Children’s Ministry
Children’s Room – ages birth – 2 years. The children’s room is staffed by teens who love children. They are CPR and First Aid trained. They are responsible and loving. The children’s room is open during every service and during events that warrant child care.
Kingdom Quest – Is Sunday school at 9:25 – 10:45 a.m. Kingdom Quest is a rotational Sunday school. Kindergarten – 5th grade. Each Sunday the children go to a different room. The rooms we have are: story, theatre, drama, art, music, science, kitchen, computer and games. Each room has a lesson and is hands on! We start our gathering time with all the children, to praise and worship, tithe & offering, and give a children’s sermon. We dismiss children at 9:45 to their classrooms. The children finish at 10:45 a.m. Preschool Kingdom Quest use a fun, learning program from Gospel Light called “My Great Big God”. They rotate within their rooms to art, story, singing, games, imagination station and/or cooking. Kingdom Quest has dedicated and loving teachers to guide your child in their faith journey. Don’t forget your Bible!
Awana - AWANA is an acronym for Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed (2 Timothy 2:15).
It meets from August - May. Wednesday evenings 6:15-8:05 p.m. ages 0-6th grade (Puggles ages 0-3; Cubbies ages 3-5: preschool age; Sparks K-2 and Truth and Training (T&T) 3rd – 6th grade. Awana is a place where children learn scripture verses, hear a great message and play team style games. They are rewarded for their memory verses along with their Sunday school attendance, bringing their Bible and more. Children wear uniforms to bring unity to each other. Children and their leaders build relationship and their clubs build teamwork. You can go to www.awana.org for more information on Awana. Awana Awards Ceremony is May 21st at 6:15 p.m. with an ice cream social afterwards.
Awana Schedule for 2008:
| Jan 9th | Stuffed Animal |
| Jan 16th | Nerd Night +4 verse = Double bucks for 4 in a row |
| Jan 23rd | Around the World |
| Jan 30th | Cookie Night, bring a dozen to share |
| Feb 6th | No Awana - Lenten Service at St. Paul's |
| Feb 13th | Sports Night |
| Feb 20th | Crazy Hair Night |
| Feb 27th | Crazy Hat Night |
| Mar 5th | Hawaiian Night |
| Mar 12th | Flashlight Night |
| Mar 19th | Yellow Night |
| Mar 26th | TP Night |
| April 2nd | B.A.R.F. Night |
| April 9th | No Awana -Spring Break |
| April 16th | Goofy Glasses + 5 verses night Triple bucks for 5 verses at once |
| April 23rd | PJ Night |
| April 30th | Great Afflictions Night |
| May 7th | Pastor's Night - wear a heart |
| May 14th | Happy Toes Night - where your sandals - STORE NIGHT! |
| May 21st | Awards Night 6:15 p.m. Ice Cream Social after |
Awana Clubs are:
Puggles:
In many circles, “puggle” is a common term for a baby platypus. In children's ministry circles, Awana Puggles is an enriching program for your pre-Cubbies kids (usually older 2- and younger 3-year-olds) that presents basic biblical concepts:
We are a unique creation of God.
God loves us very much.
Awana Puggles teaches toddlers simple lessons through teaching cards, activities, music and more. Awana Puggles leaders have a leader’s guidebook to help them plan and direct club time and communicate the lesson. Then parents—an Awana Puggle’s first and best teacher—can step in to reinforce the lessons with take-home cards that include ideas to point out God’s work each day. And little details like Awana Puggles T-shirts, puzzles and coloring books make every precious child feel like part of the group.
Cubbies: The Awana club for preschoolers is built on two premises:
Young children can and should receive spiritual training.
Home is the primary place for spiritual training.
Our preschool program meets these needs through … Fun – and lots of it!
Awana is fun with a purpose – to reach and train kids for Jesus Christ. Games, puppets, crafts, awards and other activities transform our preschool program into a lively weekly experience where fun and learning go hand in hand.
Sparks:
The Awana club for children in kindergarten through second grade builds on the material taught in our preschool club. The aim of the curriculum is to take youngsters a step deeper into God’s Word while giving unsaved boys and girls regular opportunities to hear the gospel and come to faith in Jesus Christ. After being immersed in solid foundational teaching at the preschool level, boys and girls frequently come to an understanding of their need to trust Christ as their personal Savior while in Sparks.
Immersing kids in God’s Word
The Sparks program is firmly grounded in Scripture. The three handbooks feature:
- Basic truths about God, Jesus Christ, salvation and the Bible
- An increased emphasis on Scripture memory over our preschool materials. In three years, a child will learn and review 68 verses, many of which cover salvation and key Christian doctrine
- Clear and consistent presentation of the gospel message
Fun learning = results Sparks club meetings combine learning with fun to create an atmosphere of irresistible excitement for churched and unchurched kids alike. Club meetings are divided into three segments:
- Bible teaching, worship, award presentations and the gospel message
- Small group interaction and completion of Bible-based lessons
- Age-appropriate games on the Awana game circle
Along the way, Sparky, the friendly firefly, encourages boys and girls to learn verses and complete assignments throughout the three handbooks. Workbooks are available for children you complete their books if necessary.
Truth and Training (T&T):
The name Truth & Training reflects the passion of Awana to teach third- through sixth-grade boys and girls the truth of God’s Word and to train them to follow Christ in their daily lives. Our goal is that many of today’s young people will become tomorrow’s church leaders. T&T is the program that trains the leaders of tomorrow — today.
