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We had an awesome chapel on Wednesday, May 2nd, with Major Sears from the Elyria Salvation Army. He shared the history of the Salvation Army and what things they are involved in. It was sad to hear so many families in Elyria without enough food for their family. He left three barrels for collecting the food next week. We are praying that the barrels will be filled to overflowing! Elementary students should bring soup and peanut butter.

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Chapel on April 18th was a special chapel. We had a prayer, praise, and share chapel. Many students shared what God has been doing in their lives. It was a blessing to hear students share from their heart. Some students shared scripture or a favorite Bible story. Teachers prayed for our school and students. We read from Psalm 150 which is all about giving God praise. We tend to have our list of “give me” items for God and we need to remember to thank him for who He is and what He has given us. Psalm 150 is a great reminder to just praise Him!!

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Pastor James Stewart, father of ODCS student Mason, was our chapel speaker on April 4th. Pastor Stewart spoke from Matthew 6:33 which teaches to seek after God first and remember Him in all we do. He also taught that gathering Easter eggs is like gathering others for Christ. We should always seek Him first and be a good witness to win people to Christ. Have a blessed Easter.

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Chapel was led by Mrs. McCourry, third grade teacher, on March 28th. Her class performed a Reader’s Theatre about the names of Jesus. A scripture was given for each name and songs were sung having to do with that name of Jesus. He is our Prince of Peace, Wonderful Counselor, Shepherd, and the Alpha and Omega; just to name a few! He is so worthy of all our worship! Thanks to Mrs. Watkins for picking the perfect songs to help our minds focus on our Lord. Thanks to the wonderful third graders who led the chapel!

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Our chapel speaker on March 14th was Mrs. Zaborowski, ODCS librarian. She and her family took a missions trip to Haiti in 2010. She showed us pictures of what Haiti is like and shared with us what she did while over there. We were saddened by the living conditions and the houses people live in. It is so different from what we have here. She and her family visited people and delivered essential supplies that we take for granted. They witnessed people coming to the Lord, went to a church service, and baptism. It’s hard for us to believe, but they need spoons to eat their meals! Mrs. Zaborowski shared with us the need for such basic things like spoons, so we collected many quarters (to send the spoons) and spoons for her to send to Haiti.

 

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Our speaker for chapel on February 29th was Pastor Tom Shumate. He did a fabulous job teaching our students about David and Goliath. He told us about Goliath’s strength and David’s confidence in the Lord. Even though David was much smaller he defeated the giant in the name of the Lord. He didn’t try to fit into the King’s armor, but did what he knew how to do—throw rocks! He took down the giant that had taunted the Israelites for days! Thanks, Pastor Tom.

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Our chapel speaker for February 15th was John Dutton. He is a football player for the Cleveland Gladiators. He and his family also have a ministry to orphans in both Africa and Ethiopia. He told us the real meaning of success. Success in God’s eyes is totally different from the world today. Success is not measured by how many things you have, but by how you love the Lord and love others. This verse is found in Matthew 22:37-40. Thank you for the great chapel, Mr. Dutton.

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Our speaker for chapel on February 8th was alumni Becky Johnson Weiss. She and her family are missionaries to Peru. They share the gospel with children in Peru and they work with other missionaries to help them share the gospel. We learned about their ministry as well as the area of Peru. Becky wore clothing that a person in Peru might wear. Her family came and visited each classroom giving out a prayer card. We will remember to pray for the Weiss family as they head back to Peru at the end of February.

Chapel was led by Mrs. Hardesty, first grade teacher, on February 1st. She read the book, “Because I Love You” by Max Lucado. The book reminds us that everything God does throughout our lives, He does for one reason only, and for the best reason of all: because He loves us. Thanks for the great reminder!

 

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Pastor Joel Zaborowski, youth pastor of Church of the Open Door, was our speaker in chapel on December 14th. He spoke about being a good friend because Jesus came to be a friend to sinners. He came to be a friend to me and you! Pastor Joel taught us about 5 ways that we can be a good friend. We can share, pray, encourage, love, and listen to others. During this chapel we also prayed for our high school missions team going to El Salvador. They leave on Dec. 30th. We have collected so many pennies for the team to purchase pencils for the school in El Salvador. We are excited to see what God is going to do in El Salvador!

 

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On December 7th, our chapel was led by Mrs. Donnelly second grade teacher. She taught us about the true meaning of Christmas. We should have joy in our hearts because God sent His Son for us. She also taught us that Jesus is the light of the world, the bright and morning star, the lion, and the lamb. He is both loving and just. There is so much to understand about the baby in the manger. Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift.

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Chapel was led by Mrs. McCourry, third grade teacher, on November16th. It was the first Praise, Prayer, and Share chapel for this school year. The students in all grades 1st – 4th and even some middle school students shared what God is doing in their lives. It was a great time of praising our great God and praying for our school. It was great to hear what God is doing in the hearts of ODCS students. “Praise Him, Praise Him tell of His excellent greatness!”

