We had the last "official" kids event of the summer on Saturday when we participated in a Bible Bowl, followed by what was suppose to be a Hot Air Balloon watching party. (The balloons never got off of the ground due to thunderstorms, but we still enjoyed the hospitality of the Allen's.) Bible Bowl is one of those things that I have mixed feelings about. I have learned to view it as a piece of the puzzle - a way to help some kids learn God's Word. It is a form of rote memorization, but you know there's nothing wrong with that if that's not the only emphasis you place on God's Word. In fact I seem to recall God telling his children to bind it on their foreheads and write it on their door posts. If we don't know His Word then we don't have His power to fall back on when temptation and struggles come. My mixed feelings come from the competition aspect of it. Not that I have a problem with competition in general, I just worry about the emphasis on winning. I want to make sure that the kids are more focused on learning God's Word and enjoying their time together instead of how many they missed or got right.
Based on this I decided that this year I would not promote Bible Bowl as much as in the past. That way the kids that wanted to would step up and do it and the others wouldn't feel the pressure or have to endure review sessions filled with rote learning. Imagine my surprise when two weeks before Bible Bowl I had 24 kids signed up to participate! The most I have ever had. That gave us 6 teams from completed 1st - completed 8th grade with most of them in the 1st - 4th grade group.
The kids went Saturday and did a great job. I was so proud of them for standing in front of a group of adults and answering question after question on the book of Acts. Questions that I dare say a lot of the adults did not know the answer. Most of all I'm proud of their attitude. Each year I find that while our kids might not come in first, there's nobody else there who enjoys the day more. They're a great group of kids. Makes me sad to see the summer end.
Based on this I decided that this year I would not promote Bible Bowl as much as in the past. That way the kids that wanted to would step up and do it and the others wouldn't feel the pressure or have to endure review sessions filled with rote learning. Imagine my surprise when two weeks before Bible Bowl I had 24 kids signed up to participate! The most I have ever had. That gave us 6 teams from completed 1st - completed 8th grade with most of them in the 1st - 4th grade group.
The kids went Saturday and did a great job. I was so proud of them for standing in front of a group of adults and answering question after question on the book of Acts. Questions that I dare say a lot of the adults did not know the answer. Most of all I'm proud of their attitude. Each year I find that while our kids might not come in first, there's nobody else there who enjoys the day more. They're a great group of kids. Makes me sad to see the summer end.
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