​Hello RF Friends,
 
Yesterday in RF, our lesson was based on Colossians 3:13, where Paul wrote, "Put up with one another. Forgive one another if you are holding something against someone. Forgive, just as the Lord forgave you."  This month in RF, we have been talking about friendship. Forgiveness is a big part of growing friendships. This verse teaches us that because God forgave us, we can forgive others when they mess up - especially the people we consider our friends. 
 
Bottom Line:  Friends forgive one another. 
 
As kids learn about God's incredible forgiveness through Jesus, we hope they will start to understand more about how they can forgive their own friends. It's not just about accepting an apology and saying everything is all right. We pray that kids will understand how they can forgive others and work to rebuild their friendships that are worth saving. 
 
After the lesson, we made friendship bracelets with red, yellow, and blue beads as a way to review what we learned about friendship this month...
Red beads represent promises. Good friends keep their promises.
Yellow beads represent encouragement. Good friends encourage and stand up for each other.
Blue beads represent forgiveness. Good friends forgive each other. 
 
Memory Verse # 2:  Love prospers when a fault is forgiven, but dwelling on it separates close friends. Proverbs 17:9, NLT
 
Have a good week!
The RF Team

​Hi Reign Forest Friends,
 
It’s a new school year, and it’s time for us to begin our Bible Memory verse challenge again! Parents, you should have received the verses for your children in your church mailbox on Sunday, September 17th. If you didn’t, please let Anita or another Reign Forest leader know. Also, like in prior years, the new verse is stapled to the child’s take-home paper for that week. We also include the memory verse in these weekly Reign Forest update emails.
 
This Sunday, week three in September, we head to Acts 9:26-30. Saul had a bad reputation with the followers of Jesus. So when Saul decided to follow Jesus, the other believers had a difficult time trusting that he had really changed. Barnabas went out on a limb and defended Saul. Because of Barnabas, the followers of Jesus chose to help Saul and trust that Jesus had really changed him.
 
Bottom Line: Friends stand up for one another. Of course, we don’t want kids to put themselves in dangerous situations, but there’s an aspect of friendship when we might feel like we need to defend others. It’s important that we find a way to stand up for people who are being treated badly. We want kids to understand how they can encourage others and let them know they’re not alone.
 
Memory Verse #1: A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken. Ecclesiastes 4:12 NLT
 
P. S. Today in class, we introduced the Bible memory verse, watched the video Bible story, and had a time of sharing prayer requests & praises. Then we did a “Hot potato” story review game and a freeze variation game of Sharks & Minnows.
 
Have a wonderful week!
Reign Forest Team

​On Sunday, we headed to 1 Samuel 19–20 and 2 Samuel 9 and took a look at one of the most famous friendships in the entire Bible, between David and Jonathan. Before David escaped to hide from King Saul, he promised Jonathan that he would always take care of Jonathan’s family. David had a chance to follow through on that promise and took care of Jonathan’s son, Mephibosheth, making him feel like a part of his family.
 
Bottom Line: Friends keep their promises. Trust is a crucial part of friendship. One of the most important ways we can build trust with our friends is by keeping our word. When we promise to do something, we should do everything we can to keep that promise. We pray that as kids learn about David and Jonathan, they’ll think about the ways they can keep their promises and show others that they can be trusted friends.
 
We played “Hot Potato” but with an egg (it was hard-boiled - but the kids didn’t know that until after the game). The kids did a very good job and were very careful passing the egg around. Just as we had to be very careful with the egg, we also have to be very careful to keep the promises that we make.
 
There is no Bible memory verse this week. We will start our new Bible Memory Verse Challenge next Sunday, September 17. Our challenge will run the same as last year. We will challenge the kids to memorize 30 Bible verses throughout this school year. Kids are welcome to memorize the verses that we select in Reign Forest, or they may memorize school verses. Attached is information about the program. Please see Anita if you have any questions.

​Hi Reign Forest Friends,
 
For September 2022, the children are learning about TRUST. Each week they learn about the connection between Trust and God’s character, as shown through God’s Big Story (the Bible).
 
In week 3, we meet Isaac’s sons, Jacob and Esau, in Genesis 25, 27, and 28. Jacob and Esau always had a complicated relationship from the moment they were born. Jacob eventually took advantage of Esau’s moment of exhaustion. Of course, Esau was angry, and Jacob might have wondered how God felt about him after tricking his brother’s birthright and blessing out from under him. But in a dream, God reminded Jacob of the promise to his grandfather, Abraham. God loved Jacob and could be trusted. God renewed the covenant that started with Abraham. God always keeps a promise.
 
Bottom Line: You can trust that God has a plan. It can be difficult for kids to understand how God has a plan for their life. They’re at the phase where they hardly know their dinner plans, much less what they hope will happen weeks or months from now. However, this doesn’t mean they don’t need a foundation to understand how God can play a significant role in their plans. We pray that through the story of Jacob and Esau, they can see that God is constantly working to bring something great from our lives.
 
Memory Verse #2: “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 NLT
 
Have a great week!
The Reign Forest team

​Hello Reign Forest friends,
 
For the Month of September 2022, the children are learning about TRUST.
Throughout history, God has been faithful to us. God kept the promise to send Jesus to save us. When we remember that God will continue to be dependable, we can choose to trust God no matter what we face in life. The Bible shows examples of people who knew firsthand what it meant to trust God in many circumstances. This month, we focus on three of them who happen to be part of the same family: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Through their stories, we’ll discover how we can trust God no matter what we face.
 
