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The Oregon Conference Children’s Ministry Department exists to equip, develop and inspire volunteers to lead children and their families to follow Jesus.
Oregon Conference Children's Ministries is here to encourage, support, resource, network and train members from our churches to minister to children in their church and community.
From the Oregon Health Authority healthoregon.org/coronavirus
Helping kids get comfortable with masks
There is a lot of uncertainty about school right now. Some kids are in virtual school. Other children attend in person a few hours a week. And some are on campus full time. This uncertainty is especially difficult for young children, and focusing on what you know your kids can expect may help them adjust to our new normal.
One thing is clear: Kids will be wearing masks at school.
Oregon pediatricians at the Oregon Pediatric Society offer advice for parents on helping kids with mask wearing. Here are five tips that may help accustom your toddlers and young children to masking up:
Start early: Introduce masks well ahead of when you think your child will be required to wear them. Consider starting by simply having masks around the home and pointing out their presence. Next steps can be encouraging children to touch, explore, and play with the masks.
Make it familiar: Parents and older siblings can wear masks around the house or put them on stuffed animals and dolls to make them more familiar.
Make it fun: Provide masks with fun patterns or pictures and let your child choose the mask they wear before going out.
Be honest: Even for young children you can say something like “Okay, time to put our mask on to make sure we all stay safe.”
Be consistent: Easy places to start are everywhere outside the home (“Whenever we go inside somewhere that is not our home, we wear a mask”) or every time entering an indoor public space (“Okay, we’re going inside now, time to put on our mask.”).
The complete article is on the Oregon Pediatric Society webpage. They also have a great video on kids masking up:
Join me this coming Mother's Day weekend to find new energy and hope!
Register Now - Starts this Friday!
Download a flyer that tells you all about the Children's Camp Meeting.
There will also be a special Animal Adventure program which will be suitable for a mix of the Preschool and Elementary ages.
Information has gone out to all the churches to find out which churches are hosting camp meeting at their churches and whether they plan to have a children's program.
Please email the photos to shirley.allen@oc.npuc.org
Resources available to help you learn more about leading a successful Sabbath School program at your church.
We hope our newsletter will provide you with inspiration, abundant resources for your sabbath school and news and announcements. May God bless you in ministering to His kids. Click below to read the latest newsletter. Click the "Sign Up!" button to the right to receive our weekly newsletters in your email.
PIVOT will inspire and encourage you. Listen to keynote speaker Pastor Manny Cruz and dedicated breakout presenters who are passionate about ministering to children. You will be equipped to minister to the children you serve in powerful ways as the Holy Spirit leads us to pivot with Him. There are 31 videos to view with 7 of them in Spanish.
Lending Suspended Until Further Notice
Do to health concerns and the many surfaces that can be touched. The Children's Ministries Department will suspend lending from our Lending Vault until further notice.
Our Lending Vault is a service we provide for our churches to help offset costs for event programing. This includes VBS kits, backdrops, stuffed animals and costumes. It is $20 per borrowing trip. We rely on the careful care of those who borrow, to return them in a timely manner and to follow the care instructions for each. This is a local service and requires on site pick up and return. It is not a mailed lending service. Please fill out this form to request using our Lending Vault Resources in Children’s Ministries. This will help us to serve you better and see if we have the items you are requesting. We will contact you further once this form is fully filled out. Thank you to those who help sustain this program by donation and using the service. NOTE: during the month of July borrowing from our vault is closed the 3rd through the 5th week each year.
Request Lending Vault Resources
The Adventurer program was created to assist parents in their important responsibilities as their child’s primary teachers and evangelizers.
Welcome to Cactusville, one of the most adventurous towns in the Southwest! Cactusville is a mining town tucked away in the desert where the sun is always shining, the skies are bright blue, and the peaks of the surrounding mountains look like broken spurs. Yee-haw! Kids will experience a rip roarin’ good time while learning that they are called by God. They are called to be unconditionally loved and accepted, whoever they are. God’s calling includes a revelation of His unique purpose for each and every child. Each day your Buckaroos and Li’l Cowpokes will discover a special way in which God has called them. They will learn how they can accept and live out this calling while enjoying Bible treasure huntin’ Cactusville adventures!
There was a Cactusville VBS Tour for local church VBS leaders on April 15. Brought to you by NAD Children's Ministries.
You can watch it here
Experience amazing Bible adventures, unforgettable foot stompin', knee slappin' songs, window shop at the Trading Post Craft station, see the menu at the Chuck Wagon Snacks, getty up and go with foot stompin' games and take a rest at Sunset Canyon Prayer Station!
NAD Children's Ministries.
Puedes verlo aqui
Experimenta increíbles historias Bíblicas, Cantos inolvidables, ve de compras por tu manualidad en la Tienda de Intercambio, saborea el menú en la Carreta de Alimentos, llega taconeando a jugar al Corral y ¡tomate un descanso orando en el Cañón de Puesta de Sol!
Beginner Ages birth – 2 years old.
Kindergarten Ages 3 – 4 years old.
Primary Ages 5 – 9 years old.
Junior Ages 9 – 12 years old.
Lessons, videos, podcasts, craft ideas and more you will find in the Oregon Conference Children's Ministries Newsletter each week for all the kids sabbath school programs. View the Newsletter here or get on the mailing list to receive it in your email.
Stories For Kids
Other Resources
View the Children's Ministries coordinator job description. (PDF)
Get the Sabbath School app on iTunes or the Google Play store.
These self-guided courses provide solid, practical and creative preparation for immediate implementation in your local Sabbath School.
By Emily Ellis
Oregon Conference Pastor
I was the type of seven-year old that wanted to be the best at everything: math, drawing, baseball, reading, playing the piano… you name it! Well, there was this one girl in my class who was much smarter than me, and it frustrated me so much. There was one day we were sitting at our desks, working on a craft, and she asked me, “Did you know the sun is red?” In my mind, I was shocked by this information! I had no idea the sun was red. All the cartoons depicted it as yellow! My entire worldview was being expanded in that moment. As an act of desperation and so that I could present myself as being knowledgeable on all subjects, I responded with a, “Why yes I did know that!”
That lie was told so that I could fit in and so that I could appear to be the smartest first grader. It was told from this place that if I could appear that I knew everything, was the smartest, the quickest, you name it, then people would like me more. I never wanted to own up to things that I didn’t know the answer to, or admit that there were somethings that I just wasn’t good at. No, I constantly tried to put my best foot forward.
Sometimes I notice that I try to do that with Jesus! That I think I have to have it all put together before I come to Jesus. But hear me out, the coolest thing about Jesus is that he loves you as you are! And in fact he desires honesty from you. That means that you can come to Jesus with anything, you can talk to him about all things and he listens to all of it! The best way of connecting with Jesus is just being honest with him. Psalm 51:6 says, “But you desire honesty from the womb, teaching me wisdom even there.”
Jesus desires honesty from you: not just towards him, but towards your family and friends.
What are ways that you try to fit in? How can you model honesty in your family?
Download and read all the stories Emily has written for this series, as they come available:
Sara Withers wrote the Forgiveness stories for April.
A Quite Imperfect World... (pdf)
Forgive Our Debts... especially ourselves (pdf)
Jana Lee wrote the Triumphal Entry stories for March.
View the videos in the window below or go direct to the showcase of these 50 videos on Vimeo.
Also view the calendar differently. Try pressing Grid or List.
