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Great Treasure Day – the day we hand out a KiDs Beach Club® Explorer’s Study Bible to every child in every Beach Club who has not yet received one – is just around the corner.

God’s Word is the greatest treasure on earth and it is the centerpiece of KiDs Beach Club® We want every child to have their very own copy to read, study, share and grow from, making a daily and eternal impact on their lives. This is a fun and exciting day for all involved.

We want to encourage everyone to take photos and videos during their Great Treasure Day and to share them with us at KiDs Beach Club®. You can share them on social media - @KiDsBeachClub on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram – by using the hash tag #kidsbeachclub or #greattreasureday. Also, you can email them to us at photos@beachclubs.org. Remember, when taking video with your smart phone, please turn it on its side so that the long edge of the device is parallel to the floor.

Chris Burton, the children’s minister at First Euless, is a volunteer at KiDs Beach Club at North Euless Elementary School. He initially provided this powerful testimony at the KBC Basic Training event at Christ Church in Irving in August and shared it again with us. We offer it as encouragement so you realize how much KBC is making a difference in the lives of the children who attend Beach Club.

“We were there at North Euless one day and the kids really weren’t listening. We were trying to get their attention. To say that we weren’t frustrated would be a lie because we were a little frustrated.

I asked the kids, ‘Guys, why are you here?’

When I asked that question, one little girl stood up in the midst of all the kids and she said, ‘Mr. Chris, I would love to tell you why I’m here.’

She began to tell me her story about how she lives with her mom – it’s just her and her mom – and how she doesn’t have a dad in the home and her mom works two jobs and works basically seven days a week and that includes Sundays. So they can’t ever make it to church. She told me, she looked at me and said, ‘Mr. Chris, this is my only time to hear about Jesus.’

When she said that to us, God just did something inside of us. It changed our whole Beach Club for that year. It changed what we were doing with the kids. It changed the leaders perspective in the way that they were excited about Beach Club. God just did a work in our club that year through what that little girl said.”

First Euless ministers to hundreds of these children each week through eight different Beach Clubs. 

“The reason why it is so important for us to have eight (Beach) Clubs,” Burton continued. “The thing about our church that we are definitely Kingdom minded. We understand and try really hard to get our kids – that we are a part of in Beach Club in the different schools – to our church. We know a lot of those kids may never make it.

Why it is important for a church to be Kingdom-minded is realizing that even though you’re reaching these kids and that even though some of these kids may not ever come to your church. It doesn’t change the fact that us not sitting where we are in our church waiting for people to come to us. Us not sitting and doing that is so important because it is so important for us to go to where they are. Because there are so many kids out there that aren’t able to come to church and that is outside of their control.

But as a church, we shouldn’t be waiting for kids to come to us. We should be going to them and taking Jesus to them. Where is the best place to do that, especially when you’re talking about kids? That is in the school system. God has opened the door through KiDs Beach Club® for us to be able to do that and all we have to do is step into it. That’s one thing I love about Beach Club. It gives us the opportunity to do that. We teach kids the Bible. There is probably no other way we would be able to do that if it weren’t for KiDs Beach Club®.”

Near the middle of the KiDs Beach Club® Explorer’s Study Bible, is an inset page about “How to Know God.” It’s on glossy paper and is full of color and is designed to be an attention getter for children and their parents when they read the Bible. It reinforces what is already taught in Beach Club.

Last year on Great Treasure Day, a group of Beach Club volunteers passed out their Bibles by surf teams. As soon as each team was presented their Bible they got their picture and went into their small group time. One third-grade boy sat down with his Bible and opened it up to that page and said, “Look, this is what our Bible story teacher has been telling us about – The ABC’s. This is what I want to do!”

So his small group leader went through each letter explaining what each one is making sure he understood.

A – Admit You’re a Sinner
Ask for forgiveness and turn away from sin: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23

B – Believe that Jesus is the Son of God and He Died for Your Sin
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9

C – Choose to Follow Him
“Jesus said, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.” Luke 9:23

The boy prayed with his leader that day to receive Christ.

About a week later, the club leader called to follow up with the child’s mother. She immediately told a story about how he has brought his Bible to the dinner table every night. He would read through the Gospel with his family and pray before they could start dinner.