We pick up where we left off last month and continue with Abraham’s story for week one. In Genesis 15, 18, and 21, we discover that God’s promise to Abraham takes longer than Abraham might have thought. This tests Abraham’s trust in God, but God renews Abraham’s covenant. Abraham learns that he can trust God. Eventually, Abraham and Sarah have a son and name him Isaac. God’s promise to Abraham is coming true.
 
Bottom Line: Trust God even when you have to wait. Waiting can be difficult. When we find ourselves in a moment where we have to wait, it can be easy to complain or get angry. However, we can discover a different way to wait. When we remember how God has been faithful to us in the past, we can find the strength to trust God with our current situation. We pray that kids understand they can trust God with whatever they’re experiencing.
 
During our class, children participated in 2 games that talked about waiting. We then did a craft. Older children were given a printed trust journal, which they were encouraged to fill out. It includes fill-in-the-blank parts of how God encourages us to trust Him in our life.
 
Have a great week!
The Reign Forest team

​Hi Reign Forest Friends,
 
This week, we circled back to the lesson that we missed the Sunday we were enjoying our service at Woodcrest. We took a look at Luke 10:25-37 and our last Fruit of the Spirit - kindness. When a religious leader questioned Jesus about the sorts of people we should love and show kindness to; He told the familiar parable of the Good Samaritan. With this story, Jesus completely changed how people who follow Him should look at showing kindness to others – it’s not just for people we know or like, but for everyone we meet.
 
Bottom Line: Show kindness to everyone. Everyone is someone who God created and loves. We pray that our kids start to realize that everyone deserves kindness. We’ll help them discover simple ways to put God’s love into action with the way they are kind to people they meet.
 
We look forward to celebrating with everyone this coming Sunday during our Memory Verse Celebration. We want to celebrate everyone’s hard work memorizing God’s word, whether that was here in RF, at home, or at school this past year. We have a fun morning planned and hope everyone can join us!
 
Blessings!
The RF Team

​Dear RF Friends,
 
On Sunday in RF, we finished up the 9-week series on the Fruits of the Spirit by looking at James 3:1-6 and discussing self-control.  Our words have power.  James uses practical images like a horse's bit, a ship's rudder, and a flame to show us just how powerful they are.  Our words can hurt, or they can heal, and controlling them can sometimes feel impossible.  Thankfully, we can count on the Holy Spirit to help us practice self-control with our words. 
               
Bottom Line:  God gives you the power to have self-control.  Self-control can be tricky, especially when we want something really bad or when life doesn't go our way.  This can also be true with the words we use.  We pray that the kids will begin to see that they don't need to do this all independently.  God can help them show self-control. 
 
The attached take-home paper includes a fun coloring page to review the Fruits of the Spirit! 
 
Blessings,
RF Team 

​Hi Reign Forest Friends,
 
We will have our Bible Memory Celebration on Sunday, Aug 14, in Reign Forest during the Worship service!
 
We are very proud of ALL the children and their efforts to memorize God's Word!!! If your child has not met the goal yet, they can feel free to keep working on memorizing verses, and we would love to hear them on or before Sunday, Aug 7. Aug 7 will be the last Sunday for the kids to say Bible verses to a Reign Forest leader to count towards this year's challenge.
 
If your child has met the 30 Verse Challenge, he/she will be awarded a gift card to their choice of place during our celebration. Please let Anita know your child's choice of gift card by Sunday Aug 7. If your child does not reach the goal but has completed a set of 5 verses (5, 10, 15, 20, or 25), he/she will be able to pick a small prize from the treasure box on the morning of our celebration.
 
Thank you! We look forward to the celebration!
The Reign Forest Leaders 

​Hi Reign Forest Friends,
 
In week three, we jump back to 1 Samuel 18-20 and 2 Samuel 9. We dive deeper into the amazing friendship between David and Jonathan. Jonathan was a faithful friend to David when King Saul chased David and tried to kill him. David was faithful to Jonathan and kept an important promise to care for Jonathan’s family.
 
Bottom Line: Be faithful so others can count on you. Faithfulness will look different for each of us. Some of us will be faithful to family members who need encouragement. Others will faithfully help friends who struggle a bit. We hope kids learn that God can do some amazing things through them when they are faithful to others. 
 
Memory verse: There is no NEW memory verse. But please encourage your children to work on memorizing and reciting their verses if they still have ones left to say from the 30 verse Bible Memory Challenge here at Reign Forest.
 
Have a great week!
The Reign Forest team

Hello Everyone,
​
Last Sunday in Week 4, we spent time discovering more about Proverbs 15:18. Waiting can be the worst! But something Solomon wrote in Proverbs can help us remember why patience is so important. A person with a bad temper stirs up conflict. But a person who is patient calms things down. When we have to wait, it’s important not to let impatience get the best of us. We can trust God to give us the strength to have patience and keep our cool.

Bottom Line: Be patient with each other. We all face moments where we’ll find it difficult to have patience. From waiting in line to get a seat at your favorite restaurant to sitting in construction traffic on your way to vacation, how can you have patience when you want to get a move on? We pray that kids will start with prayer and ask God for help. God can give us patience in any situation!

Tomorrow we will be at Woodcrest Retreat Center for our annual church picnic. We hope to see you all there!
The Reign Forest Team,

Cheryl, Anita, Angie, Christine and Val