West Side Blogs

Every Friday night during the semester, Christian Student Fellowship at UIS and LLCC offers a free meal for college students. One of the best ways to reach college students’ souls is through their stomachs, especially if the food is free! CSF uses this opportunity to build relationships with students and serve the campus community in a tangible way. They are looking for people who will help provide these meals each week throughout the school year. This could be a great chance for your small group to serve! Perhaps you’ll want to partner with another small group on this.

Here’s how you can help:

1. Pick a Friday night to serve this fall, and then call or email Gretchen McGruder (498-7749, info@uiscsf.org) to confirm the date.
2. Get your small group together and plan the meal. College students aren’t too picky. You’ll need to provide the meal, drinks, and paper products for about 60 students.
3. Bring the food to the UIS Student Center any time after 5 pm (the meal will start at 6 pm). You’re encouraged to interact with the students, and even join them for worship and Bible study after the meal.

 These meals provide a chance to introduce college students to Christ, and to help them stay the course in their journey of faith during the often turbulent years of college. By simply helping to fill their stomachs, you’ll provide an opportunity for the ministry of CSF to feed their souls with the life-changing message of Jesus Christ.

Dear WILD Team,

Thank you for allowing God to use you in great ways during the upcoming Fall Quarter.  It is a joy to serve with you.  There are some exciting changes in the WILD schedule that you need to be aware of.  They will begin on September 5^th, this coming Sunday.

SCHEDULE:

9:00, 10:15 

K-2nd Grade  

Will meet in their designated Drop-Off rooms and will complete the Plug-In and Catch-On activities before going to Large Group/Worship.  After LG, K-2 kids will travel back to individual classrooms designated for Pick-Up.  K-2 classes will have a total of 25 min teaching time.

3rd-5^th Grade 

Begin in Large Group worship.  Kids in these grades will now actually be dropped off at Studio 2 and begin in Large Group/Worship first.  Video games will be available for our early arrivals.  Once Large/Group Worship concludes the kids will travel to their designated Pick-Up classroom to conclude their hour with Plug In and Catch On activities.  These classes will have a total of 20 min teaching time. 

11:30 

Drop-off/Pick-Up in Studio 2.  Video games will be available for our early arrivals. Kids will start off Large Group/Worship, and conclude with Plug-In and Catch-On activities.

CLASSROOM LOCATIONS: 

A list of these changes and a map can be accessed at: http://westsidekids.org/thewild/.  Please be familiar with these locations before September 5^th.

HOUR DIRECTORS: 

Welcome to our new Hour Directors!  These volunteers have committed themselves to serving you every Sunday.  Please let them know of any needs or concerns you may have.  On September 5^th you will have the opportunity to meet them.  They will be stopping by your class to say hello.

            9:00     Janet Brewer

            10:15   Allison Gnuse

            11:30   Kathy Jackson

SPRINGFIELD CHRISTIAN SCHOOL: 

As a reminder, the WILD has a partnership with SCS.  In order to allow them to begin their Monday morning classes in an organized manner, we ask several things of you regarding this shared space.

• Please leave rooms the way you found them.  If you need a special room arrangement, please notify your Hour Director and we will be happy to help make this happen.
• There is no need for kids to play with the classroom “stuff”:  desks, books, reading nooks, classroom pets, etc.  Engaging activities are provided for each minute of the WILD.  Direct kids’ attention to these activities.
• All materials needed for Sunday morning are provided for you.  Extra materials for each Sunday’s activities are kept at the Help Desk.  Therefore, if you find that you need more of anything on a given Sunday please let us know and we can deliver it to your class.
• DO NOT USE ANY WHITE BOARD IN CLASS.  This is especially important.  These are special white boards, called Smart Boards, and they will be ruined if the wrong pen is used on them.  Therefore, we will provide a small, portable white board for you, if needed.

TRAVEL TO LARGE GROUP: 

In order to get from classrooms to Large Group/Worship, please use the educational wing hallways instead of cutting through a classroom.

INTERCOM SYSTEM: 

60 seconds before your class transitions to Lare Group/Worship, you will hear a tone come through the intercom system.  Please finish your activity and line your class up.

