March 1999

Zach and Jimmy (not their real names) were sitting in the front row and Zach kept kicking Jimmy. No matter how many times I stepped in, as soon as I stepped away, the kicking resumed. Then a little girl sat in Jimmy's seat and I thought, "Problem solved. Jimmy can sit in her chair and he won't be getting kicked anymore."
Jimmy returned and wanted his seat back. I tried to direct him to the next chair, but he looked up at me and said, " I want to sit by my friend."
I wondered what kind of lives these children came from when kicking was normal between friends. Then when the altar call was given they were there ready to accept Jesus. They came back Sunday morning for Sunday School and church. They didn't know how to sit still or be quiet, but when the altar call was given - they were the first to respond.
God knows their hearts. They are part of a group of kids that is being shown God's love through the local church and they are responding to that love. The kids program they attend is called Kids Rescue Squad. I like that! Rescuing kids from hell is the reason we are doing what we do.
Our midweek Superchurch is going well. The first week was a No Show with stormy weather being the culprit. However the next week we had about 9 kids - most of them unchurched. Then it jumped to 11, 13 and it looks like it has made another jump. We have new kids every week with about 18 kids that attend regularly. (If only they would all come on the same night.) We have been using Power Tool Box® and the kids are learning about the Ten Commandments and how much God wants to protect them. We will be there until the end of April. Please pray with us that God will send people we can train to take our place when we leave.
We have been hearing a lot about Generation X lately, and as we began to research, we discovered that we are not working with Generation X but with the Millennial Generation or the Fourteenth Generation - those born in 1982 and later. Very aware of the world around them, they have trouble finding good role models. Their morals are caught from media waves and cyber space. Millennial Kids are very technically advanced, and even though they are computer smart, many of them are God-illiterate. In spite of all this there is something special and unique about this group. You see, they are the "Fourteenth Generation" - the same generations that gave us Abraham, David and Jesus. So we believe that God has something extra-special for this generation and we are honoured that He has chosen us to be involved with them.
At the same time there is a great challenge in ministering to these Millennial Kids. They are very technically advanced, becoming easily bored by the mediocre and average and we believe that God is calling us to meet the challenge. Bible truths need to be communicated through interactive learning with large, animated, vibrant images. Fresh, anointed music and a clear sound make the difference between enjoyment and tolerance. To do this we need to be on the cutting edge, constantly changing and revamping how we minister to these kids. God has blesses us with the giftings we need to accomplish this but we still need the right tools.
We need:
Video Projection Equipment
Video Camera
Laptop Computer
Portable Sound System
Portable Keyboard
Accessories & Trailer so that all this equipment is used, protected and transported safely.
We believe that God has given us a plan to reach this objective. We are asking for a ONE-TIME gift of $7.00. Seven is the number of God. He took seven days to create the world. We need about $21,000 therefore we need 3000 people to join with us. Together we can make this goal a reality. If you would like to help us reach the goal, please make your gift payable to You Are Special Ministries, and send to 6678 Cropp St., Niagara Falls, ON, Canada, L2E 7B3, and clearly mark it with "Catch the Vision" or "Millennial Kids".
In our fifteen years of ministry, we have never been as busy as we are now. We love it! Everywhere we go we are seeing Millennial Kids come to meet Jesus and discovering that they have the best role model of all to follow. And we just keep getting busier. Lord willing, in May, we head off to Canada's East Coast and will celebrate Charity's 16th birthday in the same community where her Dad celebrated his. In June, we are heading to Ontario's north. Then after a busy summer in Ontario and New York we will be heading to California in October and November. God is so good! All the time!
We have developed a new seminar, "Clown Ministry - More Than Just a Laughing Matter". We have a lot of fun presenting it, including about 5 clown routines. In the process of researching it, we discovered that we do a lot more clowning than we realize. We also put together an expanded version of the seminar in a book form, we are hoping to expand it even more - before it goes into its "second" printing. J
On the subject of books: We are in the process of putting together our first children's book called Shining for Jesus. It contains five stories that we wrote for a Vacation Bible School two years ago. Charity is doing the artwork while the stories are being edited, and we hope to have it ready for distribution in the near future.
I have also begun to sort through and clean up the curriculum we were writing last year. We hope to put it together as a reproducible activity book. It will have activities for primary, middler and junior levels. Some of our material was created as full lessons so we are thinking of putting them together as well.
Now onto the family news: It has been a busy time for us at home as well. We have become very well acquainted with our dentist as all three girls have had teeth removed. At the beginning of this month Anya and Charity were both down for two weeks after having their wisdom teeth taken out. They were among the worse extractions our dentist has ever done. Just as they were recovering from that, they paid a visit to the orthodontist last Monday and all three girls now have braces. So they are still in the stage of learning how to eat, what they can eat and wondering when they can eat without pain.
There have been some very special blessings that have taken place as well. Charity's 16th birthday present arrived at our house about two weeks ago - much to her delight and surprise. She was blessed with an upright grand piano, built in 1919. We had the piano tuner in yesterday. He said it sounds pretty good and seems to be in pretty good condition. Now her piano teacher is able to give her pieces that incorporate the whole key range and dynamics. Charity has also begun to take vocal lessons and so the piano is a blessing for that as well.
Computer software that I have praying about for over a year was GIVEN to us last week, and I have been busy having fun with it ever since. We are looking forward to a great ministry conference in New York with the New York State Sunday School Association in April. I have worked hard at organizing the workshops and the line-up looks really good.
At one of our camps our cottage is known as the youth hangout, well I think that it being transferred to our home. Tonight we have a house full of youth. They are here to watch Ben Hur. So I must close as I need to go out and buy some pop and chips.
We want to thank you for your continued prayers and support. As you can see by our schedule - we are not letting the grass grow under our feet, so your prayers for safety are very important to us. Please also pray for the children we are ministering to - many of them have no church background and are being introduced to Jesus for the first time. Pray that the Spirit will soften their hearts so that they will come to the Father and accept His Son.
With much love,Joel, Mary, Anya, Charity & Rhian