Love our comic? Check out Morning Praise with Kids Alive! on Salvationist Radio every Saturday and Monday at 7.30–8am and every Sunday at 9–9.30am.
3 Valentine’s Day and Ed’s Bit
4–5 KA! JAM
6 Bumper Bible Breakdown
7 Kiddo
8–9 Giggle in the Middle 10 The Last Wolf Competition
11 Creative Corner
12–13 KA! World
14–15 Your Space
16 Patch’s Pals Robbie’s Robot
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EDITOR Cara Mott
DEPUTY EDITOR AND KA! JAM CO-ORDINATOR Ibukun Baku
INTERNATIONAL LEADERS General Lyndon Buckingham and Commissioner Bronwyn Buckingham
TERRITORIAL LEADERS Commissioners Jenine and Paul Main
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Major Julian Watchorn
Published weekly by The Salvation Army United Kingdom and Ireland Territory. The Salvation Army is a Christian church and registered charity. The charity number in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is 214779, in Scotland SC009359 and in the Republic of Ireland CHY6399. ISSN 1363-5662.
W
hen you see the word love, what do you think of?
Perhaps you imagine a big red love heart, or someone in your life who you really care about, such as a parent, carer or friend. Maybe you picture a time when you saw people show their love for one another in a really special way, such as by getting married!
Love really is a beautiful thing, isn’t it? In fact, we think it’s so fantastic that it deserves to be celebrated. That’s why the Kids Alive! team are big fans of Valentine’s Day – which, if you didn’t already know, is actually today (14 February)!
You might think that Valentine’s Day is just something for grown-ups to get excited about. However, since Valentine’s Day is all about showing the people around you that you love them, we think you should celebrate it too!
How can you show love to people around you today? Perhaps you could make a stunning card that you could give to a friend. If you’re a fan of cooking, you could offer to help your parents or carers with making dinner – or you could say you’ll do the washing-up. Write someone a song, draw them a picture, create a present – there are so many ways to show love this Valentine’s Day!
To learn about another fantastic way of showing love, check out pages 12 and 13
Some people aren’t fans of Valentine’s Day, but I think that it’s never a bad idea to set aside time to let people know that we love them. So if nobody has told you yet today, let me say a big ‘I LOVE YOU’ to every person reading this!
I hope you know how much God loves you too, and his love is the greatest love that you can ever get. There’s a lovely bit of the Bible in Romans 8 that tells us just how special God’s love for us is. It says clearly that there is absolutely nothing that can stop God from loving us. Isn’t that incredible? Any mistake we make, any hard times we face, whether we’re happy or sad, or worried or joyful, God loves us through it all, and on every day of the year too. In fact, his love for you will last for ever!
Big Story
‘Big Story’ Poetry
Check
TRead the comment below about sharing how we’re feeling with God
History’s Greatest Songwriter!
his week’s Bible cartoon introduces us to one of history’s greatest songwriters. No, I’m not talking about Taylor Swift or Benson Boone – I’m talking about a man called David. David was the king of Israel, a spectacular warrior and (believe it or not) also a brilliant songwriter! In fact, a book of the Bible called Psalms contains at least 73 songs and poems that David came up with – his quill must have been on fire from all of that writing!
What made David a magnificent musician wasn’t that he had an awesome hairdo or could play the electric guitar with his eyes closed (because he couldn’t). It was that in both the greatest and toughest times of his life, he wrote about his feelings. Here’s another thing that made David’s
songs so excellent – he didn’t write them to be sung in a stadium in front of a massive crowd, with fireworks exploding behind him. He wrote them as a way to talk to God!
For example, in Psalm 27 David wrote about how wicked people were trying to hurt him – but he also wrote about how he knew that God would always be with him. By writing this song, David was reminding himself that God loved him.
You might not be a fantastic songwriter, but why not use the talents God has given you to share your feelings with him and to remind yourself that he’s with you? You could write a story, make a comic strip or even come up with your own dance. This week, be like David – tell God how you’re feeling and remember that he loves you!
by Jacob Adams
How Might You Feel?
Here’s a list of five things that you might experience during the next week. Next to each one, write down how they could make you feel.
