The Wilkes Team

(Be sure to read all the way to the end for a special report)

What a thrilling three days! Each day the momentum built with Saturday being the climax. Special guests, The Staddon family, joined us and so enhanced the climax to even greater levels.

Beginning with prayer requests and prayer Joshua introduced Saturday’s club. Next came a powerful demonstration on the importance of obeying even when it’s difficult. Esther, Daniel Staddon, and Mark performed a skit to help illustrate this important truth.

  Daniel and Sarah shared the importance of Loving God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength and how this is the means to true obedience towards all authorities.

Through the fascinating avenue of a chalk talk, Jonathan Staddon shared on the importance of gravity and how it is a law which cannot be changed and will be obeyed. In telling the story of Moses receiving the 10 Commandments, Jonathan went on further to explain that there are other laws God created which we have a choice to obey. He shared powerful testimonies of the rewards that come through obeying our authorities and the consequences of disobeying.

Michael Staddon and Joshua gave some motivating stretches:

The Teaching time concluded with the missionary story by Adam. The children were listening eagerly to a truly fascinating story of a translator – Yoseb who translated the English Bible into the Tibetan language.

After a final prayer we all headed out for an exhilarating 7 part obstacle course: 

The Lord truly blessed the entire day. But there was one particular highlight which truly inspired all of us teachers.

It reminded us of the need to continue in the paths of righteousness and furthermore impressed upon us how great a God we serve.

Click Here for this encouraging & uplifting highlight!

8 Comments » | posted in Family News, Ministry Reports

At one point or another, standing between every human being and their Creator God is a wall. A wall that stands firm and fixed, allowing not a soul the opportunity for fellowship with God.  But God loved mankind. He desired a personal relationship with man, his most precious creation. And so out of His great love, He sent His perfect and only begotten Son (Jesus Christ) to earth to die upon a wooden cross as payment for the sins of mankind.

Without the shedding of blood, says the Scripture, there is no remission (forgiveness) of sins (Heb. 9:22). But Jesus did not stay dead – 3 days later He arose showing that He can conquer death. Every human is on their way to eternity in hell unless Jesus Christ saves them from the penalty of their sin. The invitation has been given. It is now up to each individual to receive what Jesus did, repent of their sins, and ask Jesus  to save them. The Bible says, "For Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved (Rom. 10:13)."

This was one of the powerful messages given at Bible Club today. As Matthew went through the gospel, the presentation climaxed when Matthew knocked down a large wall representing sin thus showing what Jesus will do for any who will heed the call to repentance.  

We continued with our exciting theme of obedience. 5 keys of obedience were reviewed: Instantly, Cheerfully, Completely, Without Complaining, & Going the Extra Mile. And then, we heard an amazing story about an elephant who saved the circus because of his instant, complete, and cheerful obedience.

Anticipation is building for the final day of club. We look forward to bringing you tomorrow’s report. Stay tuned for more!

4 Comments » | posted in Ministry Reports

After a wonderful Backyard Bible Club last year, we were thrilled to have the ability to host another one.

WOW!! What a great first day!! God truly was honored today, lives were touched, and we received an incredible blessing.

Our theme this week is on Obedience and the importance of staying under the authority of our God given authorities. The verse Daniel and Sarah taught today was Colossians 3:20 which encouraged us to obey in ALL things because this is well pleasing unto the Lord. We heard the story of Jonah today, and walked away realizing the importance of obeying RIGHT AWAY!

Chef May visited us and was making a very special brownie dessert when she put a bad egg in the bowl and ruined the whole batch of brownies!! O, everyone was so sad! She then shared with us how one bad egg will ruin a whole batch of brownies just how one little sin separates us from God and Heaven.

The game time outside built team work and carefulness in us all! From carrying cups of pop corn on top of our feet and dumping them into a bucket to handing cups of water over our heads to the person behind us!

Keep us in prayer as seek to be testimonies of Christ as we work with these children!

2 Comments » | posted in Family News

Godly Fatherhood is a responsibility for every young man to aspire towards. A role for every wife and daughter to cherish and honor. A position for every culture to protect and promote.

And yet, though we find ourselves living in a culture actively engaged in the demeaning, devaluing, & discouraging of Godly Fatherhood, it is incumbent that we as children never take for granted this noble role. That we never overlook the great sacrifice faithful fathers have made: the sacrifice of forsaking all for Christ. Of relinquishing worldly gain for Godly Character. Of ignoring the jeers of culture and mainstream unto the preservation of Godliness, Purity, & Virtue. Of setting aside personal ambitions in order to raise a Godly seed.

Fathers, like the ones described above, are by no means perfect but they follow a perfect Savior. They are men who fully recognize their depravity outside their all sufficient Lord. They are men who readily admit failure while clinging to the promises of God’s Word. They are men who draw nigh to their Heavenly Father.

It is with great joy and admiration that I say that my father is such a man. One who has decided to follow Jesus – no turning back – no turning back. We thank you Dad for your love for Christ. We appreciate your passion for His will and for your dedication to seeing each one of us become Godly Men and Women.

This past Fathers Day the families at church had the joy of showing a portion of the appreciation they hold for their faithful fathers. This was done through the creation of meaningful banners, loving letters, and memorable ice cream desserts.

The letters were read during testimony time following dessert. Each family pointed out with joy some of the specific ways their father blesses the home. 

Praise the Lord for Godly Fathers – Men whom God has raised for such a time as this to ‘Stand in the Gap.’

2 Comments » | posted in Family News

The joys of birthdays have been abounding in our household as we have celebrated quite a few over the recent days. The creativity of each one helped to make the celebrations extra memorable. Creativity for the purpose of blessing others takes time, takes joy, and takes love….and what a worthwhile investment!

Such was the case of each individual birthday morning….

From a Birthday Safari to Treasure Hunts, memorable hunting events, and sudden surprises , much effort was put in to make each birthday extra special.

One night last week, Grandpa, Grandma, and our cousins came over to celebrate Fathers Day and the birthdays of Grandma, Joshua, Sarah, & Kenan.

The evening was a memorable one. A highlight of the  celebrations, was the Birthday Character Fair. Mom initiated the idea, Kenan & Adam spearheaded it, and just about everyone else contributed. Blankets were hung, paper animals cut out, and furniture rearranged as the basement was transformed into a room full of adventure, contests, & challenges. There was a Clothes Pin Drop, an Animal Safari Seek & Find, a Rabbit Hunting Contest,  Marshmallow Target  Shooting, Boat Racing, & more. Part of the challenge of the Character Fair, was figuring out which character quality went with each activity (Resourcefulness, Wisdom, Determination, Diligence, Sensitivity, Cautiousness, Orderliness, Attentiveness, & Creativity). Endurance for the Boat Race, Resourcefulness for the ‘Paper Throw,’ Creativity for the Tallest Tower Challenge, and much more! Great job to all our participants!

Happy Birthday Grandma, Joshua, Sarah, & Kenan! May the Lord be your focus as you seek to grown in Character this year!

4 Comments » | posted in Family News