On June 11, the Lake County Captains held a special night honoring veterans and current military. A group from Grace Church had the privilege of holding the flag for the opening ceremony!

Our military ministry also had a table with helpful resources for veterans and present military members, fun toys for kids, and information about our church. They were able to have several good conversations with people who stopped by.

A key feature of the military ministry table is their prayer book. We promise to pray for a year for active military individuals whose names are shared with us. Ten to 15 names were added to the list that weekend.

In total, we were able to give away:

• 150 gift bags for children, including flyers for our summer outreach camps, information about children’s ministries at Grace, and our church brochure.
• 10 copies of the Gospel of John.
• 15 copies of Spiritual Readiness for Boot Camp with editions tailored for each branch. The Lord providentially placed our spot right next to Army recruitment table, so we were able to give several of these to young men heading to boot camp in the coming year.
• 6 copies of The Five Love Languages military edition.
• 18 Bible kits, which included a camo Bible, a military edition of Our Daily Bread, a Gospel tract, and Pastor Kent’s card.
• Many trinkets for children, including dog tag necklaces, military rubber ducks, patriotic pencils, and sunglasses!

This spring, our military ministry also partnered with local schools to send boxes of encouraging cards to active members of our military. One of the ships that received cards sent the pictures below to show how much they were appreciated. They even wrote thank-you notes back to the students!