God wants you to tell him about whatever emotions you’re feeling, so spend time talking to him!
Bumper Bible Breakdown
Did you know the Bible isn’t one big book? It’s actually 66 books put together to tell one big story of God’s great love. Join us as we look at each Bible book and discover why God made the world, what went wrong and how in the end God saved the world through his son, Jesus.
Transforming Faith
What does a Christian look like? That might sound like a weird question, but it’s one that a man called James answered in a letter that he wrote.
James (who was also called Jacob in some older versions of the Bible) was Jesus’ brother, and he was an important leader in the early Church. He knew that having faith in Jesus should transform someone – not so that they were better looking, had more money or became incredibly popular. James explained that a Christian shouldn’t desire to have those kinds of things. Instead, they should want to become more like Jesus. They should want to share the love of God by helping those in need, by speaking kindly to one another and by treating everyone equally. They should also want to get to know God more by praying to him – always knowing that God can do truly spectacular things!
KA! JAM is the coolest Bible activity club around. As a member you’ll go on amazing adventures through the Bible learning about Jesus. Each activity sheet is filled with lots of great stuff about being a Christian. You’ll also receive our mini-mag, Chatterbox which is filled with jokes, games and much more. And to top it off, there are loads of awesome prizes to be won!
To join KA! JAM and complete the Bible activity courses online, go to salvationist.org.uk/kajam.
Or if you would like to receive the postal version, simply fill in the coupon below.
To join KA! JAM just fill in the application form and send it – along with two first-class stamps – to: KA! JAM, 1 Champion Park, London SE5 8FJ. Applicants must be between 7 and 17 years old to join.
Name:
Address:
Date of birth:
Postcode:
Boy or girl: Do you attend a church, and if so, which one?
I, (signature)
apply for membership of Kids Alive! Jesus And Me. I understand that joining KA! JAM doesn’t mean I have joined The Salvation Army and that it is not a free subscription to Kids Alive!
PLEASE USE BLOCK CAPITALS.
When I Grow Up
What do you want to be when you grow up? To help you learn about a job that you might be interested in, we’ve asked a grown-up to tell us all about what they do for work. It’s time to meet a…
Problem...? ? ?
?
HELLO, READERS, I’VE LOST A VERY IMPORTANT OBJECT SOMEWHERE IN THE ISSUE. WOULD YOU BE ABLE TO HELP ME FIND IT? I HAVE A CLUE OF WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE HERE.
?
Social Media Manager
Hello! I’m Megan, I’m 22 years old and I live opposite a castle! I enjoy spending time with my family, walking my dog (who looks like a teddy bear) and singing. I work for my church as the social media manager and also do some youth work. I take videos and pictures at events and edit them together to post on social media. Every day for me is different. Sometimes I go into the office and have lots of different meetings. This is fun because I can bounce different ideas around with my colleagues – things take a lot of thinking and planning! Sometimes I work from home on my laptop and do video editing. The best thing about my job is that I can be creative and have fun trying new things. I enjoy helping people know what’s going on at my church, making things clear and giving a good idea of what our church is like through pictures and videos. If you think you might be interested in being a social media manager, then I’d encourage you to spend time being creative. Try to take lots of pictures, draw and make designs –because that will all help your creative juices to flow! Also, watch videos online about how to edit pictures and videos.
What did one sheep say to the other sheep? ‘I love ewe!’
What did one oar tell the other oar? ‘This is so row-mantic!’
What kind of dinner does Cupid eat? A heart-y one!
What do you call two birds in love? Tweethearts!
Crossword Clues
by Neil Locker
across:
Crossword Clues
1 Vegetable which is a symbol of Wales. 3 Oxtail or minestrone, for example. 7 Banana, for example. 8 Unwell. 9 Dried grape. 13 Fisherman’s pole. 14 Admittance or way in. 16 Female child. 17 In this place.
down:
1 Room at the top of a house. 2 Flightless Australian bird. 4 Vegetable that makes you cry. 5 Medicinal tablet. 6 First course of a meal. 10 Beneath. 11 Amphibian. 12 Rubber part of a wheel. 15 Peg used by a golfer.
