A couple weeks ago I announced I will be leaving the Christian Church of Jasper to take the Harbortown kids minister position at Whitewater Crossing Christian Church. I’ve been at CCJ four years now and can hardly believe everything that has been squeezed into that time. I have grown close to my Jasper Church family and will be sad to leave them, especially my kids and my leaders who have been right there with me through it all.
Each week I had with these people left me feeling blessed and continually reminded me why I do what I do. And the past four weeks has been a great reminder of the impact you have without even knowing it. I will treasure these last couple weeks, especially to always remember that everything I do will make a difference in the life of someone.
But just so I don’t end this post on a sad and sappy note, I thought I would list out some of my favorite memories I’ve had with The Spring and H2O:
- Children’s ministry in the warehouse- It wasn’t fun all the time, but it was most certainly an adventure; and see how far we’ve come!?
- My first pumpkin patch batch- for those that experienced the paper straw fight, I’m sure you still have nightmares about it. Glad I did it, though, I’ll never do it again.
- Kissing a pig- I still have kids that randomly bring it up
- Human Ice Cream Sunday- I hate getting gross, but it was for the kids so it’s all good.
- Moving into the new building- It was a crazy race to be ready for Easter but we did it and tried to figure out how we would fill it up. Soon it will be how will everyone fit.
- Our Easter Videos- the two we did were crazy fun.
- Every Single Baptism- Every time I see a kid bounce in anticipation of going out into the baptistery to make an eternal decision, I just can’t even describe the Joy in my heart. It’s a great reminder why Jesus loves the little children.
- Quiet songs- we have a quiet song each week where kids take communion if they’re baptized and if not we encourage them to follow along with our worship motions or sit quietly praying and reading the bible. I love the sincerity of this moment. How most of the kids do whatever they feel helps them focus on God. Seeing kids read their bibles or lift their hands up in worship, makes me tear up just thinking about it.
- Leader get-togethers- We didn’t do these nearly enough, but hanging out with my leaders and just playing games and having food has always been a great time. There were lots of belly aches from all the laughs.
- Color Run- Need I say more? It was definitely a high note to end on.
- Trunk Or Treat 2013- I would have liked to see a parking lot packed with cars for the kids to go to, but that didn’t stop God from working through the ones we had, because you wouldn’t have realized that wasn’t the case. We had and INCREDIBLE amount of people on site enjoying the wonderful fall weather and candy and hayrides and popcorn and cider.
- Camp- Every camp I’ve done with Jasper has been loads of fun. But the best I think was our Happy Holidays year. First time we did fireworks and we hit that sweet spot with everything going right and no injures or homesickness. Then we had another perfect year this past summer.
- Jr. Leaders- I’ve got to see so many kids not just grow closer to God but start living it out through service. Seeing anyone, but kids especially plug into serving at the church is always a highlight for me.
- Superstart- I love the preteen age. I love the questions they ask and helping them to make their faith their own. Superstart is a special time I get to spend with these kids reminding them that not only is a relationship with God amazing, but that they are loved and there is always something else to learn, you never have all the answers.
I’m sure there are other moments that will come to mind as I make my move and transition to WCCC, but these are the ones that stand out. It’s been a great time CCJ, but it’s time for a new adventure.
