the Lions' Den (11/3-11/5)

Give thanks to The Lord, for He is good. (Psalms 136:1). Here we are already in November and what better story to illustrate thankfulness than that of Daniel in the lion's den? Daniel was one of the Lord's most devoted servants. He was one of the good guys; disciplined, faithful and obedient in all areas of his life. Despite King Darius's order that everyone pray only to him, Daniel continued to pray to our Lord, the one, true, living God. So how was he rewarded? For all his obedience to God, Daniel was thrown into the lion's den. But, you see, I think this WAS the reward! What our enemies mean for evil, God can turn around and use it for good. An angel was sent to close the mouths of the lions so Daniel's life could be spared. It was through this frightening episode, when Daniel had nothing else but His faith on which to cling, he was able to truly be in the presence of God, feeling His love, mercy, and protection. Although God doesn't promise to take all our troubles away, He promises something much better. He vows to be right there beside us the whole time throughout our ordeals, carrying us through to the end. When Daniel emerged from his night with the lions, he showed no scratches, no tooth marks, not even a slobber! What Daniel knew from the beginning was that because of his faith, God would remain true to him. What an amazing witness this was and still is today to the power and the faithfulness of our Lord! After listening to our story, the boys and girls will get to play "Feed the Lion" by tossing play fruit into the mouth of our giant lion. After that we will sing and dance to God is Always with Us and King of the Jungle. I pray that just like Daniel, you, too will feel God's peaceful presence this week. Blessings! Melinda

Jesus's Light Shines in Me (10/28-10/30)

"When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.'" (John 8:12) ELP chapel this week is all about letting our light shine. The Bible tells us that before our light will shine, we must be plugged in and turned on. We must be plugged in to God’s power supply and we must be turned on for Jesus. When we put our faith in God and say, "I love You, I believe You, I trust You Lord," we have the power. When we invite Him into our hearts, come to church to worship and praise Him and study His Word, we get turned on for Jesus. He tells us in Matthew 5:14-16, "You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." The children will get to play in our light tunnel/fort that has been constructed out of oversized boxes and outfitted with mini Christmas lights and glow sticks. After that, they'll sing and dance to Great Big God and Jesus Loves Me Rock. Dear Lord, thank you for Your light. We ask You to help us to remember to let it shine in everything we do, everywhere we go, so others can see who You are. In Jesus's name we pray, AMEN!!! Melinda

Walls of Jerico (10/20-10/22)

We traveled a little further through the desert with the Israelites this week as we learned about how God used their faith to reduce the massive walls around the city of Jerico to a pile of rubble. God's people were weary, cranky, and skeptical way before they reached the land God promised them. Now that they were finally there, all that stood between them and Canaan was Jerico. Big problem for the Israelites. No problem at all for God. This was to be His battle, not theirs. All He needed was to see if His people would finally humble themselves by submitting to His authority. The instructions The Lord gave Joshua for winning the battle made absolutely no sense, but this was God's way of seeing if the Israelites finally recognized Him as boss. Seriously, if someone today told you to march around city walls once a day for 6 days, then 7 times on the 7th day while blowing trumpets and shouting at the top of your lungs, what would you think? What would you do? Thankfully, the Israelites recognized Joshua's integrity and trusted his judgement enough to do as God had instructed him to do, thereby proving to the Father that they could be obedient to His word. This story proves that no matter the situation, God always wants what's best for us, He needs us to trust Him, and He always keeps His promises. After our story, the children got to build a city wall around their teacher. Next, we marched around her 6 times and on the 7th time, we let loose with some mighty trumpet noise and shouts as the city walls came crashing down. Then we celebrated by singing and dancing to My God and Praise The Lord Every Day. God bless you and your family this 3rd week in October! Melinda