Answers on Page 2
Find the Valentine’s Day-related words in the grid
He he, he he!
Ho ho, ha ha, he he!
Identify the mystery items in the magnifying glass
Hoho,hoho!
Haha,haha,haha! Hoho,haha,hehe!
Hehe,hehe!
FOUR FIT
Place the four words into the numbered rows so that four new words are formed in the columns
ACES TRAP REST SAGO
What did one bee say to the other?
MISSING PUZZLE PIECE
‘I love bee-ing with you, honey!’
by Neil Locker
What did one light bulb say to the other?
‘I love you watts and watts!’
What did the dustpan say to the broom?
‘You sweep me off my feet!’
What did the omelette say to the toast on Valentine’s Day?
‘You’re eggs-actly my type!’
This jigsaw of some siblings is missing a piece, but there are four pieces left in the box. Find the correct piece and complete the jigsaw.
HThe Last Wolf Competition
as someone ever accused you of something you didn’t do? Perhaps a sibling has told your parents or carers that you broke a vase (after they kicked a football at it). Or maybe a classmate told your teacher that you were being naughty when it was actually them! Getting in trouble for something you didn’t do is pretty awful – and that’s what The Last Wolf is all about!
Written by Rob Biddulph (with more than 100 brilliant illustrations), this book follows four friends – Jax, Jovie, Esau and Fourth. When a mischievous creature known as a werewolf gets up to some serious trouble in a place called Moonhaven, the four pals are accused of causing all the mayhem. Then they’re forced to run away, which sets off a chain of rumours, secrets and betrayals!
For the opportunity to win your own copy of The Last Wolf, answer the question below and email your full name, age, address and answer to kidsalive@salvationarmy.org.uk. Remember to put ‘The Last Wolf Competition’ in the subject box. Your entry needs to reach us by Friday 13 March when the winners will be chosen. You can also enter by filling in the details on the coupon below and posting it to: The Last Wolf Competition, Kids Alive! 1 Champion Park, London SE5 8FJ.
Rob Biddulph Rob Beckett
Name:
Address:
Robert Burns Who wrote The Last Wolf ?
VALENTINE’S DAY DOT-TO-DOT
Today (14 February) is Valentine’s Day, which means that it’s the perfect time to celebrate love! One of the best things about love is the way that it connects people from different walks of life. Because of the love that you feel, you might be best pals with your grandparents (even though they’re so much older than you) or have friends at school who have completely different interests. We’re all unique, but love brings us together. To celebrate Valentine’s Day, why not complete this dot-to-dot and then add a splash of colour? If you’d like to share your artwork with other readers, email your dot-to-dot to: kidsalive@salvationarmy.org.uk. Make sure you write ‘Valentine’s Day Dot-to-Dot’ in the subject box and give us your full name, age and address. Alternatively you can post your artwork to: Your Space, Kids Alive! 1 Champion Park, London SE5 8FJ. One last reminder, if you’re sending by post remember to fill in the details below so we know who you are. We send a gift to everyone whose colouring we publish, so don’t miss out!
Name: Age:
Address:
Postcode:
Living a healthy and active lifestyle, and caring for your physical, mental and spiritual well-being
Show the Love
If we asked you to put together a list of things you love, what would you write down? We reckon you’d probably start with people who are special to you, such as your parents or carers. Then you might scribble a few items that are precious to you, such as a well-loved teddy bear or a shiny bike.
After you’ve listed those things, you might start to write about what you love doing – eating delicious dinners, riding on roller coasters or annoying your siblings (well, maybe not that last one)!
However, there’s one thing you should love that we reckon most readers might forget to list – the planet we live on!
Our Wonderful World
It can be so easy to forget about how special Earth is, can’t it? This planet – covered in seas, deserts, forests and mountains –is the perfect home for us. However, we can think so little about it that we don’t care for it properly.
That’s why many people around the UK won’t just be celebrating Valentine’s Day today (14 February) – they’ll also be taking part in something called Show the Love! In other words, they’ll be trying to encourage people to not just show love to other humans in their lives, but also to show love to our world too!
