Go Beyond

If there is one thing I want for kids to know it’s that they don’t have to wait until they are grown up to make a difference. God can use them today to make our world a better place.

Every year, the kids who attend Vacation Bible School at Kingsland raise thousands of dollars to help less fortunate kids in other parts of the world. Over the years, our kids have invested in initiatives to help kids facing tough stuff in really hard places — from the steppes of Mongolia to the sands of Egypt to the displacement camps of Ethiopia and many more places on the planet.

Investing in kids is a top priority of Kingsland’s missions ministry. We believe that a key component of connecting faith and home is helping our kids to understand the world they live in. We want for them to know God’s concern for the nations and for the diaspora of nations that call Houston home.

One way in which we help our kids to understand the purposes of God is by giving them age-appropriate resources that explain what He is doing around the world — and how He can use them to make a difference. Last year our missions ministry launched our Go Beyond Kids Explorers Club, a really cool resource for helping kids make discoveries about our world.

This year, we are challenging our kids to raise funds to build two operating clinics in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. To that end, we have put together an awesome Explorers Club package for each kid who attends VBS. Each package contains a map of the DRC, a souvenir made by kids in the region, a bookmark, a challenge from our pastor, Explorers Club stickers, interactive geography games, and something new!

This year, instead of our Just For Kids magazine, we have included a book entitled “Clinics for the Congo.” The book was the brainchild of Amy Granger, my assistant. She challenged me to go beyond what I have done in the past by writing a book to explain to kids what life is like for kids in the DRC who have little access to medical care. Talented Kingsland member Lesley Steinweg beautifully illustrated the book.

We are excited to give each kid who attends our VBS this week their very own and really cool Explorers Club package. Our prayer is that as kids interact with the material God will interact with each little heart — helping our kids to believe that God can indeed use them today to make the world a better place for kids in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and beyond.