Color was flying everywhere and my grateful heart was floating away with it. The blue sky turned into beautiful shades of orange, yellow, red, and green.

A cloud of foam softly brushed my cheek and brought my attention back to giggles of the children. Kiddos were chasing each other around, making sure there wasn’t an inch of their bodies left uncolored. I couldn’t help but smile as we danced together and sang songs at the top of our lungs about how much Jesus loves us.

It’s in these precious moments that God speaks to us about who He really is. And sometimes His sprinkles on top are cotton candy and popcorn 🙂

In that moment I couldn’t help but think that one year ago this Kid’s Summer Kickoff (KSKO) was just a crazy, may-or-may-not-happen dream. We wanted to offer a free day camp for kids from our church and those in the neighborhood, but we weren’t sure how it could work out.

But as I looked around at faces full of color and volunteers and families celebrating together like one big family, I thanked God for His provision in every way to make this a reality!

During the KSKO, kids learned who Jesus is, what He did for them on the cross, and how they can be better Christ followers.

Our ICB Kids team worked together with a team from Evangel Temple to lead songs, games, sports, crafts and memory verse activities that helped the kids apply their biblical lessons while having tons of fun.

We sat around the table and made yummy eatable crafts with candy and cookies. We went to the park and kicked around the football until our faces were red…and we even invited some of the neighborhood kids to join us.

We learned dance choreographies to songs both in English and Spanish and came up with some of the craziest face-painting ideas you’ve ever heard of.

By the end of the week, parents were exchanging phone numbers, kids were hugging their new friends goodbye, and volunteers waved goodbye almost tearfully. We knew that this was the start of an adventure that will last forever in our hearts and the hearts of the children that were touched by our good Father.

Check out the photos and video below to get a small taste of some of the fun we had at Kid’s Summer Kickoff.