This past week our campus was full of Volunteers running to and fro all over the place, the campus reminded me of the sets of ABC’s Extreme Makeover Home Edition, which, by the way is an tremendous show.  I especially enjoy watching it while laughing with/at my exceedingly pregnant wife whom cries uncontrollably at every heartbreaking, joyful, thrilling or amusing moment on the show without reason.  Emotional women are great, especially pregnant ones.  I love my wife so much its sick.

Anyways, returning from the land of ADD and back to the week of Easter, I am truly astonished and blown away by the things that the volunteers here at the Gathering do week in and week out around here.  You all show up immensely when the big event is cresting on the horizon but even more impressive than that is the fact that you are here each and every week making things happen no matter what the project.  I know from my experiences that I could not do half the things God is allowing me to do in this ministry without the amazing volunteers He has placed here along side of me to impact these kids lives.  Children’s Ministry is a blast and I pray that everyone that volunteers here in KIDZPLAYCE expeiriences as much enjoyment as I do, I pray we all continue to be REAL with these kids, they see through fakeness, I pray these kids see the love and joy of Christ in all of us who have the privilege of impacting the lives of God’s children on a weekly basis.  I pray I am always over flowing with the Joy of the Lord and that the kids as well as the volunteers perceive the love of Christ flowing out of me every time their eyes fix on me.

I know I say thank you a lot, but each time the words are uttered from my lips, sketched on a card or typed in an e-mail I mean them with everything that is in me.  We could not do this without those of you who see a need, step up, take ownership and get InVOLved.

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About a week and a half ago I had the great pleasure of going to the Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies with my beautiful wife Rachel.  The closest I had ever come to an aquarium before this event in my life was the fish section of the local Pet’s Mart.  It was an awesome experience, one that I will never forget, mainly because the beauty of the aquatic species but also because there were thirty-two 1st thru 5th graders accompanying myself and Prego. 

This was the first time we have ever taken the KIDZPLAYCE kids outside the church for an activity, and it was an amaz-zi-zing event.  After the aquarium closed down for the night we had the entire place to ourselves, we did late night scavenger huts, got to touch the sting rays (R.I.P. Croc Man), and even had a late night snack filled with pizza, kool-aid and rice krispy treats.  That part was brilliant…..except for the fact that it was at like 11:00 P.M. and then lights out was an hour later right as the sugar was beginning to flow through the veins of these kids who were already wound up because they got a chance to be away from mom and dad for a night. (Moms, Dads, your welcome)

As the time of actually sleeping with the sharks approached, the kids gained more and more energy and excitement.  Once we had camp set up in the Shark Tunnel their bladders somehow became the size of peas, no pun intended.  I don’t know if it was the laying under the ten billion gallons of water or what, but I have never seen a group of kids take that many  trips to the restroom in my entire life.  Once the potty breaks finally began to slow down, the fake flatchulent noises began roll as well as pillow fights and the sweet sounds of the KIDZPLAYCE ladies choir singing Round Up echoed through the entire tunnel from their distant camp site set up on the opposite end of the tunnel.  Somewhere around the 1 o’clock or 2 o’clock hour the rowdiness began to subside and all the days activities began to latch onto the kids and drag them into their dreaded slumber.  Of course there were the select few who decided to stay up all night, or said they were staying up all night to try and prove their inferiority over the younger children and the adults that needed their precious sleep. 

All in all it was a great evening, no shark bites, no one got lost in the aquarium, no on was stung by or bitten by any kind of venomous creature and no one fell in the parana tank, all good things in my eyes.  Also my pregnant wife made it through the entire night without giving birth or wetting her air mattress and all of the wonderful volunteers who went survived with many a story to tell I’m sure.  It was great to see the kids come together and build relationships with other kids that they may not have known. This trip was great and it was so cool to see the kids from all 5 services come together and hang out as one big group.  

Our next KIDZPLAYCE trip is scheduled for June 30 -July 3, (Camp KidJam) this one will be a little further from home, none the less it will be a great experience for the kids, with great teaching and activities to draw them closer to Christ while having a blast!

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So this past week we took our weekend experience here at the Gathering to FIVE (count’em) FIVE services.  We continue to have our two Saturday Night worship experiences and we have now gone to three Sunday Morning worship experiences. 9:00 a.m., 10:30 a.m. and the Noon O’clock service (12:00 p.m).  Saturday Night was still packed both services as we saw our largest single service of 1st – 5th graders during my existence with the KIDZPLAYCE elementary kids.  I was so pumped Sunday afternoon about what God is doing in our Church, but I could not escape the rundown of the FIVE services, not to mention the all night-er at the Ripley’s Aquarium with 32 Elementary kids this past Friday.  I think Rachel and I slept for about 6 hours Sunday afternoon, OK so it was probably just two hours but it was the best two hours of sleep in my life followed by a Holy hour and a half of fishing down at the river.  Please continue to pray for Pastor Gene and the rest of the staff that God will continue to provide us with the energy, love and overflowing Spirit that only He can provide us as we continue on this mission. 

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