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With the turn of the calendar, there are many of us who made New Year’s resolutions. Maybe it was to lose weight, eat more healthily, join a Bible study, set aside time to read the Bible in daily devotion and prayer, or perhaps your resolution was to become more active in your church.

We hope you haven’t already given up on your resolutions. We think the new year is a great time to become a volunteer. We have great volunteers in the KiDs Beach Club® organization, but we probably all know someone at our church who could join you at after school for one hour each week to share Christ’s love with elementary school children.

In a devotional earlier this month by Dr. Charles F. Stanley, the senior pastor at First Baptist Atlanta (Ga.) and founder of In Touch Ministries, he wrote that church is a place for participants, not spectators.

“Although we are each saved individually, the Lord doesn’t intend for us to live as if we’re on an island – set apart to ourselves,” Stanley wrote. “We are called the body of Christ, and as such, our lives are meant to touch, intersect and connect with other believers in a local church… God calls us to be devoted to one another through service, prayer and hospitality.”

It’s a similar idea that Glenna and Michael Hockensmith shared with their congregation on Beach Club Sunday last August at Peaks Mill Christian Church in Frankfort, Ky. Michael, the Bible Connection leader at the Beach Club at Peaks Mill Elementary School, one of two clubs the church sponsors, was trying to encourage more of his fellow church members to volunteer in Beach Club.

“I despise public speaking,” Michael said that morning. “But I’ll beg you to let me come up here and tell you about Jesus. Let me come here and ask you to come and serve and be a part of this. That is how much it changes you if you’ll let Him. I want you to experience it. That’s why I’m so passionate about this. That is why I’m so determined in this; it’s because I want you to taste that surrender and see what it’s like when you surrender to God and you just let Him use you.”

Michael, who is currently the interim director of the parks and recreation department for the City of Frankfort, recalled a story about one of his former summer interns, who was getting scholarship offers to play Division I college basketball.

“He didn’t have any really big offers, just some mid-major offers, and then, right at the end (of the recruiting process), a big school came, and they offered him a scholarship,” Michael said. “I asked him what he was going to do, and he said, ‘I’m going to go to that big school.’ And I said, ‘why are you going to do that?’ He looked at me like I was crazy and asked, ‘Why wouldn’t I go there?’ I said ‘you’re never going to play. You’re good, but you’re not that good. You’re never going to play.’

“He went to that big school and I think he had a great experience. He got a college education. I’m sure he has some good memories. I know one of the years he was there, that team went to the Final Four. But I remember thinking how sad I was for him because every day he went to practice and every day he prepared for that – two to three hours every day –and he never got to play.”

Michael continued his message by looking around the sanctuary.

“I look out here at some of you and I feel the same way. How sad that you would come in here week after week to train and that God would prepare you to go out into service for Him, but you’re content to sit on the sidelines; you’re content not playing.

“God doesn’t call His children to a playground,” Michael said. “He calls them to a battleground. There is a war going on around you every day. It is a spiritual war and it’s a war for lost souls. You’re either competing for them or you’re just sitting on the sidelines. That’s not who you are. You were meant for so much more and God has prepared you for this time.”

Stanley acknowledges that many Christians find involvement in others’ lives too invasive.

“So, they come on Sunday, stand to sing, sit to listen, and walk out to get back to their own lives,” he wrote. “The term ‘spectator Christian’ doesn’t apply only to those who deliberately avoid going to church. In fact, many churches are filled with observant attendees who sit in the pews each week but never touch a fellow believer’s life.”

What about you? Are you a spectator seeking what you can get or a participant looking for ways to give to someone else?

We would love to see you serving in Beach Club!

The Beach Club at Samuel Beck Elementary in Trophy Club, Texas, started in the 2015-16 school year with only 10 kids and has grown to 120 who consistently attend club this year. There is even a waitlist of kids who want to be a part of it.

When parent Emily Alexander, a pediatric nurse by trade, discovered what KiDs Beach Club® is and was at her children’s school, she was so excited because she had no idea something like this existed.

“When I heard that Beach Club was a Christian club held after school, I thought that was the coolest thing and wanted to get my daughter involved,” Alexander said.

But because of the waitlist, her daughter was not able to initially be a part of the after-school Bible club. This year, when Alexander offered to become a volunteer, her daughter was able to attend. Now, she and her daughter are in love with KiDs Beach Club®.

“I just love to talk to (kids) about the truth and who the Lord is,” she said. “I wanted to volunteer so I could speak life into these kids. It has been as much as a blessing for me as it has been fun for the kids.”

