Seventeen local scouts and students were awarded medals at Oxford United Methodist Church Sunday to recognize their completion of various levels in the ‘God and Country Program.?
The God and Country Program is a Protestant Christian Education Program developed by the PRAY (Programs of Religious Activities with Youth) organization.
PRAY’s mission is to encourage the spiritual growth of young people by building partnerships between the religious community and national youth agencies.
One way PRAY does that is through religious programs, such as ‘God and Country,? recognized by the Boy Scouts of America and Girl Scouts of the USA.
Twenty-seven children in grades 1-10 are participating in a local God and Country Program hosted by Oxford United Methodist.
Three of the participants are Boy Scouts, 13 are Cub Scouts and seven are Girl Scouts. Four students are non-scouts.
The God and Country Program helps scouts uphold their commitment to honor and serve God and their country at all levels of scouting. That’s why it’s divided into four levels:
n God and Me (grades 1-3) ? It’s designed to help children become best friends with Jesus and tell their story of ‘God and Me? together.
n God and Family (grades 4-5) ? It’s designed to help youth understand the importance of family and God’s role in a healthy family life. The program provides an opportunity for young people and their families to explore their faith together.
n God and Church (grades 6-8) ? This level leads young people on a journey. It’s a faith journey with three parts ? meeting Jesus, worshipping God and witnessing and ministering for Christ.
n God and Life (grades 9-12) ? This is a reflective type of program in which students study the lives of men and women in the Bible and discover what their lives teach them about God. Young people are challenged to integrate their faith into their daily lives.
On Sunday, 17 scouts and students received medals during Oxford United Methodist’s 11 a.m. service for completing the first and last levels.
Completing the beginning ‘God and Me? level were Alex Baran, Kelly Caldwell, Marcella Compeau, Andrew Estrada, Carl Gilbert, Christian Gilbert, Hannah Hottman, Justin Klaus, Emily Lawrie, Justin Mallard, Emily Sovis, Michael Sovis, Blake Stepek, Joey Ufolla and Jake Williams.
Boy Scouts Robby Goepfert and Brian Cowles received medals for finishing the final ‘God and Life? level.
The remaining 10 scouts and students in the ‘God and Family? and ‘God and Church? levels will be honored with medals during Oxford UMC’s 10 a.m. service on Sunday, July 17.