Meanwhile, Just Ten Miles Away

A member at our church, who teaches in Vista, came to us with an idea. Although to call it an "idea" makes it seem like something optional. Instead, this idea was based on a need - a need that can't be easily ignored.

The issue, this teacher shared with me, is that many kids at her school have been coming to school in the same clothes day after day, or in clothes that don't fit, or that don't work for play. She wondered if we might do a clothing drive to help out.

This school - where 95% of the kids come from families whose incomes are so low, the kids qualify for free or reduced hot lunch - is just ten miles away. Proximity should not be what makes one need more important than another, but in this case, the fact that this is happening nearly in our backyards makes this, I think, especially compelling.

We're not naming the specific elementary school because of the risk of stigmatizing them. But I realize by not naming it, we run the risk of painting all of Vista Public Schools with a broad brush. Let me assure you that is not our intention. I, in fact, live in Vista - and I like it. The fact that this need exists is not reflective of any inherent "less than" in Vista, or the quality of its schools, or the people who live there.

This need exists because some of the children at that school are in fact homeless. Others live in families who share homes with relatives. A great many just have parents who, despite working, don't earn enough to keep up in this expensive North Coastal region.

So the need exists. As winter settles in, some kids need jackets. Many can use new shoes. All of them simply need more - more shirts, pants, shorts. Siblings in middle school and preschool also need these things. So we'll be collecting kids' clothing of all sizes. Please no adult clothes, and - this hopefully goes without saying - please launder items before donating.

Some of the clothes collected will be donated; the rest will be sold at token prices, with funds benefiting the school's PTA, which will then turn around and pour those resources back into the school.

Please donate. But more than that, use this opportunity to teach your kids about generosity, and that we don't just give out of some abstract motivation to "do good". We give to meet real needs - sometimes far away, but sometimes just ten miles up the road.

Watch Mark's interview with Rebecca Tartre below:

 

The best Bibles for kids, brought straight to you

It happens every time I go to a bookstore. I get lost.

Not physically lost, but lost in the pages. I jump from one intriguing cover to another. I read whole chapters. I lose track of time. And yes, I've been known to spend a little more than I intended when I walked in.

When I'm in a Christian book store, something different happens. I find myself stumbling upon title after title that I wish the families at my church could see.

At the same time as the number of Christian bookstores has gone down, the amount of quality products out there for kids and preteens is way up. Kid-friendly Bibles, Bible storybooks, and devotionals abound. The Action Bible has been a phenomenon for 5+ years, and now there are others that have a similar style that are capturing kids' attention, not the least of which (you knew this would happen) is the Minecrafter's Bible(!).

So, because most families don't have the time to put their kids in the car and search out the nearest Christian bookstore, we're going to bring these books to you: a book fair, at our church, on the first weekend in December. We are making close to 20 titles available to you and selling them at cost. Our children's ministry makes nothing on this, and we don't want to. We just really want your kids to get their hands on the fun products that are available right now.

Let me be clear: I think having Bibles and Bible storybooks in your home is essential to kids' spiritual growth. I know some people worry that cartoonish illustrations might send the message that the Bible's characters were fictional, while others insist that storybooks compromise the Bible's integrity and authority because they aren't delivering "the real" words of God (which are in Greek and Hebrew, by the way...). But these concerns are easily enough dealt with, when we explain to kids that, "No one knows exactly what Jesus looked like, or his disciples, or any of the people in the Bible - but here's what one author imagined they might have been like..."

And with that, we launch kids down a road of wonder and adventure. Anyone who suggests that adult Christians should not use their minds is not a friend of spiritual growth in adults; likewise, anyone who suggests that children need to put their imaginations on hold when encountering the Bible is not a friend of spiritual growth in children.

The sale is one weekend only, and whatever we don't sell goes back to the supplier. I hope you'll come out and browse the tables on December 3-4, and consider including a new Bible under the tree this Christmas.