Alexander, who has a passion for working with kids, also points out that KiDs Beach Club® is foundational for kids in school.

We live in a culture that is difficult and hard and the more that we can speak the light of the Lord into these children so they can grow up in this school district being a light for the Lord,” she said. “We are planting many seeds of truth so that they can bear fruit later.”

Justin Turner, the youth pastor at Countryside Bible, the church which partners with KiDs Beach Club® to sponsor the club in Northwest ISD, also has kids who attend the Beach Club at Beck Elementary. It’s a great opportunity for Turner to meet his kids and their friends in their school to teach them about faith in Christ for salvation.

“We can open up the Bible and say this is what God is saying through His word,” Turner said. “The emphasis on the Bible through KiDs Beach Club® is fantastic because that is where it all starts.”

Turner says that when they’re talking to parents about Beach Club that many of them say that their kids are learning more in Beach Club than they do at their own church.

“When we ask some of the kids where their church is, they say it’s Beach Club,” Turner admitted. “What we want to do is show them the love of Christ, show them the word of God and show them how they can have a relationship with God through salvation of Jesus. Without Beach Club, without volunteers being here, we don’t have that opportunity.”

The waitlist at Beck Elementary exists because they do not have enough volunteers to maintain a ratio of one volunteer to 10 students.

Alexander, who attends another church in the area, urges other parents who might be on the fence about volunteering to come forward so more kids get the opportunity to attend Beach Club.

“I have to bring my other two kids with me as well,” Alexander said when asked about what challenges she faces as a volunteer. “It’s work, it’s late in the afternoon. Let’s be honest, there are times that I don’t want to come, but then I realize that it is not about me. It is about serving kids and future generations. You are loving on them and pouring into them.

“There is nothing but good that is going to come out of that. It’s a bit of a sacrifice, but one day a week isn’t bad. My kids love it. Even my little kids get into it, they have fun and they run around. I encourage you to come and volunteer. There is nothing but good that will come out of it.”

For more information about how to become a Beach Club volunteer, click here.

We are so excited to announce three new additions to the KBC family. Kerri Attaway and Susie Thompson joined KiDs Beach Club® as club relations specialists this past fall, while Stacy Stelzel has joined our corporate staff this month as our communications specialist.

Attaway is our club relations specialist in Florida. She has also served as a club leader at Palmetto Elementary for the past four years. She was born in New York, but raised in South Florida and presently lives in Orlando with Troy, her husband of 29 years. The couple has four children Jake, Carlyn, Chas and Kayleigh.

Attaway graduated from the University of Central Florida with a degree in physical education. She spent many years teaching physical education and health, and coaching basketball in the school system, before beginning the continual journey of homeschooling her own children. She believes that life is a ministry in every aspect, both full of joys and challenges on a daily basis and a perennial opportunity to grow and draw closer to Jesus. Attaway has served as youth director, VBS recreation director, and Sunday school teacher. She loves watching children grow and learn new things about the world they live in and the God that created them. She can be found in the great outdoors or with her nose in a good book.

Thompson is the club relations specialist in Arkansas. She has been married for 20 years to her husband Jeff, who is an association missionary for the Concord Baptist Association. The couple has two kids, Hunter and Tyler, who is married to Ashleigh. They are all currently serving at Cornerstone Church in Fort Smith, Ark. It’s a new church plant where their son, Hunter, is the pastor.

Her biggest joy comes from continually learning how to personally live on mission and helping Christ-followers find God’s purpose for their life. Thompson is the daughter of a worship minister and answered God’s call to ministry leadership after graduating with a business degree from Baylor University. She has previously served in church mission roles, collegiate ministry and as a pastor and missionary’s wife both in Oklahoma and in the Philippines. Thompson loves quiet times reading with a cup of coffee, spending time with family, and mentoring young leaders.

Stelzel is excited to join KiDs Beach Club® as the communications specialist. She was previously on staff at First Euless as the interactive media director and is still a member there. A Texas native, Stelzel grew up in Tyler and moved to the DFW Metroplex almost five years ago. She has a degree in film & digital media from Baylor University and has been on social media since Facebook first began.

While at Baylor, Stacy was a member of the Golden Wave Marching Band and Sing Alliance. Her true passion is photography and can be seen running around with her camera, capturing life. She loves growing succulents and cacti that she refers to as "her babies." Stelzel is an avid reader, loves color and all things Disney.

The 2019 Bibles for Beach Club Benefit Dinner returns to Texas Motor Speedway on Saturday, April 13 for an evening of great food, fun and fellowship.