SUPPLY BOXES: 

 The WILD now has its very own supply room in the newly renovated space near the ECM Pre- School pods.  Supply boxes can be brought to our designated supply room after each hour.

TEACHER TRANSTION: 

 To ensure that children being dropped off are always in the care of a WILD volunteer, please remain your designated Drop-Off/Pick-Up area until the teachers for the next hour arrive.

CURRICULUM: 

You can download each month’s curriculum at: http://volunteers.westsidekids.org/elementary/

Prior to Sunday, September 5th please review the Children’s Ministry manual, submit your volunteer application, completed back-ground check paperwork (new volunteers only) and plan to bring a copy of your signed volunteer covenant with you.  You can turn in your covenant at the Elementary helpdesk which is located in the Education Wing near E111.

Grateful for you,

Elementary Leadership Team

Each week in The Wild we learn exciting new things that God wants to teach us.  To help kids take home and apply what they are learning we want to provide parents with some of the basics that we cover each week and also a few questions you can talk through with your kids in the car or during a meal sometime this week.

This Week’s Virtue: Make Scripture personal today.

The Bottom Line: Think about what God says and it will change you.

Memory Verse: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy- think about such things.” Philippians 4:8

This Week’s Bible Story: Think again. Pilippians 4:8

Think About it Question:

1. Kid’s  & Parent’s Question – Why do you think God wants us to think about what God says? How can it change you?

The other day I was running through Washington Park when I noticed a number of younger runners. It soon became apparent to me that they were part of a local high school cross country team. As a runner and former distance coach it was easy for me to identify some of the more experienced runners. Some of these athletes had great form. They looked relaxed as they ran, even on the difficult work-out their coach was putting them through. Their strides were long and effortless. And they were fast.

It struck me that every season, in a variety of sports, spanning a number of ages, athletes of all skill levels show up for training camps and practices. It’s obvious that younger, less experienced, less skilled athletes need the coaching and training. But, it’s interesting that even guys like Albert Pujols and Adrian Peterson, who are at the top of their game, still show up for training. They recognize that they’re never beyond the level of needing another perspective on the game. They’re never so good that they can’t get better. They’re humble enough to recognize they might benefit from what happens at training. And how humbling it must be for their coaches!

I hope you’ll join us this Sunday night from 4:00-6:30 PM in Centennial Hall for our Fall Small Group Leaders Training. We’ve got a great night planned to challenge, inform, and encourage you. If you’ve not already done so, please RSVP to Tracy Scarlette (TracyS@wschurch.org) to let us know either way of your attendance or absence.

If you have kids coming to The Wild then you know the summer project “Out of the Ashes” was building a house for a family in Myanmar who lost everything they had in a fire.  The goal was $1,500 and our kids surpassed even that and were able to build a terrific house for a great family!  You can see more in the video below.  What a great response to such a great need. Thank you West Side Kids!

Each week in The Wild we learn exciting new things that God wants to teach us.  To help kids take home and apply what they are learning we want to provide parents with some of the basics that we cover each week and also a few questions you can talk through with your kids in the car or during a meal sometime this week.

This Month’s Virtue: PEACE is proving that you care more about others than winning an argument.

The Bottom Line: Just because you didn’t start a fight doesn’t mean you can’t stop it.

Memory Verse: “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.” Romans 14:19

This Week’s Bible Story: Git Along! 1 Samuel 25:16-35

Think About it Questions:

1. Kid’s Question – What’s one way you could help make peace between two friends?
2. Parent’s Question – Have you ever intervened to make peace between two friends? What happened?

Chip possesses a deep passion for connecting unbelievers with the God of the Bible. His relational approach to ministry, engaging communication style and genuine spirit make him a welcomed addition to our outreach staff. We anticipate he will elevate our efforts to impact our city for Christ.

Chip is also devoted to helping young adults unpack God’s Word and discover a vibrant relationship with Christ. We expect God will develop West Side’s ministry to young adults even further under Chip’s leadership.

Creativity, integrity and a determination to reach people who are far from God have earned Chip a solid reputation in a variety of ministry circles. We can’t wait to see Christ use and bless both Chip and his family at WSCC.

Please join us in welcoming Chip and Chelsea to West Side!