Vitamin Bs for IOTs!

Are you planning to attend the CEF National Conference, April 30- May 4, 2007 at Ridgecrest? It's going to be great! Besides the excellent Bible messages, inspiring workshops and wonderful fellowship, we're also going to celebrate our 70th birthday! (That's CEF's 70th birthday, not the blog administrators!)

This is going to be a conference that keeps on giving. The department of education has been working hard on a series of 14 special workshops that you'll be able to purchase on a CD so you can present your very own Good News Across America conference.

You're going to love the new workshops we've developed on subjects like Child-Size Apologetics, Transforming Children through the Spiritual Disciplines, Developing Biblically Focused Kids in an Unbiblical World and Using Images to Convey Truth -- just to name a few! The CD will have all you need--instructor notes, student notes, PowerPoint and transparency visuals and lots more.

But the most special feature of the conference (in our humble opinion) will be on Thursday afternoon from 1:00-2:00. That's when we're having our special IOT session called Vitamin Bs for IOTs! What in the world does that mean? You'll have to come and find out! Let's just say it will be a time for encouragement, information and...well...surprises! You won't want to miss it! So make sure when you get to the conference to block out Thursday from 1:00-2:00!

We appreciate each one of you and all you do to train others in this important work of reaching children for Christ. We can't wait to greet you at the conference and hear first-hand what God is doing in your area! See you at Ridgecrest!

PS: There's still time to get your entry in for the big blog contest! Send in your TCE testimony and picture by next Monday, April 30. See the March 26th post below for complete details!

Tragedy

Our thoughts and prayers go out to those on the Virginia Tech campus, the families of the slain and the survivors. We were all astounded as we watched and listened to the cold, enraged words of mass killer, Cho Seung-Hui. Our minds struggle to wrap themselves around such senseless horror. What in the world happened in this young man's life that triggered the downward spiral leading to such a vengeful act?

He wrote violent, obscene stories that all had a similar theme. They were about young people--mostly young men--being exploited by adults and then seeking astounding vengeance.

Was this young man a victim of childhood sexual abuse? Many signs seem to point in that direction--his hiding behind dark glasses, hats and fake names, his obsession with sexual depravity, his sense of victimization and rage--it all speaks of the shame and frustration typical of many who have been sexually abused. Was he a target of bullying or physical abuse? Many of his writings point to that possibility.

Undoubtedly his life will be studied from every possible angle. We may learn about some terrible abuse that set him on this path. Nothing we learn will ever excuse or fully explain his actions, but it may shed light on some of it.

This whole tragedy should remind each of us that we labor in the most important and determinative ministry field in the world! It should give you new motivation for the work you do as an instructor of teachers. Just think of the children those teachers you train are going to reach. What terrible events will never happen because a child is reached with the Gospel before sin takes hold in his or her life?

What if someone had invited little eight-year-old Seung-Hui to a Good News Club when he first came to this country? What if he had responded to the Gospel and become a child of God? Perhaps 32 people on the VT campus would still be alive today. Perhaps those families, that campus and our nation would not be in mourning.

This event should prompt us, as never before, to pray for our nation's children. The enemy of our souls is out to kill and destroy. He knows the value of a child's soul. He knows he can so damage a child that the effects can last a lifetime--and even spill over into the lives of others.

Unfortunately, we know that many in the Body of Christ have yet to get that message. Too many churches continue to entertain children on Sunday morning instead of actively seeking the salvation of every child God brings their way. Too many teachers hesitate to speak of sin and the blood of Christ or to give a salvation invitation. Too Christians are unconcerned about the unreached children in their community.

IOTs, this is a living illustration! Use this terrible tragedy to challenge your TCE students to the urgent need before us. Were there churches or believers in the neighborhood where Cho Seung-Hui grew up? Did anyone ever attempt to reach him with the Gospel? Was there a Good News Club in his area? He is one child we missed--and the ramifications of that fact are stunning.

Where Are You?

Hey all you IOTs--we know you're out there! We also know you're all busy with clubs, TCE courses, seminars, banquets, committee meetings, recruiting for summer ministries and all that other CEF stuff! But it's time to prioritize and remember what's truly important in life--our blog contest!!! Well, okay--so maybe it's not the most important thing on your schedule right now--we'll forgive you for that! And we're prepared to accommodate you.

We are announcing an extension of our blog contest! You now have until April 30 to send in a testimony from a TCE student as to how the course affected him or her or how the things learned in the course have impacted that teacher's Good News Club. Remember to include a picture with the testimony. The picture can be of the TCE course or of the teacher's club. We've noticed a number of you have been writing great testimonies in our guestbook. You could send us one of those with a picture!

Remember also what is at stake here -- the chance to win your very own "Ball of Many Colors"!! Just think of all the ways this amazing, Wordless Book-colored soccer ball will add to your training ministry. You could use it to review the message of salvation, to demonstrate a review game or to bop students on the head when they fall asleep in your class! (Oops, strike that last suggestion please.) And remember, the teacher whose testimony you send us will also win this amazing prize! Do you really want to deprive some deserving teacher the opportunity to own such a treasure? Huh? Do you?? We didn't think so!

Not only do you receive a great prize, your testimony and picture will be featured in a future post right here in the Cafe! Do you know how much people are willing to pay for that honor? Well, nothing actually...but we won't even charge you for this privilege!

So, have we convinced you?? Your over-qualified and under-paid blog administrators are looking forward to receiving your testimony. These people have nothing else to do and they're starting to annoy the rest of us, so please keep them busy! Entries will be evaluated and the top eight will be announced on May 11. Send an email to Cheryl.Oetting@cefonline.com with your testimony and picture today!

Happy Resurrection Day!

As many in our world focus on Easter bunnies, bonnets and baskets, we believers are reflecting on the most special event on our calendar--remembering the suffering and death of the Lord Jesus Christ and the joy of His resurrection. We celebrate the empty tomb. We love telling the children the story of how Jesus died, was buried and rose again on the third day!

The truth of the resurrection gives us hope for the future. We look forward to that time when we will experience the resurrection of our frail, mortal bodies--when corruptible is raised incorruptible! We look forward to our home in Heaven and the grand reunion with friends and family. Those truths are precious to our hearts.

But the fact that Jesus arose and lives today should have significance to us, not just for the future, but for today! What does the resurrection mean to you in the course of everyday life? As you reflect on that thought, consider the words of the 19th century hymn writer, Phillips Brooks:

"The great Easter truth is not that we are to live newly after death--that is not the great thing--but that we are to be new here and now by the power of the Resurrection; not so much that we are to live forever, as that we are to, and may, live nobly now because we are to live forever."

That's a thought-provoking statement, isn't it! Are we living nobly, renewed day by day through the power of the resurrection? Are we more like the Lord Jesus today than we were yesterday? Last month? Last year?

Living in the power of the resurrection affects everything we do. It affects our relationships and our ministry. It affects how we relate to our TCE students and to the children. It affects how we view the world and the circumstances of our lives.

As this Resurrection Day draws near, may you know in a fresh new way "the power of His resurrection," and may that knowledge infuse your life and ministry with vitality and joy!

Happy Resurrection Day from your friends at CMI!