Thank you to everyone who was able to help with our Family Fun Fest event. I have some really exciting new ideas for next year to make this time even better. But now, it's my favorite time of year! I love the holiday season! I pray we are all able to slow down and enjoy making memories with our families.

Children's Sunday School is continuing to study the Old Testament. The youngest learners are in Genesis learning about the life of Jacob, while the older learners are in Exodus learning about the wilderness wanderings.

We finally received our beautiful new children's hymnals for our Sunday night and Wednesday night Kid's Worship nights. I hope you are able to come check them out. I may put one or two in the church library also for families to see them. They are so beautiful!

We have many holiday activities with our church family coming up soon! Our churchwide Thanksgiving Fellowship will be November 16th at 6pm. We will decorate the sanctuary for Christmas after the morning service on November 23rd. Advent season begins November 30 with special Sunday School lessons each week for the children and the advent candles will be lit each week. Our very special Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols service will be on December 14th, I hope you can join us for this beautiful service! That same evening will be our Cookies, Cocoa, and Caroling. We will meet at the church at 5:30 pm and travel in 2 groups to 2 local nursing home facilities to sing Christmas carols for the residents, and then return to the church for cookies and hot cocoa. And finally, our Christmas Eve Candlelight Service will be December 24th at 5 pm.

May your holiday season be blessed!

It's October already and we have some Fall fun coming up in the Children's Department!

Sunday School is continuing along well. Our youngest learners are learning about Jacob and Esau this month, while the older students are entering the wilderness wanderings with the Israelites. 

We have Kid's Worship Nights on Sunday nights and Wednesday nights where we review memory verses and catechism questions, sing hymns, and preview/review Sunday's sermons. Our aim is to encourage students to learn to listen and engage with the service on Sunday mornings. On Sunday nights we review that morning's hymns and sermon, and on Wednesday nights we preview the hymns and text for the coming Sunday. If students bring any notes they take during the Sunday morning sermon to either Worship Night they can choose a prize from the prize box! There are note taking outlines on the foyer table every Sunday morning, or any paper they want to write on is fine.

October 31st is our annual Family Fun Fest! We need lots of volunteers to help us welcome the community and provide a safe and fun environment for kids to play. We will have a hay ride, lot's of carnival style games, bounce houses, face painting, and a snack/coffee bar! Volunteer today and invite your friends!!

Welcome to Fall y'all! I love it when the summer busyness settles down into routines again.

I am so excited that Pastor Garrick and his wife Randie are coming to Oak Crest! Randie Garrick wrote the Trekking Through the Testaments curriculum that we are using for Sunday School! Our littlest learners, the Sparkling Sprouts, are studying Genesis and will begin learning about Abraham this month. The older classes are studying through Exodus. We are finishing the 10 plagues this month.

Kid's Worship Nights are back and there will be two opportunities to worship with us! We will review Memory Verses and Catechism Questions, and sing hymns together each night. On Sunday nights we will review the sermon from that morning, and on Wednesday nights we will preview the text for the coming Sunday's sermon. On either night, if students bring any notes they took during the sermon they will get to visit our prize box! We have note taking pages available on the foyer table each Sunday morning, or any paper they want to take notes on is fine. It doesn't have to be neat or organized or detailed, just something to help them engage a little with the sermon each week. 

We also have our big church anniversary celebration on September 28th! Oak Crest Baptist Church has been preaching the Gospel for 40 years!!! I am so thankful and blessed to have been part of this family of believers for 31 of those years. We are planning a special day full of worship and remembering God's faithfulness to the generations of the Oak Crest Family, I hope you will join us!

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Oh my, the summer has gone by so fast! I can't believe it's time for school to start again!

Our Sunday School classes are beginning to diverge. Our Sparkling Sprouts class (2 & 3 year olds) are circling back through Genesis. The rest of the classes are beginning Exodus! We have introduced Moses and we will be learning about the 10 plagues over the next several weeks.

I am still working on plans for the Fall, so stay tuned for an announcement.

We will have a Fellowship on August 15th beginning at 6:00 pm for our families with children and youth to meet Pastor Steven Garrick, Sr. We will have pizza and time for fellowship and questions. Make plans to join us!

