Herding Cats

We have D Groups (Discipleship Groups) every Thursday and it often feels like herding cats when I have all 6 of my guys.  As soon as we arrive and the van doors roll open, they scatter and I can sometimes get frustrated tracking them down and trying to keep them on task.  So, when we thought up the idea to have the D Groups build "fair-style" games for our Open House, I was understandably worried that my D Group guys would crash and burn in royal style.

But I was pleasantly surprised over the past four weeks as we planned a game, built it, and painted it.  They worked hard, stayed on task, and did a great job creating our game, and did an even better job leading the game and making it fun for the kids.  We had our open house last night and it was a huge success.  For every game played, the kids would receive tickets and then turn those tickets in to spin the Prize Wheel and win either: candy, t-shirts, toy cars, kids jewelry, art supplies, stuffed animals, or a small toys.  Not only did everyone have lots of fun and it was safe, but we were all REALLY proud of the youth! They led all the games (with smiles and fun) and were eager to help and lead. It makes it easier for us as a staff to pull off a big event like this, but it also is a good sign of future leadership and ownership.  It's also the result of emphasizing for so many years that at Church, we serve and help each other. And the Open House night was nothing like herding cats!

The Prize Wheel:

 Eating an Apple on a String (I won! And it's very hard)

The Fishin Hole:

Smiles:

Cotton Candy!!!

Pumpkin Chucking (Basically A Pumpkin Catapult)

(Note - the pictures are from Felicia Tillequots and Heather German - thanks!)