| More feedback from Rooted in Jesus Junior |
| "In November 2016, we conducted 'Rooted in Jesus Junior' training to a group of Sunday School leaders in Ruiru, north Nairobi. We have since re-visited the church, the bishop and his wife are good friends of ours - unbeknown to us this large church of several hundred members, quite a number who are school teachers and university lecturers, had been unable to keep Sunday School teachers for more than a few months, before they resigned. From the training in early November, to our being there again in late April, not one Sunday School teacher had resigned, and some who had declared they felt they would not be able to offer anything in that line, had come forward to become part of the children's ministry team! We thought this was great news!" Brian Keel, Leadership Development Partnership, Kenya |
| “Salty ministry team is a group of late twenties- to early sixty-somethings who meet every Friday night. We have gone through Alpha twice, RinJ senior Book One a few times and other short courses. Our ambition is to do life together more and more and to integrate with existing family lives. We have had a babysitter for the participants’ children, and she has enjoyed looking after the kids. We then felt compelled to take the opportunity to disciple the kids in some way. Messy Church, Rinj Junior and Godly Play were the options. We recognise all three to be quality programmes. Yet due to the ease of implementation and low resource requirements, we decided that Rinj Junior would be the best place to start. Hence we have begun our Rinj Junior journey! The kids have been enjoying the first few sessions. Three of the kids are not baptised and are actually Muslim; but their mom has recently decided to follow Jesus, so she enjoys her kids being a part of this journey.” Brad Sitzer reports on a new work with children in Church of the Redeemer in Mitchell’s Plain, Cape Town, South Africa |
| "The bishop overseeing the churches with which we were involved, and also one of the coordinators, travelled 2 hours in order to make contact with us 10 days after we had completed the training, in order to share with us that the previous day he had taken the children’s meeting in his church. This is something that he does not usually do, but felt he wanted to do so on that occasion; he began to share with the children from lesson 1 about having a relationship with God. At the conclusion he shared about the Holy Spirit, and asked if any of the children wished to be baptised in the Holy Spirit - 20 were filled with the Holy Spirit, and continued speaking in tongues for quite a while, so that adults came into the church building in order to find out what was going on." - Brian Keel, after the first Junior training conferences in Bungoma, Kenya |
| "Currently, our Grades 2-6 use Rooted in Jesus Junior. Personally, I am enjoying teaching Rooted in Jesus Junior. I find that some of the topics/questions really encourage the children to ask questions, which I like. Ever since my Grade 5 started using Junior, they've always been 10-12 eager-beavers who are so committed to being in Sunday School every week and come at least half an hour before Sunday School starts. We go over what we learnt the previous week and then move on to our current lesson. I give the children rewards for learning their memory verses, and this seems to work quite well. It's all about Jesus, and I can honestly say that the Holy Spirit is indeed with us.” Lucy Burgess, Sunday School Superintendent at All Saints Belhar, Cape Town, South Africa |
| "At Holy Spirit Kirstenhof the younger children use Rooted in Jesus Junior, and the older ones the adult programme.The Grade 6 and 7 children at CHS have been using the Rooted in Jesus Adult curriculum since the beginning of the year.They have enjoyed the topics and have really engaged with the material and there has been much in the way of discussion and questions. The children have particularly enjoyed the active learning style – they aren’t sitting back and being “taught” a traditional lesson, but are discussing, thinking, talking, looking up Bible verses, forming opinions, debating, laughing, praying and sometimes agreeing to disagree, but all the while growing in their understanding of the nature of God and the scriptures as they develop into mature Christians.The leaders have also appreciated the user-friendliness of the curriculum and are enjoying their role as facilitators, rather than teachers." Cathy Henderson, Church of the Holy Spirit, Kirstenhof, Cape Town, South Africa |
| "Sunday schools in many churches are meeting under the family of one heart and one mind [RinJ]training. You can find in one church more than three groups that were not there before. Nowadays we can hear voices of kids memorising verses, which is very encouraging to parents and many Christians that there is something new going on in the midst of children. In the Diocese of Mara we have 54 groups going on and doing wonders in memorising and sharing testimonies. Recently I attended a service for Sunday school to complete book 2 at All Saints, Nyasura, Bunda and witnessed how children carry potential for the future of the church. The Anglican Church has a future in Tanzania because children are brought up properly in a biblical teaching" - Canon Jacob Robert, Diocese of Mara, Tanzania, |
| "Mkuti: a wonderful presentation by the children which uses Rooted in Jesus material. It included prayers led by the children (‘They learn to pray in their RinJ group’ said James!) a drama of the offering of Isaac, making a cross from a sheet of paper (as in Rooted in Jesus), the reciting of numerous of the RinJ memory verses and much singing" - Revd Dr Linnet Smith, visiting Masasi Diocese, Tanzania |