Summer is really starting to heat up now, I hope everyone is staying cool! Don't forget about our annual Fireworks Fellowship on July 3rd. We gather on the church grounds around 7 pm for hot dogs and fellowship. Bring sides and desserts to share, and everyone brings their own drinks. There will be a sno cone truck and we will watch the city's fireworks display when it gets dark. 

We are getting ready for a transition in our Sunday School classes. Most of the classes will be continuing to Unit 4 and beginning the book of Exodus. Our youngest class, the Sparkling Sprouts, will go back to Unit 1 and begin Genesis again.

The ultimate plan is for the students to progress slowly through the Old Testament with plenty of repetition so that they have a strong foundation before moving on the the New Testament in the Middle School class. The youngest class, the Sparkling Sprouts, will repeat Genesis every year. The PreK & K class, the Super Saplings, will continue through Genesis and Exodus. The Mighty Oaks (1st & 2nd Grade) will study Exodus through David. The Firm Foundations (3rd-5th Grade) will study the Judges through the Prophets. Homeschooling families may recognize that this is a sort of classical approach to learning the Bible. 

We had a great time at VBS and now we are gearing up for our Little Pilgrims Summer Day Camp! This camp is for our PreK through 5th Grade students with a nursery provided for volunteer families. Register your students today using the QR code above and let us know if you can help.

Day camp will be similar to VBS, but with a little more in depth study time. We will have an opening assembly, rotate through crafts, snack, and games, and have a hymn singing time in the morning, followed by lunch and a lesson time in the afternoon. Our theme is John Bunyan's classic Pilgrim's Progress. We still need class leaders to stay with each class of students throughout the day. We also need some help in the kitchen preparing snacks and lunch and in the nursery, and we need some youth to act in our drama skits and as class assistants. Sign up to help here:

Hello June! Summer is here!!

Our Sunday School classes are still Trekking Through the Testaments. This month we are studying from Genesis 42-49 as Joseph brings his family to Egypt to provide for them during the famine.

Kid's Worship Nights will take a break for the summer. June 4th will be the last session until August.

It's finally time for VBS! 

Register your students early to help streamline check in on June 9. VBS will be June 9-12 from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm with a mini meal beginning at 5:30  pm. Watch the Facebook page for posts to share with your friends and any groups you might be in. Spread the word!

For Children's Camp this year we are hosting our own "staycation camp" at Oak Crest. This will be a smaller event focused on our own families. July 28-31 from 10 am to 2 pm, including lunch and snacks. We will need lots of volunteers to help us as we dive into John Bunyan's classic Pilgrim's Progress. Sign up to volunteer today! Adults and youth, we need help in the kitchen, with crafts and games, and drama skits.

If you haven't already, please complete our survey for this year. Your input is needed as we are planning classes for next school year and updating all of our records.

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer!

My goodness, it's already May! Our homeschool community is alreadyfinished for the school year, but I know many of you are still wrapping up this month. The Children's Department is gearing up for a big summer of fun!

In Sunday School we are continuing our study in Genesis, we are focused on Joseph this month.

We still need volunteers for VBS! Wonder Junction VBS will be June 9-12 from 6 - 8 pm with a mini meal served at 5:30 pm. We are still searching for a High Point Bible Teacher. The Bible lesson is the most important part of VBS!! If you are available to teach even just one age group please let me know ASAP so I can give you the lessons to begin studying and preparing. We need our youth volunteers to register as well so I can plan out where each volunteer will be most needed. Sign up today and join the fun in Wonder Junction!

You can also go ahead and register your kids for VBS! This will help us make sure we are prepared!

And don't forget about our Pilgrim's Progress Summer Day Camp July 28 - 31 from 10 am - 2 pm! This is a special event for just our Oak Crest families to have some fun and study together. We will have a rotation of games, snacks, and crafts in the morning, a special hymn time, lunch, and an afternoon of studying John Bunyan's classic Pilgrim's Progress. 

Whew! I know May is a super busy time, thank you for reading this far. Just a few more weeks and it will be sweet summer time! I pray you all have the endurance to finish the school year strong and celebrate the summer!