“The feedback from our donors following the 2017 Benefit Dinner at Texas Motor Speedway was so overwhelmingly positive that we decided to take it back to the track this year,” said Dave Crome, the KBC vice president of marketing and communications. “Our sponsors absolutely loved taking laps in the TMS pace cars before the dinner and seeing their business logos on the giant infield television, Big Hoss TV, the world’s largest TV screen.

“Our guests told us they enjoyed the entire experience. From the valet parking, photo booths, dine and dash, pick and play, live auctions and hearing Lee Strobel talk about the potential impact of buying Bibles for Beach Club kids, it was truly a special evening and we look forward to another one in April.”

The impact that our donors made purchasing Bibles that night’s dinner has been incredible.

• One of those Bibles was given to Graceann during Great Treasure Day at Lakeview Elementary in Gun Barrel City, Texas. Reading that Bible led to Graceann making Jesus her Forever Friend and she noted that special day in the front of her Bible. A short time later, tragically, Graceann passed away during a family vacation, and to this day, her mother, who also has since become a believer, takes comfort that she will see her oldest daughter again one day. Read More
  
  
• Another one of those Bibles was handed to Jamie during Great Treasure Day in 2017 at Gilbert Elementary in Irving, Texas. That was the 50,000th Bible that KiDs Beach Club® has given to children over the years and it wasn’t just Jamie’s first Bible, but the first one for her entire family. She said one of the reasons she was so excited to get it was, “so I can read it every night and tell my brother about Jesus.” Read More
  
  
• One of the Bibles purchased at the 2017 benefit dinner went to James at Rutherford Elementary in Mesquite, Texas. He made a habit of bringing it back and forth to school in his backpack for several weeks, one day looked inside and couldn’t find it. Then when searching his home for it, spotted it, in the hands of his parents who were reading it. The club leader told James to let his parents keep that Bible and he would get him a new one so his parents would have a Bible to read and James could have one to bring to club and read, too. Read More
  
  
• Yet another of those Bibles was given to Maggie during Great Treasure Day at North Woolmarket Elementary in Biloxi, Mississippi. Maggie and her two brothers all came to faith in Christ during Beach Club and they all read a Bible story about compassion. Shortly thereafter, Maggie couldn’t wait to tell her surf team leader about how she and family were able to demonstrate compassion at a grocery store as a man was looking for funds for food and gas. Maggie and her brothers told their dad how they learned about compassion in Beach Club and then their dad proceeded to help the man buy what he needed. Read More
  
  
• And another Bible purchased by our donors at the 2017 benefit dinner went to a girl named Ydie at Austin Elementary in Grand Prairie, Texas. After receiving it on Great Treasure Day, she opened up her new Bible and started to flip through the pages with a smile. Then she wanted to highlight a verse but needed some help. Ydie is blind. One of the club volunteers then put Ydie’s hands where the verse was and told her which direction to go until it was highlighted. The volunteer said, “she just knew that highlighting was good to do for important things.” Despite her inability to physically see, Ydie understands the importance of God’s word and desires to interact with it. Read More

Those are just a few of the many stories that resulted from the generosity of those in attendance at the 2017 Bibles for Beach Club Benefit Dinner. Because of the financial gifts that were given that night, KiDs Beach Club® was able to purchase 10,500 Bibles which turns out to be the amount needed to give Bibles to every child in every Beach Club for nearly two years.

“God never ceases to amaze me,” said Jack Terrell, the president and founder of KiDs Beach Club®. “He provided EXACTLY the number of Bibles we would need for 21 months, which is the gap between benefit dinners. The 220 Bibles that remain will be handed to Beach Club children on Great Treasure Day during several spring starts, so it’s time to place our next order and to the glory of the Lord, with the growth of KBC, we anticipate that order being between 15,000 and 20,000 copies of God’s love letter to us.”

We can’t place that order without your financial support. Continue to make an impact on the lives of thousands of kids in Beach Club by joining us at Texas Motor Speedway on April 13. Tickets go on sale February 13 on our website. If you can’t be with us that night and want to make a donation please visit kidsbeachclub.org/bibles.

A big part of the commitment by KiDs Beach Club® to mobilize the church to go outside its walls and take the gospel to children inside public schools is offering training to nearly 2,500 volunteers. 2019 not only has brought us a new year but a new type of training in the first annual “Train Up A Child” Winter Conference.