The boy’s mother said she thought he had such a mature understanding at such a young age. The mother admitted that she had not really had these kinds of conversations with her kids before. She also has two older girls, including one in college, and they had not really had spiritual conversations as a family. That changed because of her young son. Praise God!

Your support of our Bibles for Beach Club program helped put a Bible in this child’s hands and that helped connect him to Christ. It also opened a dialogue in his family so that they, too, might come to know the Lord.

KiDs Beach Club® has ramped up its efforts on social media. We’re not just on Facebook. We’re also on Twitter and Instagram as well as Vimeo, YouTube and LinkedIn and provide unique content to each platform. You can find us at @KiDsBeachClub throughout most social media and we encourage you to engage with us there. Invite your friends to follow us, too.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/KiDsBeachClub

Twitter: www.twitter.com/KiDsBeachClub

Instagram: www.instagram.com/KiDsBeachClub

YouTube: www.youtube.com/KiDsBeachClub

Vimeo: www.vimeo.com/KiDsBeachClub

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/kids-beach-club

Thank you for supporting KiDs Beach Club September 17 on North Texas Giving Day. We could not do what we do without you! Through your generosity we were able to raise $31,615 with $10,000 coming in the form of a matching gift from one enthusiastic KBC donor.

With your support of KiDs Beach Club® we will be able to continue taking the Word of God into our public schools. We started the year with 163 clubs and plan to be at more than 200 by Thanksgiving. Your support is a big reason that will become a reality for us.

Gifts continue to come in as a result of the Giving Day campaign. Included in the above total is $1,500 that was given through our own website. If you were not able to make a gift to KiDs Beach Club® on North Texas Giving Day and would still like to support our efforts, please visit www.kidsbeachclub.org/give.

Thank you again for helping make Jesus Cool at School!

The 2015-2016 school year is absolutely going to be a banner season in the life of KiDs Beach Club®. We have expanded our staff and continue to take on new church partners. Plus, we are celebrating the 10th anniversary since our first Beach Club launched in 2006. We enter the year full of emotion, having served in hundreds of different communities since then; it’s hard to believe KBC will be celebrating 10 years of ministry in January.

A question that is often asked is, “Where does the resolve to remain dedicated to ministering to children within public schools come from?” Early in our ministry the Lord gave the staff a verse from the book of Revelation that reveals a great promise to “an open door” provided we keep His word and NOT deny His name. It is our desire to doors at more than 200 elementary school open to making Jesus Cool at School!™

“I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name.” Rev.3:8 (NKJV) 

In just a few weeks, you will have an opportunity to help us grow even more. We are asking all of our KBC family and friends to graciously give a donation on North Texas Giving Day on September 17. God continues to open doors, and we need your support that will allow us to continue our amazing growth path that helped us expand by more than 15 percent last year. With your help, we distributed nearly 11,000 Bibles last year alone. In our first 10 years, a total of 6,359 children have made Jesus their Forever Friend. God is paving the way for KiDs Beach Club® and we need your continued support to assist with the cost to equip, screen and train thousands of volunteers

On September 17, to help motivate your giving, KBC is honored to announce a matching donor. The first $10,000 you give to KBC will be matched dollar for dollar. This enthusiastic donor believes in and faithfully supports our mission and vision.

If you are one of our many Bibles for Beach Club Benefit Dinner and Auction supporters, that event which usually happens in September, has moved to April 16, 2016.   Since we won’t have a dinner and auction this year, we are asking if you would consider making your 2015 tax-deductible gift on September 17 as part of North Texas Giving Day. We need your help to fill in the gap.

As a result of your generous giving last year, KBC started Bibles For Beach Club, which provides a KiDs Beach Club® Explorer Study Bible, to every child in every Beach Club. 10,886 children received their own copy of God’s Word. An amazing story unfolded at the very first “Great Treasure Day” on February 3, 2015 at Highlands Elementary School. When the Bibles were being staged for distribution, they were stacked by each child’s small group and not alphabetically. The very first name to be called was Jesus O! Only God could have orchestrated such an event; that out of so many children and so many Beach Clubs, the name of the first recipient would be the same as His Son, Jes 

While nearly 11,000 children will attend Beach Clubs this year, there are millions still to reach. We’re not stopping until Jesus returns. Please partner with us! For more information visit our Giving Day website.