Don’t worry! No real danger here!In Ephesians 6, the Apostle Paul advises us to put on the armor of God to aid us in fighting spiritual battles. Towards the end, Paul writes that we are to use “the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God” (emphasis added). The sword—a weapon knights used to attack the enemy with—was a very vital part of their armor. Knights would not be so foolish as to travel without it, knowing that many dangers roamed freely across the land. They knight would usually keep it polished and sharp, ready for use at a moment’s notice.
In the same way, we are instructed to use the Bible as a sword to defeat our enemy, Satan. Just like the knights in the olden days, we must keep our swords (the Bible) polished, sharp, and ready for warfare. We must constantly keep in check our knowledge and consistency in hearing and obeying God’s Word.
The HAPI core came up with the idea of a Bible fest to encourage and challenge the children and parents to become more active and purposeful in reading and studying the Scriptures, as a way to actively apply Paul’s admonition. Last October 2011, in CCF, the Swordfight! Bible Challenge 2011 was held, with several parents and children from different associations as eager participants.
The families were divided into 6 groups. Each group was assigned to a station where volunteers (homeschooling parents and formerly homeschooled kids) officiated the games to ensure a smooth program flow. The activities were a wide range of puzzles, question-and-answer problems, fill-in-the blank challenges, mind-wracking trivia that covered many events, topics, verses, and characters all the way from the Old Testament to the New Testament.
Prizes were given to the early registrants and other early birds. Awards were also given to various parents and children. Other items were raffled off, such as Bibles with a sword etched out on the front cover, books on character building, puzzles for kids, evangelistic tool kids, etc. Each kid who participated received a certificate together with a sword-shaped ballpen as a memorabilia.
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| Six colors, six teams |
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| Armor of God Bibles for raffles, prizes, and giveaway |
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| Sword-shaped pen for memorabilia |
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| Team Noah |
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| Team Moses |
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| Team Abraham |
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| Team Daniel |
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| Team Joseph |
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| Team Jacob |
“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”
Hebrews 4:12
(Theme Verse of Swordfight!)
