Last IGNITE of the year is tonight!

Hey Parents,

Tonight we'll wrap up our Christmas series "Unwrapping Christmas" - we'll have a competitive round of "Christmas Musical Chairs" and hit a little Bible study together with our small groups.  Here's where we are headed tonight:

Unwrapping Christmas - Rewrap
Plenty - it seems - is never really sufficient.  "Christmas" in the mind of most is synonymous with "getting."  We build an empire of expectations for this season, only to end up disappointed and left wanting something more, or already bulldozing ahead to next year.  There's something amiss here.  Christmas should be our call to trade consumption for generosity.  To trade the next best thing for one everlasting gift.  What if this year was the start of a new kind of Christmas?  A Christmas unlike any we have ever experienced, but more satisfying than we could have ever hoped for?

This will be our last IGNITE of the year....we'll be taking next Wednesday, December 28th off and we'll kick off 2012 with a Bowling BIGNITE on January 4th!

Also, a thought for all your parents out there on this Wednesday before Christmas:

Christmas and the G Word
Hi.  My name is Jeff, and I'm greedy.  (This is the point where you all say, "Hi Jeff.")

Gosh, I hate to say it.  I mean no one goes around and says they're greedy, right?  We might think other people are greedy (it's just so easy to spot the sins of others, even from a distance), but it's so difficult to see in ourselves.

But read this definition of greedy and tell me if at least a piece of it doesn't own you - or your kids.

Greed is an excessive desire to acquire or possess more than what one needs or deserves, especially with respect to material wealth.


What makes this time of year difficult for greedy people is that we're going to add to the pile of what we have that we arguably don't need.  There are things I want that I don't need.  And most of us are actually going to receive things that not only do we not need, but we do not want.  In the incredibly affluent culture of North America, the problem of greed runs deep.

There's a fine line you guys tread as parents in helping our kids celebrate Christmas.  I still remember the almost delirious excitement I had as a child in being able to open gifts at Christmas.  Let's face it, what kid doesn't love to get gifts at Christmas?

So how do you make sure, as a parent, that you don't inadvertently fuel greed in your family this Christmas?

I suppose there are a few options:

• Don't give presents.
• Hand out coal.
• Read from Deuteronomy and pretend its February.

But those are almost certain recipes to kill some of the joy that comes with Christmas.

In my experience, the very best antidote to greed I've discovered is generosity.  The more I give, the deeper I cut into that greed that lives inside of me.

The more I am willing to take giving to a sacrificial level (to the point where we are not doing things as a family because we are giving income away), the more I am reminded that this life is not about me or about my wants and desire.  By far, generous giving is the best antidote to the greed that lives inside of me.

As Christmas approaches, ask yourself this question: What am I doing to stem greed in my family this Christmas?  Maybe you could:

• Sponsor a family in need
• Serve in a local mission over the holidays
• Talk to your kids about how you as a family have decided to give first, save second, and live on the rest.
• Make sure giving is part of your full year - your weekly practice - rather than just a seasonal pursuit.
• Work with your kids to incorporate giving as part of their regular rhythm in 2012.

All I know is this: I'm greedy.  And the best way I know to tackle that in my life is to give away a noticeable portion of the things that God has given me.

What helps you wrestle down greed in your life and in your family?

Have a great Wednesday!

Heffe

Ignite Series "Unwrapping Christmas" kicks off tonight!

Christmas is predictable.  You know it and so do your kids.  We call it tradition, which can be a beautiful and familiar thing.  But this may be unsettling for some of us because the same old same old leaves us with little to look towards beyond the 25th of December.  As we reread the story of Jesus' birth in the book of Luke, we are also going to look at a brief history of the Roman Empire and just how radical Jesus' birth was for the Israelites at that time.  Christmas is an opportunity for more than just the routine we are used to.  It is a call to deal with the "Caesars" holding power over us, keeping us from finding true peace through fulfillment in Jesus.

Make sure your student is there tonight at 5:45!

Heffe

The Lesson of the Ringing Bell

Hey Parents,

I wanted to pass along this article to you today...pause for 5 minutes and give it a read...it'll be a good chance to refocus your mind today!!

The Lesson of the Ringing Bell by Amy Fenton Lee


I'll admit it.  I battled a cynical attitude for the ringing bell.  I would purposefully walk to a door on the far end of a store's entrance just to avoid the clanking kettle and eager face petitioning my contribution.  Internally, I wrestled both annoyance and guilt on seemingly every shopping trip through the holiday season.  About 3 years ago it dawned on me that I would have some explaining to do if I kept the same attitude and avoidance.  Nearing age 4, my son's social awareness and inquiries seemed endless.

Anticipating his potential questions on our weekly visit to the super store, I made the conscious decision to approach every bell ringer all season long with a smile and a donation.  Almost immediately my son was excitedly asking for money when we pulled into a parking lot where he saw a bell-ringer ahead.  Invariably the short exchange between the charity volunteer and my young son brought a smile to all three of us and spurred a follow-up teachable moment as my son pondered how his small offering may help someone in need.  I found myself more joyous during the holiday season and throughout the otherwise inconvenient and laborious shopping excursions.  It seemed ironic that these once annoying bell-ringers were now opportunities for happy moments for my son and me.