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Our November 9th chapel was led by Mr. Wilkes, parent of ODCS students. He recently went to El Salvador on a mission’s trip. He shared with us Mark 16:15 which says, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel.” Mr. Wilkes told us to live our life for the Lord so others will see and remember to pray for the lost. We also learned some important facts about El Salvador; students ages 6 and up work to help their families, they live on $1.00 per day, and their homes have dirt floors. Then, Mrs. Mindling reminded us that the students there have very few school supplies and how in the future, we are going to get an opportunity to bring in pennies, so we can buy pencils to help out the school. This goes right with our S in ROCKS—to serve others. Thanks to Mr. Wilkes and Mrs. Mindling!

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Rachel DiCesare, ODCS Kid Friendly Care Supervisor (KFC, our extended care program) and parent of two students, led our chapel on October 26th. The topic was shining our light for Jesus. She led in songs about God and even had a pretend campfire showing light. We sang, “This Little Light of Mine” holding glow sticks to show light. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life”. May we show our light to this dark world.

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Mrs. Wilkinson led our chapel on October 19th. The whole chapel was on praising the Lord. She defined praise as: to commend, to applaud, or magnify and for the Christian, praise to God is an expression of worship. Three of our elementary classes read verses on praising. All of our songs were about praising God. She helped us understand that sometimes we get busy and forget to give God the glory He so deserves!

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Pastor Rick Young, Pastor of Liberty Baptist Church in Elyria, was our chapel speaker on October 12th. He taught us about Nicodemus who asked Jesus how to be born again. There is only one way and that is through Jesus Christ. Pastor Young taught us that Jesus performs a miracle every time someone is saved. He is the only one who can perform miracles. Pastor Young performed some very fun and exciting tricks like coins reappearing and then disappearing. The students really enjoyed listening and watching Pastor Young. He left us with the idea that anyone is capable of doing a trick but only God can perform miracles! Thank you Pastor Young.

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On the September 28th, Dr. Burton, ODCS president, was our speaker for a very special Parents Day chapel. Dr. Burton spoke on Jesus’ commandment to love Him and to love each other. This commandment is found in Matthew 22:36-39. We were encouraged by his message as we seek to be imitators of Christ. Thanks to Dr. Burton.

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We had an exciting chapel on the 23rd! Our speaker was Mike Blackaby, author and grandson of Dr. Henry Blackaby. He taught the Bible story called, The Good Samaritan. The students were very excited because he chose them to act out the story as he read it. They had so much fun acting out the story. Mike helped us see that everyone is our neighbor and we need to reach out and help those in need. He related this story to the theme of our school, “ODCS ROCKS”. It was a pleasure and a treat to have him here.

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One of our third grade teachers, Mrs. Ereditario, led chapel on September 14th. She talked about God’s gift to us. This gift of eternal life is free and just what we need. The scripture Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us that it is a free gift! We can’t buy it or work for it. She used a picture cube to tell the story of Jesus. We never grow tired of hearing it!

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Annette McCourry, third grade teacher, led chapel on September 7th. Our verse for the year is Ephesians 5:1; which teaches us to imitate Christ. Students imitate many different people; movie stars, singers, or athletes. While some of these people may be good examples they may not be Christian models. The only example is Christ. We need to copy Him in everything we do! Each day our goal should be to say, “What Would Jesus Do?”

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We had an exciting chapel on August 31st! Mrs. Andrea Mindling, accompanied by her daughter Caylie, shared about their mission’s trip to El Salvador this past summer. We were so touched by their lack of supplies and many, many needs for the elementary school there. We realize how truly blessed we are. The students in El Salvador share pencils and paper with about 30 students in each class!! She did a great job helping us learn about the area. The students were involved and learned many things. Thanks so much to both Mrs. Mindling and her daughter. We look forward to partnering with this school to help make a difference.

Click here to watch a video about what God is doing in El Salvador!

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On August 24th, we had our first chapel of the 2011-2012 school year! Mrs. Watkins led us in our singing time. The students were excited to be back and praising the Lord. Mrs. Torode and Dr. Burton talked to the students about ODCS ROCKS! ROCKS stands for respect, obedience, consideration, kindness, and service. We want the children to see that as Christians, these actions should be displayed in our lives. The administration will be sharing more details about ODCS ROCKS in the future.

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Chapel on May 25^th was led by Vietnam veteran, Roger John. He spoke to us about honoring our veterans and the importance of Memorial Day. He reminded students about the freedom we have in America and how God has truly blessed us. This memorial day let us remember all those who sacrificed their lives for our freedom. Let us also remember Jesus who gave the ultimate sacrifice. Thanks to all the military personnel for your service!

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Mrs. Abraham, 4^th grade teacher, led chapel on April 13^th. She led the students through a sword drill. It was challenging for the students to find the books of the Bible and specific verses quickly. Even the kindergarten students got involved by finishing their memory verses that Mrs. Abraham started for them. It is important for Christian’s to know their way around God’s Word. We need to hide God’s Word in our heart so that we won’t sin against Him. Thank you for that reminder Mrs. Abraham.

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Annette McCourry, 3^rd grade teacher, led chapel on April 6^th. The lesson centered on the importance of God’s Word. Four students performed a skit about telling friends about Sunday School and church. Also, an object lesson was presented using a rock and a sponge. When it comes to God’s Word, we want to be like a sponge and soak up all we can! The scripture for the lesson was Psalm 119: 9-16. We need to hear, read, study, memorize, and meditate on God’s Word!