Blog

And Elisha prayed, and said, “Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
2 Kings 6:17

Sight is one of the five senses that human beings had been given to process stimuli. It is by sight that we can see a car coming and stop on time before being hurt.  It is by sight that we move and relate with our surroundings.  When we see…we believe.  Because seeing get us in contact with tangible things. Sight can be affected by genetics, medical conditions, and developmental changes. But sight can also be shadowed by our circumstances.  To name a few: unemployment, cancer, austerity, family problems, divorce, death, and chronic illness, among others. Indeed, our circumstances can make us unable to see with clarity what we have ahead of us or how to respond. We start to feel anxious, fearful, hopeless, and shift our sight from the One who has assured us to be with us always, Jesus Christ.  Now, please don’t feel sorry or guilty for experiencing this.  Our humanity usually drives us to hopeless places when we feel we lose control over our circumstances.

The Scriptures shows us the prophet Elisha while in a very stressful circumstance; the Syrians were chasing him. They were great in numbers, had horses, chariots, and “came by night surrounding the city”.  When Elisha’s servant saw them his sight was shadowed.  He was overcome by fear and did not know how to respond.  But Elisha, whose sight was in God told him: “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Elisha did not stopped there; he prayed God to allow his servant to see what he was seeing: “Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Suddenly, the servant was able to see that “the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha”.

As believers we are called to walk by faith not by sight.  Nevertheless, God knows our times and he is kindly enough to also allow us to physically see when we need to.  The servant’s eyes could not see the protection of God around them; he could only see the enemy army. You, like the servant, may feel unable to see beyond your circumstances.  The enemy army is too close to you. Anxiety, fear, uncertainty and hopelessness may have shadowed your sight. Elisha’s prayer provoked the eyes of his servant to be opened. When our eyes are open we are able to see God moving in our circumstances; His provision, His comfort, His touch. Suddenly, the impossible becomes possible! Pray God to open your eyes. The army of God, with horses and chariots of fire is surrounding you! His eyes are over you; his healing, and hope is for you.  Stand up, lift your eyes and see that “those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Do not fear, for the One who is with you holds your life in his hands and has everything under control.

Lt. Scott Brown of the Arlington Police Department was a guest speaker at Beach Club at Sherrod Elementary in Arlington, Texas last month. Lt. Brown comes to Beach Club each year to encourage the kids and share his strong faith in the Lord.

Lt. Brown encouraged the kids to apply themselves in school and stay in school. He also shared with them how important his faith is to him, emphasizing the importance of prayer and how that the last thing he does each night.

It is ever apparent that children today are in desperate need of good role models and Lt. Brown is certainly a stellar example. The children enjoyed hearing from Lt. Brown, getting to meet him and even take a picture with him.

Joe Montana Odhiambo, pictured with Lt. Brown, enjoys Beach Club and came to faith in Christ earlier this school year. Joe has a fun story about his name. One of the leaders was having trouble pronouncing his last name and Joe said, "Just call me Joe Montana." The leader chuckled and asked if he was named after the famous football player. Not having any idea about American football, it was explained that Montana is his middle name and in his native African language Montana means "blessing."

Susan Jiura, Club Leader, shared that they are having a great time with the kids this year. Thanks to several generous donations she was able to buy all the children a Beach Club t-shirt and the clubbers were absolutely thrilled!   Beach Club at Sherrod Elementary is sponsored by Pantego Bible Church.

It is a joy to share the stories of Beach Clubs near and far. If you serve in a Beach Club, we know you have stories. Please share them with us by emailing stories@beachclubs.org.

Dave is responsible for all marketing and revenue development with a primary focus on the growth of both new Beach Clubs and new revenue streams. In this role he will lead in the establishment of a strategic marketing plan, comprehensive of all media, and will provide oversight to events and fundraising strategies. He will also fulfill the public affairs role and serve as the organization's spokesperson.

Dave knows KiDs Beach Club® well.  As one of the founding members of the Board of Directors in 2006, he has witnessed first hand the transformation and growth of the organization. This has given him a unique position of spiritual strength. Watching KiDs Beach Club® go from concept to reality followed by a call of God to serve in this ministry has stretched his walk and strengthened his faith.

Before joining the KiDs Beach Club® executive team, Dave was the Broadcast Media Relations Manager at Texas Motor Speedway. Prior to that, he spent 12 years as a sports anchor for CW33 News in Dallas, Texas. A native of Wilmette, Illinois, near Chicago, Dave graduated from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale with a B.S. in Radio-Television, and is happy to provide the answer to the question, "What's a Saluki?" It is an Egyptian hunting dog, and since Southern Illinois is known as "Little Egypt", it became the proud mascot of SIU-C.