 April is here and we will have several weeks filled with special activities!

This Sunday, April 6, we are having another Elder Q & A time, so everyone will be meeting in the sanctuary during the Sunday School hour. We will have a few volunteers in the Children's Wing for any families who need to drop off their students during this time, but most of my volunteers will be in the sanctuary to participate in this important process.

Sunday, April 13 is Palm Sunday. We will be pausing our regular Old Testament studies to focus the final week of Jesus' ministry. It is a tradition at Oak Crest to begin the Palm Sunday morning service with a special song where the children file in waving palm branches to lay at the front of the sanctuary. So for that Sunday, you may leave your students in the children's wing after Sunday School. Once they have dropped their palm branches at the front they can come find you in your seats. (We will help make sure all children find their families!) 

Another beautiful Holy Week tradition is our Maundy Thursday Service. We will NOT have service or activities on Wednesday, April 16. Instead, we have a very special Maundy Thursday service on April 17 at 7 pm. I will have lesson packets available for the children to take home on Palm Sunday, or they will also be available at the back of the sanctuary at the Maundy Thursday Service. The lesson will be on the crucifixion for you to study as a family.

Sunday, April 20 is Resurrection Sunday! We will have a special Sunday School lesson focusing on Jesus' resurrection. There will be no evening service or activities.

Sunday, April 27th we will return to our Old Testament studies beginning the life of Joseph. 

Don't forget about our Kids' Worship Nights every Wednesday evening at 7 pm (except the 16th, no service or activities on April 16). I love hearing their beautiful little voices singing beautiful hymns!

And don't forget about our Staycation Pilgrim Camp! Join us for some summer fun while studying Pilgrim's Dangerous Journey, which is an adaptation of John Bunyan's classic Pilgrim's Progress. This will be a day camp, Monday, July 28 - Thursday, July 31, 10 am to 2 pm each day. We need volunteers for the kitchen, Bible Lesson Teachers, group leaders, Crafts, Games, Music, and the Assembly Time. Please sign up and mark any areas you are willing and able to help, adults and youth!

Hello families,

Where did February go?? I can't believe it's already March! Summer is coming fast!!

In Sunday School we are continuing to study the life of Jacob (soon to be renamed Israel). This month we will follow his journey back to be reunited with Esau. And at the very end of the month we will be switching to new teachers for the new unit. 

On Wednesday nights we will continue studying hymns.

Instead of going away for summer camp this year we are hosting a Summer Discipleship Camp right here at Oak Crest! This will be a day camp style event. We will be studying John Bunyan's classic Pilgrim's Progress. Once again, we do need volunteers to make this happen. Please sign up today!

I am so thankful for the opportunities I have to serve you and your families, you are all such a blessing to me!

In Christ,
Melissa Burney
Children's Director, Oak Crest Baptist Church

Hello dear families,

January is finally over and here we are in February! We have so many fun and exciting things coming up, please make sure your ChurchTrac account is up to date with your family's preferred contact information so you don't miss any announcements or communications. Please also make sure your family has an emergency contact set in case we need to contact you while your students are in the Children's Department. Our new Emergency Procedures are posted in the hallway and in each classroom, and the entire Policies and Procedures document is available for review upon request. Volunteers, please pick up your copy to sign and return ASAP if you were not at our meeting.

Our Sunday School is rocking along through Genesis. This month we will be studying the life of Jacob. The older classes are moving quickly through memory verses and catechism questions, and the younger classes are doing well also.

Instead of going away to Preteen Camp this year, I am planning a Summer Day Camp. My hope is for this to be a fun and more intimate discipleship time for our regular families. We will be studying Pilgrim's Journey from the book Dangerous Journey, which is a children's adaptation of John Bunyan's classic Pilgrim's Progress. Dates are currently scheduled for July 28 - August 1, 10 am - 2 pm with lunch served. I am still in the very early stages of planning this event from scratch. I would like this event to be open for PreK through 5th Grade, but I need to have enough volunteers available for that many classes. We will also have a nursery available for volunteer's children.​ Please mark your calendars and sign up to help today!