A Rundown of the 2016 Curriculum

16JuneBy Meagan Wanschura, Curriculum DeveloperWho Is God? The answer to that question is central to Christianity. I remember being at a conference a few years ago and listening to the speaker compare our view of God to looking at a city’s skyline. When we are far away from the city, we can see the skyline rising in the distance – it is little and we are big. The closer we get to the city, the more grand and majestic the skylines looks, and the smaller we become. That’s how it is with God too. The closer we get to Him- the more we know about Him and His character - the greater and more majestic is our view of Him. That is the goal of this year’s curriculum – to make much of God. To exalt Him for the loving, just, merciful, truthful, eternal, father that He is.Here is a sneak peek into Global Encounters’ 2016 curriculum…071092God Is Our Creator and King “And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.” Colossians 1:17 It is only fitting that in our search to learn who God is, that we start with Him as the Creator and King. Our first introduction to God in the Bible is in the role of Creator. Because He created all things, He has the right to rule over the world, and on a more personal level, us as individuals. The craft team will be drawing globes on hacky sacks to remind the kids that God created the whole world and holds it together in the palms of His hands. God Defines Truth “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life, no one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6 Because God is the Creator He defines truth. Truth is not relative. It does not change from person to person. Truth is what God says it is. Because man is fallen, and our perception is marred by sin, we need God to open our eyes to His truth. To illustrate that we need to view the world through the lens of God’s truth, the game team will be playing “goggle ball” with the kids – soccer wearing distortion glasses!God Is Just and Merciful “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.” Galatians 6:7-8 The concept that we want the kids to take away from this lesson is that we are all sinners. Every single one of us has broken God’s law. And because God is just, He cannot just overlook our sins. Actions have consequences, and we must repent for breaking God’s law. The game team will be playing limbo to illustrate that none of us can attain God’s standard of perfection.Jesus is our Salvation “But God shows His love for us in that while we2 were still sinners, Christ dies for us.” Romans 5:8. Whereas yesterday’s lesson was a necessary, but grim look at our sinfulness and God’s justice, this lesson is all about the hope of redemption and salvation. The ultimate expression of love was when Jesus willingly gave His life as a payment for our sin. What wonderful news! No longer are we under the condemnation of the law. By accepting Christ’s free gift of salvation, we are no longer subject to God’s wrath, but are recipients of His boundless grace and love. The craft team will be making woven butterflies to represent that transformation that takes place in our lives when we accept Christ’s gift of salvation.God Is Our Father “Every good and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” James 1:17 God is a good Father who, with great love and wisdom, filters everything that comes into our lives. Sometimes the things He allows into our lives are painful, but He has a purpose even in the pain. This is an especially important lesson because many of the kids that we work with don’t have a loving father in their lives. To them we offer the comforting truth that God promises to be a father to the fatherless. The lesson team is teaching the story of George Mueller – a man who cared for the fatherless and trusted his Heavenly Father to supply his every need.God Is Love “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:12-13 God demonstrates His love to us in myriads of ways. From big things like life and salvation, to smaller things like sunshine, laughter, and friends, His mercies (love) are new every single morning. The craft team is going to be making “love banners” with the kids – a felt banner that they can decorate to remind them “His banner over me was love.”YqhxazJlaJzRn-38JR3iVDPCyCf2goZPOu2ZDIFQSrUG0f9d70MTDNwUvVuyINJlx_zkpY-WQi45XgOUf2JQL-IHPx4__XO0z0UVyuI=s640God Is Eternal “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Hebrews 13:8 God doesn’t change. He will never stop being the Creator and King, Truth, Just and Merciful, our Salvation, Father, and Love. He is unchanging forever. What a great comfort that is! Everything else in our life changes – friends come and go, loved ones die, but God remains the same. Especially for kids in rough home-life situations, the idea that they can have one constant thing in their life is such an important truth to emphasize. God created us for eternity too. If we follow Him, we know that whatever happens to us in this life, we can look forward to spending eternity with God. The lesson team is telling the story of Joni Erickson Tada to teach that even when things happen that look bad from our perspective, God is operating from an eternal perspective and working all things for our good and His glory.Hundreds of kids across the globe will be learning about who God is this summer. These lessons will be taught in jungles, in crowded cities, in refugee camps, and in mountain villages. Please join us in praying that during our time with these kids they will come to know God – the unchanging Creator and King. The eternal, just, and merciful Father.Megan-WMeagan is our curriculum developer. She is doing excellent work updating our curriculum, adding new ideas, and illustrating concepts with her talented photography skills! Thank you, Meagan, for using your talents to help kids around the world understand Christ more fully.

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A Long, Eventful Day || Joshua -- May 18