After graduating from SIU-C, he began his career covering sports for WSIL-TV in southern Illinois, KDBC-TV in El Paso, and KSHB-TV in Kansas City. Dave grew up in Chicago and married his high school sweetheart, Janet. He and Janet moved to the Dallas/Fort Worth area in 1998 when he joined the broadcast team of CW33 News at Nine. They have four children: Nick, Christy, Connor, and Lexie. He and his family faithfully serve the Lord at First Baptist Church Euless.

Welcome aboard Dave!

Alexander the Great, known as the world’s greatest empire builder had his target on Persia.  Two barriers to achieving his goal of conquering were present: the Greeks were less in number when compared to the other army and the Persians had the most powerful naval fleet in the world.  Thinking that his men would run away when realizing the poor odds of winning, Alexander burned his boats.  There was no return.  All that was left was to fight and conquer… so they did.

Uncertainty, doubt, fear, and hopelessness are feelings that usually paralyze us.  Frequently, we are trying to achieve a goal or change something with which we are not comfortable.  We strive for more.  In fact, this comes naturally for us as creatures of a Mighty God.  He created us with a purpose.  We are part of His plan for the world.  Nonetheless, sometimes our human thinking prevents us from seeing what God sees; an immense frame of colors with carefully delineated figures and trails called His plan for our life.  For some, this vision has been shattered by unhealthy family relationships, hurtful memories, past experiences, and failures. … so we fear.

Scripture tells us in Mark 5:25-34 about a woman who suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding.  Numerous doctors had seen her and all her money was spent on them, yet her disease worsened and there was no hope for her cure.  But in her heart, deep in her soul and spirit she was not defeated.   This can’t be over! Just imagine! After twelve years of suffering she still expected something to happen.  She knew Jesus was coming.  She believed He would bring her healing. The odds were against her; she was a woman and an “unclean” one at that.   It was going to be difficult for her to get to Jesus with that many people, and there was no more hope from the experts who had treated her.  On her way to encountering Jesus, this woman “burned” her fears, her pain; both physical and emotional, her doubts, and the words of hopelessness.  She burned the word impossible.  She knew that without “burning” all of these, she could not get to the source of her healing, to the source of new life. “Oh, if I can just touch his robe, I will be healed”, she thought to herself. She did and she was.  Jesus said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace. Your suffering is over.” What a moment for that woman! What a great way to start a new life! Her faith guided her to conquer.

As Alexander the Great and other great conquerors, we will come to a historic moment in our life where we need to “burn our boats”.  The “boats” of conformity, fear, the “I can’t do this” boat, the boat of “the old ways were better”, the boats of self-pity and frustration.  Think for a moment. Give a name to your boat.  Start this new year by burning your boats on the shore.  Leaving no way back!  Let the power of the Holy Spirit burn the barriers that are precluding you from living the way God wants you to live.

We are pleased to announce Cindy Leach as the new Executive Director of KiDs Beach Club®.

Cindy will spearhead the continuing implementation of the mission, programs, and activities of KiDs Beach Club®. She will oversee organizational operations to ensure ministry efficiency, quality of service, and cost-effective management. She will also provide strong leadership development strategies for our Area Directors.

Cindy comes to us with vast ministry experience and a proven track record of success in the area of leadership development.  Prior to joining KiDs Beach Club®, Cindy served the past 8 years at North Richland Hills Baptist Church in North Richland Hills, Texas as the Minister to Children and Women. She also served at First Baptist Midland, Texas as Minister of Childhood Education from 1999 to 2005.

Cindy is a writer for LifeWay and Childhood Ministry Publishing. Her projects include: Bible Studies for Life, ZIP for Kids and FLYTE. She is also an Associated Certified Coach (ACC) and serves as a Regional Representative in Women's Ministry with the SBTC.

Cindy grew up in Bedford, Texas and attended FBC Euless where at the age of ten she accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior. She attended Hardin-Simmons University where she met her husband Jason. Cindy finished her education at Dallas Baptist University, receiving a bachelor's degree in Christian Ministry, while serving as Children's Ministry Associate at Hampton Road Baptist Church in DeSoto, Texas. Cindy and Jason have two daughters, Melissa and Carrie.

We are confident Cindy Leach will be strong leader and an invaluable asset for meeting our growth goals and objectives as well as for the entire KiDs Beach Club® team.

Welcome aboard Cindy!