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Cultivate Church recently hosted a series of educational nights full of activities for children in the community in grades 4K through fifth grade. (Contributed/Cultivate Church)

By NOAH WORTHAM | Managing Editor

ALABASTER – Children enjoyed three nights filled with candy, skits, music and messages about God during this year’s installment of Kids Fest at Cultivate Church which was themed around a Candy Factory.

Each year, Cultivate Church hosts a series of educational nights full of activities for children in the community, entitled “Kids Fest” and this year’s festivities took place July 15-17 for kids in 4K through fifth grade.

It was really great,” said Brandon Matthews, lead team pastor at Cultivate Church. “We had a great week. The kids had a blast.”

According to Matthews, this year’s edition of Kids Fest saw more kids in attendance than in previous years. Each night, the church treated kids to interactive lessons, classes, skits, snacks and worship time.

“It was really neat because some of the kids started coming when they were little (and) come every year,” Matthews said. “So, it’s been a neat tradition for some of the families in the community.”

In order to bring this year’s Candy Factory theme to life, the church decorated with lollipops, held a candy station for children and performed skits to entertain the kids.

“All of it just themed itself back to the big idea of our lessons and the things that were being taught to our kids, so everything just tied together in a really cool way,” Matthews said.

The church hosted a variety of different games each night and the Kona Ice truck came one evening for kids to enjoy a cool snack. The church also motivated the kids to compete in fundraising for a ministry effort that helps children in Juarez, Mexico.

“That’s a big focus that the kids look forward to each and every year is that little competition that they participate in together,” Matthews said. “And we love it because it’s teaching them generosity. It’s teaching them (to have a) heart for other kids who are like them but just need help.”

At the end of the week, the competition ended with Next Gen Pastor Ben Brackin receiving a pie in the face as a fun reward for the girls winning the fundraising competition.

Utilizing a series of skits and characters, the church also delivered life lessons and religious messages to the children in attendance during Kids Fest.

“Part of the lessons were, when you mess up, there’s always forgiveness,” Matthews said. “Jesus is always there. Jesus is always close. It taught the kids on navigating making decisions, making good decisions and how to do that and then how to respond when you make a mistake or something doesn’t go your way.”

Matthews highlighted what Cultivate Church hopes to accomplish each year in hosting Kid First for children and families in the local community.

“It’s an incredible opportunity for our church to be generous to our community,” he said. “Our church has such an incredible heart for our community and others. We always want people to know that our church wants something for them and nothing from them.”

Matthews said that he first gave his life to Jesus when he was just five years old and that he hopes the same commitment might be made by some of the young kids the church serves at Kids Fest.

“We pray that if we do events like this—and it’s full of kids from all different backgrounds, all different circumstances and walks of life, all different kinds of families—that maybe this week, because our church served them, they had an opportunity to meet Jesus,” Matthews said.

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