Not your average Christmas program...
We just finished Joyland Christmas Celebration and what an amazing experience it's been! What's made this year different from previous years was the welcome addition of ImpACT, which added nearly 50 more children on the stage than last year. One blessing from this is that our Joyland kids and ImpACT kids became such good friends after hours and hours of practicing together. What a thrill to see kids from all backgrounds laughing, dancing, and having a wonderful time all to prepare a presentation on the real story behind Christmas. Not only that, but so many families of the ImpACT children came to watch too; it was a packed house! It was so heartwarming to see everybody come together and watch the Christmas story being told by our kids in such a fun and touching way.
Personally for me, I was really grateful for this experience to help make JCC possible. For the Joyland teachers, Impact team leads and many other volunteers, we experienced much more fruit from this night than we had initially expected. As I saw each and every child give their all that night, as I saw Willard auditorium completely packed with family and friends, many of the parents' faces filled with awe at what they were experiencing that night, some of them even moved to tears, I saw how God indeed used us to engage the world lovingly, and I was so thankful that I was able to share in this great joy.