| "We visited Wapiwapi Church. Another wonderful presentation, more children leading us in prayer, another very moving drama by the children – the illustration from RinJ of crossing the river full of crocodiles and needing something to carry you over – I nearly wept with joy when the boy who was trying to cross found the boy taking the part of Jesus, knelt at his feet and then was carried safely over the river. What a powerful illustration!" - Revd Dr Linnet Smith, visiting Masasi Diocese, Tanzania |
| "Today at our church, Lamech led Sunday School and for the first time I heard wonderful joy and laughter coming from outside. I was so impressed. It was different. I made an announcement to explain why Sunday School were so happy this week" - Sam Daniel, CMS missionary in the Diocese of Mara, Tanzania, after the RinJ Junior Conference |
| “We were in darkness about teaching children; now we are in the light. I encourage you because you have been blessed with these teachings. Go and work to save children, release yourself and God will not forsake you. You are the only people who can save your place, who can transform people" - Vicar General, Diocese of Mara |
| “The memory verses work! 40 children have become Christians!” Godfrey Waidhuba, Calvary Chapel, Uganda |
| “Parents saw their children change as a result of being taught the programme and have given thanks to the teachers. The children are now involved and very active in the lessons; they want to put into practice what they have been learning. Now they are smiling and praying all the time. Before we used this programme, praying was a problem and we did not know how to do it with the children. Now they all want to lead the prayer time and serve others, also to read the Bible.” Jane Nanyonjo, islands in Wakiso district, Lake Victoria, Uganda |
| “4 children have become Christians. In our church we have been given time for the children to sing and present the memory verses from their lessons. Children are now given the opportunity to participate and they are growing in confidence in doing this. They are now active in praying in church – they have prayed for healing in Sunday School and seen this happen.” Esther Olweny, Living Hope Revival Church, Uganda |
| “I started teaching the programme first with my own family. I taught them about the tree and how we are supposed to grow spiritually like a tree. The children have been asking how they can grow like that – and bear fruit with their roots deep down in Jesus. We are enjoying the fruits as a family and the gospel has become sweet to us. We love God’s word and walk in it and share it with others. Some of my children are sharing what they have learned with their friends at church.” Peace Kanjyesho, Calvary Chapel, Uganda |
| I am happy to inform you that Rooted in Jesus Junior worked for us so much while at NEW LIFE MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH JINJA. From the time we adopted those materials, we experienced vibrant exiting Sunday school meetings with the children. The five Sunday school teachers that I trained using Rooted in Jesus materials have become very good teachers. They are now more practical during every meeting with the children. This has improved much of the children's zeal and love for Christ plus the church. A lot of spiritual gifts were realised like evangelism, worship, preaching, prayer, storytelling, drama, scripture memory verses etc. among the children. Some of these children lead worship during the main service and other church meetings. The number of the children which was about 25 at our church, it has now has grown to 150+"' - Pastor Ali Mukembo, Jinja, Uganda |
| "Our ministry is led by the boys and girls. Ibrahim and Kennedy are teaching the programme in our orphanage. They tell me they have seen a great change in the way the word is received by the children and there is a great joy and fun in the meetings. There is growth in the Word of God in their lives." - Pastor Moses, Leader at the New Lease of Life Children's Village, Uganda |
| "Rooted in Jesus helps teachers stay focussed. It uses more creativity in its teaching style than we are used to which helps the teachers and the children learn and own the message. The programme has helped me keep the fire of Jesus burning among the kids in my neighbourhood. When the children’s hearts are ministered to, they resolve to change and choose good behaviour. Before using this programme, kids were fighting, bad mouthing one another and others were crying a lot in my classes. They are now gentler towards each other than they were before we started using Rooted in Jesus Junior" - Edwin Sengooba, Kansanga, Uganda |
| "At my church (Dove Church) Disciples of Christ Church, and Antioch Believers Church Lugala are all teaching the Rooted in Jesus Junior programme and these churches joined together with Bishop Gichuru’s Church Namungoona Cathedral to hold a children’s crusade in January. During the crusade, children led the worship, preached in the village and saw children and adults coming to faith in Christ" - Pastor Andrew Mukisa, Namungoona, Uganda |
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| “Rooted in Jesus has transformed our work with children; it is changing our church; teachers and children are enthusiastic for Jesus. It has taught us how to support and help our children grow in the Christian faith. Children do not miss Sunday School now. Christian parents are very pleased now as 'children have proper Christian education like the Muslims at the madrassahs'. We are helping children really grow in their faith. We value the syllabus for the church that Junior has given us. We had no syllabus before now. This is a new experience for us and it is good for us. Rooted in Jesus has given us a curriculum” - Canon James Almasi and Revd Carlos Marcus, Mkomaindo, Diocese of Masasi, Tanzania |
| "Many Sunday school teachers have been calling asking for book two and recommending the program. There has been tremendous Impact of Rooted in Jesus in both Entebbe and Kampala” – Bishop Jeremy Gichuru, Quality Discipleship Church, Entebbe, Uganda |