To the Bible Quizzing Family,
    
I apologize for taking so long to get this out to you, but it couldn’t be helped.  I shared with you at the quiz meet that my mom was in her final hours of her earthly life, and as it turned out, she went to her heavenly home that evening while we were enjoying the campfire after the quiz meet.  It’s a bittersweet time in some respects, but I’m so happy for her.  She was so ready to go and be done with the suffering and be with Jesus.  And we absolutely know that’s where she is because of her trust in Him for her salvation.  Hers was a life well-lived as a servant of God and as one who walked with Jesus.  We enjoyed celebrating her life with friends and family at her funeral service earlier this week.  Martha and I really appreciate all of you who were praying for us as we took this journey. It was very evident that God was upholding us.

But let’s get back to Bible Quizzing.  That was a terrific day we had together 2 weeks ago.  It was great to see some new quizzers getting started.  It was great to see experienced quizzers back at it again.  Though we compete against each other, we all are in it together to help each other hide God’s Word in our hearts and he is glorified in the process.  That’s really what it is all about.

I’m sure the whole experience may have been a bit overwhelming for some of the new quizzers, but hopefully you all came away with a much better idea of what this is all about and how to prepare for it.  Don’t be discouraged if you haven’t gotten it figured out yet.  Keep learning the material and with some time and practice you’ll start to get the hang of it.  Feel free to connect with more experienced quizzers and coaches and seek their help in establishing good techniques and study habits.

Devotions and Worship: Thanks to Abby Leonard for leading us in worship and to Christina Block for sharing the devotional, to get our quiz day started on the right foot.  I so much appreciate it when you are willing to use the gifts God has given you, and to share how God is working in your lives.  Everyone is blessed by it, and God is glorified.  We still have plenty of openings available, so please consider whether you can help us with this and sign up!

Setup & Cleanup: I apologize that I’ve forgotten who it was that came early to help with setup, and I didn’t see who stayed late to help with cleanup.  But whoever you are, thanks so much!  We can’t do this without you.  As a part of being able to use the facilities without cost, it is important that we get this done well.  We want to spread out the work so no one is overburdened with it, so if you haven’t signed up for a month yet, please do so.  There are plenty of openings here too.

Olympic Memory Challenge: A good number of quizzers were involved in the Olympic Memory Challenge at some level, and I’d like to encourage more of you to get started with that.  We’d like to give you some recognition for all of the verses that you memorize, even if you’re not one of the faster jumpers.  Memorizing the verses will also help you do a better job of recognizing the questions and being able to jump quickly.  Everybody wins with this.  You can find more information about the Olympic Memory Challenge on the Bible Quizzing website at rochesterbiblequizzing.org.

Next Month:  Our next quiz meet will be on November 12.  The Novice League will quiz over Hebrews 7:18-28, 8:1-2, and 10:19-25; the Little League over Hebrews 7:11-28, 8:1-6, and 10:1-39; and the A/B League over Hebrews 5:11 - 9:28.  Points earned that day in the A/B and Little Leagues will be multiplied by 120% when accumulated for the year.  Following the quiz meet, we’ll enjoy a fellowship time at Godfather’s Pizza.  We’ve got the back room reserved so please make plans to stick around for supper/fellowship there.

Crown College Tournament: This is coming January 13-14 and is a very good tournament.  We’d like to encourage as many A/B League quizzers to go as possible.  Begin thinking about whether you can go and who could be on your team.  We’ll meet after the November quiz to start getting an idea of who may be going, and we’ll need to sign up (commit) at our December quiz.  We’ll provide more details as they are available.

Passing the torch: I mentioned at the end of the quiz meet that this would be the last year for Martha & I to be involved in the leadership of the quizzing program.  This ministry has been a real joy for us to be involved in for a very long time.  We believe it has been used of God as we have seen many hundreds of kids memorize huge portions of his Word, and we are blessed to have developed so many good relationships with so many terrific people.  But we can tell it is time to move on.  New leadership is needed here, and God is stirring our hearts in exciting ways as we begin to see new ministry opportunities to which he is calling us start to unfold before our very eyes.  Though I can’t say exactly what it will look like yet, this will be a transition year as the Quiz Committee begins to take up where we will leave off.  It’s God’s program, and I know it will be in good hands.  And speaking of that, we could use a few more hands as well.  If you have an interest in helping with the leadership of the program, please let us know.

Feel free to contact me (or anyone else on the Quiz Committee) if you have any questions or suggestions.  And, thank you for your support of Bible Quizzing.

Karl Kirkman, Bible Quizzing Director