To the Bible Quizzing Family,
Well, we made it! Another year in the books. When we get to this point, I'm pretty worn out and ready for a break, but it's a really good kind of "worn out"; very satisfying. I believe that for all of us, this program makes an eternal difference, and I count it a real privilege to be involved in it with you all. I've been really pleased to see both new and veteran quizzers involved this year, and doing well.
As I mentioned at our last quiz meet, I encourage all of you to finish reading the Book of Acts. The stories of the Apostle Paul and how the gospel went to the Gentiles are totally amazing. I had a Bible study teacher once who told me that when we get to Heaven, we're probably not going to have any difficulty recognizing Paul, considering all that he suffered for Christ. (Think about when he was stoned and left for dead, and then got up and walked back into the city; how does that happen?) The other thing I find fascinating about the Book of Acts is that it gives a lot of good background for understanding the Epistles that Paul wrote to the various churches, many of which we'll be quizzing over next year.
I'd also like to encourage many of you to consider studying the rest of the book and going to the WBQA Finals. This year they are at Taylor University, in Upland, Indiana, June 27-30. You can find more information on the WBQA website (wbqa.org).
For those of you who are "graduating" from Bible Quizzing after this year, I want you to know that it has been great to have you in the program over the years. Some of you have been with us for a very long time, and it won't be the same without you next year. So if you can find a way to come back and help us next year, or coach a new team, that'd be great. Or even if you're away at college, you might be able to find some kids to work with and start a team wherever you are. But if you're going to be in the area, and would be available to help with quizmastering and/or scorekeeping, please let me know!
I would like to thank the many people who so enthusiastically volunteer their time and energy to make the quizzing program a success. As you think of all the coaches, quizmasters, scorekeepers, computer-tally folks, and moms and dads who work with quizzers, offer a prayer of thanksgiving to God for their contribution.
Throughout the year, many of you have contributed financially to the needs of the quizzing program, and that is very much appreciated. As you know, this is entirely run on a volunteer basis, and it is only by donations that the bills are paid. Many people handed me donation checks throughout the year, and to all of you I say, "Thank you very much! We can't do it without you". We're not out of the woods yet, however, so if there are others who would like to donate, we would welcome your contributions.
At our last quiz meet, I mentioned the need to get more people involved in the leadership of the program. Martha and I are not ready to stop yet, but we cannot do it forever, and so it is time to get more people involved. We need to start offloading some of the work, and we need to have more people with fresh ideas having more ownership and responsibility. So at this point, I'm wanting to just cast a wide net out there, and see who might be interested in helping out in a more formal way. Don't just blow this off; pray about it and consider whether this is something God wants you to do. Then get back to me to volunteer.
My initial thoughts are that we need to have some sort of Steering Committee which has oversight of the entire quizzing program. This committee would be responsible for procedures and policies regarding at least the following areas:
In addition there are many roles that need to be filled. I would expect that in most cases, the person filling one of these roles would automatically be part of the Steering Committee, and that most of the people on the Committee would have one or more of these roles (and others that I may not be able to think of right now):
These are just my initial thoughts. I am certainly open to other ways to do this. Feel free to pass along any suggestions. But please step up and volunteer. I would expect to have this Committee meet together a couple times during the summer to make the plans for the 2007-2008 quiz year.
During the off-season, keep spreading the word about the Bible Quizzing program. Feel free to contact me to borrow a video. The more teams we can have involved next year, the more fun it will be for all of us. (Not to mention that more kids get into God's Word). While obviously everyone is welcome, I'm especially interested in recruiting new quizzers into the Little League.
We'll have the Dessert Kickoff in September to start the new quiz year, quizzing over the Books of Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. We haven't picked a date yet, so you'll hear more about this as it develops. At that time, we'll award permanent trophies for the top teams and individuals and enjoy getting together again.
Have a great summer, and again, thank you for your support of Bible Quizzing!
Karl Kirkman
Bible Quizzing Director