Celebrating Earth
Show the Love takes place every year, and one of the ways that people around the UK take part is by making lots of green hearts out of paper. These green hearts remind others of how important it is to love our planet and protect the climate.
If you’re checking out this issue on 14 February, then as you’re reading this page, some people will be sending green hearts to their local politicians at the same time. This will be so that they can remind them that one of the best ways of looking after our community is by caring for our planet!
Planet Protectors
Why does our world need caring for? Well, the truth is that we’ve really damaged it. Earth is experiencing something called climate change, which means that it’s getting warmer and warmer.
This is happening because of something called pollution, which is caused by our cars, plastic, some of the ways we create electricity, cutting down too many trees and over-farming – that’s a long list! To put it simply, our world really needs us to show it some love!
Let’s Love
When someone wants to show love to another person, there are a few different ways that they might do this. Let’s look at how we can use these ways to help out our planet!
Supportive Words
If you want to show a friend that you love them, you might say lovely things about them to others. To be a climate champion, why not remind your friends and family about how brilliant our world is – and about how important it is that we protect it?
Spend Time
If you love someone, then you’ll want to spend time with them and care for them when they need help. The same is true for showing love to our planet. It’s great to spend time outside enjoying nature, and it’s also fantastic to spend time caring for it. Why not go litter picking with a group of friends or family, so that you can help to clean your community? For some fab litter-picking tips, check out bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zsmthcw.
Gifts
When you care for someone, you might show that by giving them a gift. Why not create a gift for a loved one to remind them of how important our world is? You could design, create and colour in your own green hearts. Then you could hand them out to people to teach them about why we should protect the planet! You could also send a green heart to your local MP, with the help of a parent or carer.
Show love to our planet this Valentine’s Day!
Cool Colourings
It might be midFebruary, but we had to show you this amazing Christmas tree design from Adam, aged 8. Great work, Adam!
Olivia
8.
Favourite colour? Light green.
Favourite food? Pineapple.
Favourite sport? Badminton.
Favourite bit of Kids Alive!? Doing quizzes.
Favourite Bible story and why?
The birth of Jesus, because it’s when your family and friends come together.
Favourite TV programme?
Strictly Come Dancing. What do you want to be when you’re older? Artist.
Pets? No.
Hobbies? Dancing, singing and cheerleading.
Tell us a joke. What is a sad strawberry called? A blueberry! What special skill or talent do you have? I can juggle.
Tell us something interesting about yourself. I have younger twin sisters.
Is there anything else you would like to tell us? I am a peer mentor at school.
You’re a really talented artist, Adam! This is spectacular! I hope you had a lovely Christmas!
G e t I n T o u c h !
The Kids Alive! team loves to hear from its readers. And guess what –other readers love reading your news! So why not get in touch? You can email or post your own colourings, drawings and letters. Or you could ask your Sunday school, church or corps leaders to email us or write to us with any news about the fun stuff you’ve been doing at your church or corps.
Email: kidsalive@salvationarmy.org.uk
Post: Kids Alive! 1 Champion Park, London SE5 8FJ
What a fantastic Fox Colouring, which was created by Grace, aged 6. We love the gold fur!
There’s so much love in this week’s colourings! Look how neatly Adrian, aged 12, has coloured this! It’s smashing!
Abigail, aged 7, sent us this beautiful Love Came Down Colouring to celebrate God’s great love for us!
Miley, aged 6, has also sent an awesome Love Came Down Colouring – look at that gold star!
Here’s another happy fox! This one was coloured by Melissa, aged 9. It’s fur-nomenal!
To see your name and birthday printed in a future issue of KA! email your full name and date of birth to kidsalive@salvationarmy.org.uk
19 February
Hannah McMillan – age 11
DON’T YOU JUST LOVE SHOPPING IN THE SALES, PATCH?
I’M NOT KEEN ON THEM, ROBOT. YOU GO IN AND I’LL WAIT OUTSIDE FOR YOU.
WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU DOING, ROBOT? PUT THAT SHOP ASSISTANT DOWN RIGHT NOW!
BUT THAT’S NOT FAIR, PATCH. THE POSTER INSIDE THE SHOP SAID…
