by Jeff Curnow –
At Kids Live ’05 on Friday evening, young people from 12 different corps, representing each of the ten divisions of the Western Territory, presented 15 distinct ways to worship God.
Captain Lisa Smith, assistant territorial youth secretary, who served as master of ceremonies and oversaw much of the planning for the event, said, “Kids Live ’05 was a wonderful success! We planned the event hoping to give those in attendance a taste of what talented and committed young people we have, and that message came through loud and clear. It was a thrill to see the children so eager and excited to use their energy and gifts for Christ’s glory.”
This year the event was held in the sanctuary of the Pasadena Church of the Nazarene. The change of venue—larger than last year—allowed many more to see the hard work the youth put into each presentation.
The participants: Anchorage (Alaska) Korean Corps—Blood and Fire; Bellingham (Wash.)—Singing Company; Denver (Colo.) Red Shield Corps—Colorado Starlites Drill Team; Eureka (Calif.)—Creative Ministries Team and Singing Company; Kauluwela (Hawaii) Mission—Hula Hulau. Nampa (Idaho)—Drama Team and Singing Company; Oakland (Calif.) Garden Center Corps—Junior Praise and Worship Team; Phoenix (Ariz.) Central Corps—mime group and Singing Company; The San Diego Citadel—Junior Timbrels; San Diego Centre City Corps—Souljahz; San Francisco Korean Corps—“Hosanna”; and Santa Fe Springs (Calif.) Corps—“One Voice” Singing Company.
Each showed that there are many ways to worship and praise God; the range of creativity in evidence was thrilling to see. For example, the Starlites drill team marched, danced and enthusiastically claimed Bible promises, while “Hula Halau,” a group of five girls, gracefully portrayed the Lord’s prayer in music and dance.
The innovation and creativity displayed by each participant were the real highlights of the evening. For the second straight year, “Kids Live” was stirring, encouraging—and a whole lot of fun.