New Alley Set!

So, we wanted to do something new with our set. I personally LOVE urban areas of Atlanta and New York. I LOVE the feel of the city. The hustle and bustle of the cars and people, the buildings and skyscrapers, it’s amazing! We thought of ways to bring the city inside to our place of worship. We went with the alley feel. We added brick paneling on our back wall to the stage, industrial-looking boxes that we already had with our last sets, and voilà! Maybe we will add some chain linked fencing around the room or graffiti on the brick wall. Just a thought. It would be cool to have the rear of a taxi plowed into the wall. The only thing setting us back is that small thing call... oh what is it called...BUDGET! Oh yeah! That silly guy! Maybe in the future. We have LED lights on the brick wall right now for color in the room. Dim lights to look like even more like an alley. We also encouraged our volunteers to dress the part of the virtues. This month is called "Get Messy" so we are wearing street clothing (for the set) with painter’s clothes, or cleaning clothes. We also added cleaning products around the stage (janitors cart, broom, vacuum...). Check it out!

November's Virtue: Cooperation!

A one-man band can play a simple tune, but with more than one musician we can have a true jam session and build a beat together. Because cooperation is working together to do more than you can do alone.  Our virtue is Cooperation. This month we have discussed what it means to cooperate. Our Bottom Lines for this month are:
1 - With God, we can work together to get His work done.
2 - With God, we can work together to make someone else succeed.
3 - With God, we can work together to do what seems impossible.
4 - With God, we can work together to change someone’s life.

Notice how all of them start with “With God”. We can’t do amazing things in life without God; but “With God” we can change the world. If we cooperate with each other, we can accomplish anything!

Like the outfits? Our theme this month (November) is Jam Session so we decided to have the set of a rock concert on stage! We have two trust standing vertical on either sides of the stage with stage lighting (not plug in but has a cool effect) and some black lights! We have blown up guitars for the kids to rock out during worship. We have a keyboard a mic and a drum set for our band (of which we are hoping to get together really soon so we can have live music for worship) and two funky pieces of spandex) stretched across the stage) with led lighting. We also have the words “JAM SESSION” in the corner of the stage in which we made with white paper which also have led lights! It’s simple yet very edgy!

Next virtue is: Compassion! The theme is called: The Big Give!

The Creator of the entire universe was attentive to His creation. He saw and understood our ultimate consequences of sin. He saw our greatest need. And He did something about it. He humbled Himself to be born as a tiny baby in a remote town in the dwelling place of animals. He lived as one of us so that, eventually, He could die for us and rise again, giving us the chance to live eternally with God in heaven.

The Christmas story shows that one aspect of God’s character is compassion. COMPASSION is caring enough to do something about someone else’s need. God lovingly saw our greatest need and met it in the most remarkable way.

God’s example of compassion is summarized in the monthly Memory Verse: “God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son. Anyone who believes in him will not die but will have eternal life.” (John 3:16, NIrV) God saw the world’s greatest need and cared enough to do something.

                                                                                     - Jessica McKee (Orange Leader)

I can’t wait to get creative and figure out how we should design the set! I will keep you updated with our set ideas! Until next time, I encourage you all to focus on “cooperation”. How can you change someone’s life today?

Love God. Love People.

252 Basics - the curriculum!

In Studio 252 @ Eastside, we use a curriculum from The ReThink Group called 252 Basics (based on Luke 2:52). Why? Here are a few really BIG reasons.

1. It lines up with our strategy.

The ReThink Group is great about being flexible to our strategy. Our mission with 252 kids is based on Luke 2:52 "Jesus grew in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and all the people." This is the only passage about when Jesus was a teenager and how he was to grow. Right? 252 Basics is just that! They revolved around Luke 2:52.

2. It works with our morning schedule
On Sunday mornings, our kids meet up with their small groups based upon grades (1st - 5th). After their small group, they head over to what we call The Studio. In the studio, you will find a big room full of color, a stage, lights, games, everything your child could ever imagine. Well almost everything. Our kids play games for a while and get to interact with our youth volunteers. You volunteers are NOT adult volunteers that help with our youth. You volunteers are students (middle school thru high school) that have a burning passion for the love of God and People. Our youth volunteers run everything from the lights, media, music videos, dance/ motions, singing, playing in a band, playing with the kids, teaching the lesson, and most importantly, loving the kiddos.

3. It comes in a format you can EDIT!
From a user standpoint, this might be the coolest thing about 252. Because the curriculum is web-based, we can download the materials in a Word document and EDIT to our hearts content. Sometimes we edit a little, sometimes we edit a lot. It depends on what’s going on in our ministry, or room size constraints due to numbers of kids or maybe a supply we can’t find or afford for the numbers we run. Whatever the case may be, it’s pretty cool to be able to edit the content to fit the needs of your individual ministry.

So why use this curriculum? 252 Basics teaches kids to make the wise choice, to treat others the way you want to be treated, and to trust God no matter what. But the most compelling reason why we use 252 Basics is because it provides materials that lead kids into a relationship with Jesus so that they can grow up just like He did.
To check out a sample of 252 Basics go to www.252basics.com and whatisorange.org

Post edited by McKenna Whipple from Emily Meredith - UpStreet Director - Buckhead Church

Get Your Students Envolved!

How to get students (middle school and high school) involved with your children?

To get your students involved with kids, they must have a passion for kids. What good will it do to have students in the service with your kids if the students are just going to stand around texting and talking to their friends? It won't help the kids at all. In fact, it will tear the kids away from the service and take rip them away from God's glory. Your students need a leader/ role model. No one likes to venture out by themselves or just jump right into the deep end of a pool right? You should have a youth pastor and/ or a children's pastor encourage the youth. Invite them to change kids’ lives. What impact they make will be their decision. One thing that I have noticed with my journey on leading with 252 kids is this: Todd Graham has mentored me and pushed me to my limits giving me the position of worship leader for 252 kids. By this, I have learned to work with not only kids who I love and adore and have a passion for but also to work with adults and students my own age. I have also had the opportunity to go to the Orange Conference in April 2012 and tour different churches to see how they do kids church and see if they are involved with their kids' lives. The conference was life changing. Not only did it help me think of kids differently and how to rethink and lead differently, but it has also made me realize my reality. The first thing I would suggest doing is encourage your students to help you lead the kids. Give them a task to do and let them do it to their best ability. Let them know they are appreciated and always complement them before you give a correction. HAHA! At least that is what I have realized Todd does. :)

http://ebcfamily.org/familyministries/252kids

Overview of 252

252 Kids
252 Kids (All kids grades 1st--5th)
Luke 2:52
And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man. NIV
Provoking Discovery in the heart of each child.
Helping kids Discover how they can grow in relationship with God and with others by:
Loving kids one at a time
Feeding kids the Word of God
Connecting kids to each other and to caring adults who want to see them succeed
Motivating kids to serve by loving God and loving people

Todd Graham - Family Pastor
Email: tgraham@ebcnet.org
Meeting Times:
Sunday School Community Groups at 9:30
Large Group Worship Service at 11:30 in the Studio
252 Shine Wednesdays 6:30-7:45 in the Studio