Information in Action

Church Lady: Christian Youth in Action brings just that to area youth

The floor shook and the walls reverberated with joy at the 5-Day Club vacation Bible school (VBS). No, the children were not reenacting the walls of Jericho tumbling down. They were singing an upbeat version of “Jesus Loves Me” complete with enthusiastic foot stomping in trailer B at the Greater Marco Family YMCA on July 12.

The children were lead by a group of teen summer missionaries from Naples and Marco Island. The teens ranged in age from thirteen to eighteen and are from different Christian backgrounds but all share a deep love of Jesus. Their stint at the Y was their seventh VBS this summer. They are frequently invited to churches and backyards to host vacation Bible schools.

When the Church Lady sat on the floor with six of the teens at the club’s conclusion on July 15, she discovered that between them they had 16 years experience leading 5-Day Clubs.

The teens are members of Christian Youth in Action a ministry of Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF). They began their pre-training in March and received a week of training from June 12 to the 18 at Clearwater Christian College. Marco Islander Dena Hatt is the director of CEF ministries for Collier County. Hatt has been with the organization since 2001 and became the director last year.

Hatt is motivated by her love for Jesus. “I love to bring others along with me to serve Him because we know that someday we will see Him face to face,” said Hatt.

The group of adults and teens are usually on the road by 7:30 a.m. and do several 5-Day Clubs a day. The club consists of high-energy games with balls, parachutes, jump ropes and hula-hoops designed for everyone to get to know one another. There is a clear gospel presentation, prayer, song, the thought of the day, Bible stories, a memory verse and a missionary story. Children are also given the opportunity to sign up for the CEF Bible correspondence course.

The teens are a well-oiled tag team as they went from one activity to the next. They knew their material and exuded joy and confidence. Charissa McGraw told the story of David’s kindness to Mephibosheth. She said Mephibosheth over a dozen times and did not stumble once.

The group focused on Mary Slessor, a Scottish missionary who served in Africa where she was commonly called “Ma” Slessor. Although she was only 5 feet tall, she stood up to many warriors, chiefs and witch doctors and won people’s respect and love.

At the VBS conclusion on July 15, the Church Lady asked the children if they want to come again next year. Their answer was an enthusiastic yes. What they liked best about the program was as varied as the activities. Sarah and Samantha liked the missionary story. Lily enjoyed the games, especially the parachute game, while Hayley and Samantha liked the dancing and singing. Yet another preferred the Bible stories.

Global control of diabetes: information for action : The Lancet

Goodarz Danaei,Mariel M Finucane,Yuan Lu,Gitanjali M Singh,Melanie J Cowan,Christopher J Paciorek,John K Lin,Farshad Farzadfar,Young-Ho Khang,Gretchen A Stevens,Mayuree Rao,Mohammed K Ali,Leanne M Riley,Carolyn A Robinson,Majid Ezzati,on behalf of the Global Burden of Metabolic Risk Factors of Chronic Diseases Collaborating Group (Blood Glucose).

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