Exciting features to get kids excited about God’s Word
T&T is equipped with a variety of dynamic tools to accomplish this mission:
- Four handbooks of increasing difficulty which teach children that life’s ultimate adventure is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ
- A cast of fun characters that boys and girls learn from and follow on interesting journeys in the handbooks
- Weekly meetings that expose children to the gospel message, Scripture memory, Bible study, awards, team-oriented games and gut-busting fun
- A Bible-centered curriculum that helps kids build a firm foundation for their faith, hide God’s Word in their heart and apply the truths of Scripture to their daily lives
- Interactive CDs that use exciting high-tech games to teach and reinforce key biblical truths
Evangelism and discipleship go hand in hand in our third- through sixth-grade program. By the time a child has completed T&T, he will have:
- Learned and reviewed approximately 310 verses
- Studied dozens of passages from the Old and New Testament
- Regularly heard and read the gospel message
- Discovered the Bible’s response to questions like “How does God want me to live my life?” and memorized verses to back up these answers
- Completed missions projects that help him see the world through God’s eyes.
Awana Special Events
While Awana clubs and youth programs help kids interact and learn on a weekly basis as they come to know, love and serve Christ, that’s not all! Awana has even more exciting ministries outside your weekly children's ministry and youth ministry programs. Events like AwanaGames, Bible Quizzing, Grand Prix, Sparks-a-Rama, Summit and MIT get kids growing, laughing and even serving overseas. Check out our many special events today to see where you might plug in. There’s an adventure down every path! We participate in the AwanaGames in March. Clubber must have completed 10 verses. Cost this year is $7 each, t-shirts are provided and returned at the end of the day.
Kids’ Church –School year Sundays from 11a.m. – 12 p.m. from late Aug. – late May. We will meet in the library. It is a wonderful Bible class, preschool and up, including adults. We are using Bible Study for All Ages by Mary Baker. It is a study that looks at the life of Joseph, Daniel, Jesus early life and 1st year of ministry, Adam, Noah, Job, Joseph (review), Moses, Joshua, Jesus’ early life (review) and Jesus last week. As always, bring your Bible!
Kids’ Church – Summer Sundays is from 9:30 – 10:35. This is from the first week in June – first week in Aug. We will continue to use the Bible Study for All Ages as it helps the kids to see who is who, map it, put it on a time line, take home a paper to help parents see what they have done. Summer Kids Church is fun and laid back.
Vacation Bible School (VBS)– is our biggest event during the summer. It is the 2nd week in June. Days: Monday – Friday 9 a.m.- 12 p.m. and evenings Sunday – Thursday 6 – 8:30 p.m. It is for children ages 3 years old to 6th grade. Teens are integral part of our school. They work in many areas and are welcomed in all. Children learn through hands-on experiences. They sing, dance, play games, make snacks, have an art project, and learn about Jesus’ love. Your summer just isn’t complete without it! Registration begins in March, but planning begins in early October. This year we will be going to Jerusalem Marketplace! We will make pottery, bread, jewelry and so much more. Come Join US!
Day Camp – is a church camp sponsored by Nebraska Lutheran Outdoor Ministries. St. Thomas will be hosting Day Camp and taking care of all the registering of camp. Fun Bible learning experience! Please contact them at St. Thomas Lutheran Church, 17007 'Q' Street, Omaha, NE 68135, Phone: 402-894-2040
How to get involved...
Teach Kingdom Quest our rotational Sunday school for kids Preschool to 6th grade. Each Sunday the children go to a different room: story, theatre, drama, art, music, science, kitchen, computer and games. Each room has a lesson and is hands on! We start our gathering time with all the children to praise and worship and give a children’s sermon. The kids then go to their classrooms.
Help with Kingdom Quest We need people to assist our teachers and other leaders with our Kingdom Quest Rotational Sunday School. We need people with a love for kids and a heart to help others. You can serve every week or for special projects.
Memory Verse Listeners We need people with a love for kids and a love for God’s Word. Listeners help our children sow the Word of God in their heart as they memorize the Bible.
Teach Kids’ Church during the school year on Sunday at 11 a.m. we meet in the fellowship hall. This is a family Bible class for Kindergarten and up. It is for the whole family to learn about the Bible, what it means, how to use it and more. It is a time to learn and grow as a disciple of Jesus.
Special Events Coordinator Through the year, our Children’s Ministry conducts a variety of special activities and events and we need people with strong leadership gifts to take the lead. Have a heart for kids and good organizational skills? Sign up.
Special Events Workers Through the year, our Children’s Ministry conducts a variety of special events. We need organized people to help us in a variety of ways, from coordinating games or refreshments, to keeping an eye on things. Have a heart for kids and good organizational skills? Sign up.
Teach or Help with Awana Awana is our Wednesday program for children from toddlers to Grade 6. It helps kid learn God’s word in ways that are exciting and fun. If you care about helping kids come to know God, Awana is a great way to do it.
Wednesday Dinner Workers In conjunction with Awana and other Wednesday night FROG activities (Fully Rely On God) we serve a dinner meal for busy people who want to come together for a bite to eat before heading into evening activities. Helpers are always needed for set up, cooking, serving, and clean up.