There is something contagious and counterintuitive during Christmas time.  It is the fiscal period we require the most financially to cover costs associated with gifts, expensive meals, and rising heat bill.  Yet it is also the season we naturally turn to remember those less fortunate.  What compels us to provide the food and presents for the family who otherwise would have little?  What draws us to the toy we purchase and place in the fire station's collection box?  For me the answer is clear after seeing my son's reaction to the bell-ringers.  Infused in our DNA is the desire for both grace and giving.  Any mother of a misbehaving child can attest to the innate and natural desire for grace.  And the same is true for giving.

It took a little explanation for my young son to develop an enthusiastic spirit to contribute when passing a bell-ringer.  Similarly, he took great pride and delight in selecting a toy not for himself, but for a child whose name was posted on the church angel tree.  Teaching my child to give wasn't like teaching him to like asparagus!  Indeed we are hard-wired to offer acts of goodwill and kindness.  Our spirits often respond to our virtuous deeds with natural feelings of warmth and pleasure.  This holiday season, may we all experience the joy in doing good!

Have a blessed Tuesday!
Heffe

Christmas Parade, Bridge Dinner and How to be Rich

Hey Parents,

Tomorrow night, Saturday December 10th, the Goodlettsville Parade will be taking place and this year our church has put a "float" in it!  We are asking our youth to come and ride on the back of it and to wave and smile their cheerful faces to the crowd!  We need your students to show up around 4:30 PM here at the FLC Gym and then we'll have some chili for them back at the church after the parade is over.  If you're free please let them come and join us!

On Sunday night, we are hosting our Bridge Dinner for over 150 of Nashville's homeless.  We need BOTH you and your students to come and help us out with this ministry.  We're asking all of our church family to show up around 5:15 PM Sunday night where we will give everyone their assignments for the night.  It will be a great night and we want you to be a part of it!

Lastly, December is here and we know what all of our students are thinking about...so read this for a Friday thought!!

How to Be Rich
With December here, we don't have to wonder what our kids are thinking about.  They're making their lists and checking them many more times than twice.  It might be a new toy car for a child or a first car for a teenager.  From Fisher-Price to Ford, there's something for everyone at every age during this season of giving.

As focused as our kids may be on what they're getting for Christmas, sometimes that makes it even more surprising how much they want to give.

The New York Post Office even has an Operation Santa division, where they watch for letters to Santa where kids describe someone in need.  Volunteers match donors to the kids' unselfish requests.  The postal service's Director of Elf Operations expects about two million such letters this Christmas, just in New York alone.

Children seem to be the first to notice the homeless man on the street of know about the family with the unemployed dad.  They're wired for generosity, and how we approach the holidays will help determine if they stay that way.

In each one of our lives, we have a tendency to move toward a lifestyle of generosity or a lifestyle of greed.  Are we wrapped up in ourselves or our things, or do we reflect God's character by giving freely to others.

Kids will see this most clearly when parents and leaders give them a specific opportunity to be generous.

For an example, let me tell you about a kid named Seth.  Seth had an unruly reputation in his 7th grade class.  He wouldn't pay attention and got into trouble for being disrespectful.  Then one Sunday, Seth heard in his small group at church about some kids about his age in another country.  The small group leader talked about those kids and what they needed just to survive.

For some reason, that got Seth's attention.

He decided he'd rake leaves and shovel ice to raise money so he could help his small group support one of the kids overseas.

This simple act of generosity led to a radical transformation in Seth's life.  His attention span changed, he participated in class, he had a new view of the world.

Seth became part of a better story.

When the apostle Paul was talking to young Timothy, he gave this simple instruction about how to be part of a better story: "Be rich in good deeds.  Be generous and willing to share" (1 Timothy 6:18).

In other words, you're not generous because you're rich.  You're rich because you're generous.

Kids will face the tension between generosity and greed all of their lives.  It will only intensify as they grow older.  First it's toys, then suddenly it's houses and bank accounts.  But we can teach them to measure success in a different way, not by what they get, but by what they give.

Hope to see you all Saturday or Sunday!
Jeff

BIGNITE is TONIGHT!

Hey Parents,

Tonight is BIGNITE and we'll be having a Christmas party at our house.  Students are welcome to start showing up at 5:45 and to stay as long as they want.  Pizza, snacks, drinks and goodies will all be provided so don't worry about sending anything.

All that your student needs to bring with them is a gift for our "Dirty Santa" game....each gift needs to be $10 or less and it can be new, used, or really old....students wrap it up in christmas paper, newspaper or a gift bag and that's it!

Also we're asking each student that can to bring $5 dollars with them to donate to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering....and we told them not to ask you for the money, but to sacrifice it themselves!!

Thanks for letting your students be a part of FBCG's youth ministry, and we hope to continue growing in numbers and in knowledge of God over the upcoming year!

In 2012 look for some parent get-togethers as we start to think deeper together about how to raise and guide our students to a stronger relationship with the Lord!

Thanks for all you do!
Jeff