Hey Parents,
What a great week we had last week during VBS and G-Fuge. Our students worked their tails off and had a great time while doing it! I've already received numerous comments from VBS teachers and those we helped out during G-Fuge who had expressed great thanks at the hard work of the students so I couldn't be prouder of them! Each day we had a solid crew of over 30 students who we sent out into the community to show the love of Christ!
Not only was it a week where our students put in a lot of hard work, but it was also a week where God really spoke into their lives through our times of worship each night. My good friend, Cesar Correa led us through the book of Jonah and our students were challenged by what they heard. I'm praying that this week will be one that we can remember back to as a "mile-marker" week in the spiritual lives of our students.
If your students are anything like me, after last week (and certainly after the Lock-Out) they have been in need of some rest and downtime this week and so we don't have much going on at church this week to allow time for some recovery!
However, there are a few bits of info for you to know:
1. IGNITE is TONIGHT! We'll meet in The Attic @ 5:45 to continue our look at the story of Job. We'll also play some "Poop Deck" so send your students for some good fellowship and most importantly some good time looking into God's Word!
2. This Saturday evening we will be hosting the Goodlettsville Community Help Center dinner here at the church and we will be in need of some youth who would be willing to help us out...I will give them more details tonight @ IGNITE and I will also email you as parents as I receive more info in the next day or two.
3. As Centrifuge approaches, you will be receiving some paperwork in the next week with all the info you'll need about summer camp. We ask that you guys would be diligent in helping to settle your balances BEFORE camp if at all possible...that helps us out tremendously in projecting all other costs for the rest of the trip. If you have any questions please let me know.
That's it for this week! Here'a something for you to think on this week!
Entitled Parents
It's one thing to work on helping your kids fight an attitude of entitlement like we talked about earlier this week, but let's face it, to some extent, they learned the behavior from us.
If that's true, what can you dod to fight entitlement in your own life? The more you live out the values you want to see in your kids, the better chance your kids have of living that out too.
It's so critical we combat entitlement in ourselves and our kids because entitlement kills our ability to experience two critical things in life: gratitude and joy. None of us would sign up our kids to live their lives without gratitude or joy, yet it's surprising how many adults live without either. Entitlement does that.
First, entitled people are never grateful people. If you believe you have something coming to you, it's hard to receive it as a gift, a bonus, an unexpected benefit or even a surprise. In your mind, someone owes it to you. It had better be good. In fact, you might believe more should have been done for you. How can you ever be grateful as a result?
Second, entitled people experience very little joy. Because gratitude is absent, so is delight. It's so very hard to find pleasure in what you have because you had it coming to you, it's yours, and you live in a quiet fear of losing it. Entitled people fight so hard to get what they want that they can't imagine life without it. That fear alone robs them of any joy.
So what do you do? Here are 3 things that have helped me fight entitlement when I feel it creeping in:
1. Decide that no one owes you anything. No one owes you a job. No one owes you love or respect. No one owes you kindness. In fact, God doesn't owe you anything (that's actually quite sound biblically, you know). Instead, start to see everything that comes to you as a gift. You will cherish and value your job, your family, your possessions and even your relationship with God much more deeply. I promise!
2. Be generous. Entitled people don't share well. In fact, they hoard. They hoard credit (but aren't afraid to assign blame), they hang onto possessions, are stingy givers and have a "fixed pie" mindset. Giving money away and sharing the things you have can help break the back of greed and the idea that you deserve everything that's come your way.
3. Hold what you have loosely. I regularly remind myself that all the work I do, the relationships I have, and the possessions I have are a privilege and a trust given to me by God and other people around me. I am fortunate to be able to do what I do and have what I have. And if they are taken away, that is fine, because I will have what matters most: a deep relationship with God and the people closest to me. Holding things loosely reminds me that they are on loan, and not entirely deserved.
Theses 3 things help me combat entitlement in my own heart.
I hope that as I have kids, they will see me battle entitlement in my life and that it will help them battle it in theirs. How about you?
Have a great week!
Jeff