This three-hour conference will originate live from 121 Community Church in Grapevine, Texas on Saturday, January 26 at 9 a.m., but all of our Beach Club volunteers in 11 states will be able to participate by viewing a live video feed from numerous watch locations.

“As the Lord continues to open doors for KiDs Beach Club® to expand throughout the United States, we are excited that we can provide our volunteers a convenient way to take in this important training event,” said Jack Terrell, the founder, and president of KiDs Beach Club®.

Traditionally, KiDs Beach Club® has gathered volunteers together in both fall and winter trainings which have featured the Xs and Os of how to do a Beach Club as well as several breakout sessions with tips on how to make clubs more fun and engaging for children. That format will continue before Beach Clubs start up each fall, but during our winter trainings, the Train Up A Child conference will feature guest speakers to encourage and show our partners, the difference they are making in the lives of thousands of Beach Club children every week.

Our first speaker is Dr. Amanda Martin, principal at Rugel Elementary in Mesquite, Texas. From an education standpoint, she understands the importance of providing children a large-group/small-group strategy. That is the technique KiDs Beach Club® has used in Beach Clubs from the start and Dr. Martin will show how this approach immensely helps our kids absorb what they learn in the club.

Next, Dr. Shawna DeLamar, principal of Motley Elementary in Mesquite, Texas, will share the value KiDs Beach Club® brings to an elementary school, specifically by featuring character education from the Bible. Each of the 24 lessons in Beach Club focuses on a character word and stories from scripture help kids learn the Biblical definitions. For some schools, it’s the only character education program they have, but for those with existing programs, Beach Club becomes a great companion and the result is changing the culture in many of these public schools.

Finally, do you know that by the time a child is 14 years old, many have already laid the foundation for their relationship with Jesus Christ? Ross Sawyers, lead pastor of 121 Community Church will bring an encouraging message on the importance of reaching kids for Christ during these critical elementary school years.

If you would like to watch this conference remotely or attend in person, registration for one of the many watch locations is available on our website: kidsbeachclub.org/conference.

Many Beach Clubs reward kids for good behavior or accomplishing certain tasks in their clubs with trips to a treasure chest that is usually stocked with candy or inexpensive toys. Some clubs, like the one at Bukhair Elementary School in Richardson, Texas, use a ticket system explains surf team leader Kevin Perry.

“We have little tickets for each child and we sign our initials on them when they show up to Beach Club, when they recite their scripture verse, when they bring back their Hang 10 page or when they bring their Bible,” he said. “When they fill these tickets up – it usually takes them three to four weeks to fill up one ticket with 15 signatures – they can go to the treasure chest and turn them in for a small prize.

“If you lose your KBC Study Bible, you have to turn in two of these tickets to get a new one.”

That’s what a fourth-grade boy named Delmer decided to do recently, but for a very unique reason. Perry asked him what happened to his Bible.

“I still have it,” Delmer said. “But I want to get one for my younger brothers to share and then they won’t keep tearing up my Bible.”

Perry says Delmer has a lot of energy and is a good kid, who knows the answers and participates in memorizing the scriptures. He sings and actively participates in worship and looks forward to the Bible lesson, his favorite part of Beach Club.

“He’s very attentive,” Perry said. “He’s wound up and you might think he’s not paying attention, but he absolutely is paying attention.”

Perry has seen other kids replace their lost Bible, but he had never seen a child turn in their tickets to give a Bible to anyone else. Perhaps guided by the lesson that day – about generosity, no less – Delmer wanted to give a Bible to his brothers.

“They just started learning about the Bible and I thought it would be good for them to have a Bible of their own,” Delmer explained about his act of generosity. “I read the Bible to them.”

The Bible lesson that day was from Luke 21:1-4 about the poor widow who gave all she had.

“And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites. So He said, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.”

There was no coincidence that on that same day the Bible connection leader shared this story that Delmer filled up his second ticket.

“The spirit of generosity he shows is amazing,” Perry said. “He wasn’t prompted to do that; he came up with it all on his own. Quite frankly, it surprised me, but I was pleasantly surprised.”

Perry suggested there is a lesson in this story for adults.

“The lesson in it – for us adults – goes back to being a child and having a generous spirit by thinking of others first,” Perry said. “Sometimes we forget that as we grow up. We get so focused on ourselves and our mission in life that we forget to be generous to others and I think that’s something we can all learn from Delmer.

EDIT: We would like to thank you for your generous support of KiDs Beach Club during the charitable giving season at the end of 2018. Because of your faithfulness to us, we were able to exceed our goal of $100,000, which has provided us a springboard into 2019. Thank You!