Hey Parents,
What a long crazy couple of weeks we've had (at least for our Sumner Co. kids) but we finally have gotten the 2012-13 school year underway! Fall is fast approaching and summer will be in the rearview mirror before we know it....what a perfect time to make sure that your student is getting off to a good semester both academically but also spiritually!! And we want to help with that @FBCG....so please make it a priority to send your students on Wednesday and Sundays!! The last 2 Wednesday nights we've averaged 37 students (Awesome!!) but we are still missing many familiar faces (both old and new) so send your students to be a part of what God's doing in our ministry!!
A few things for ya:
1. INTERSECT concludes tomorrow night at IGNITE. Hopefully if your students have been with us the last 2 weeks they have gotten the idea that God chose to intersect with the world. And hopefully they understand that because of Jesus' death and resurrection, we have become the temple of God. But the question that always shows up now is, "Now what?" And the answer lies within each of us. Because, through God's choice to dwell inside of us, we are now partners with God in bringing heaven to earth. We are the way that God has chosen to show Himself to the world. So when we are frustrated, angry or hurt - or when we are broken-hearted for someone else who is - we can pray with the confidence that God is working to make things right. And we can live in the wonder of a God that wants to use us to make that future hope a present reality! We'll be talking with students about the idea of what praying "Heaven come now..." means for them...gonna be a good night as we'll have some music, we'll play "Slide Your Buns" and do some Bible study...doors to The Attic open @ 5:45!
2. Sunday nights students can be a part of our Generation Change study where we examine the principles surrounding money from a Biblical view. This curriculum put out by Dave Ramsey can be an excellent resource in giving your students some very valuable principles that will come to serve them throughout life! Kathy Decker is leading this time in The Attic from 6-7 so we'd love to see your students!
3. Next Wednesday night, August 29th, we'll be having a "Crash Time" at Moss-Wright Park...we'll toss some frisbee, play some volleyball and just crash for an hour....students can and should meet at Moss-Wright volleyball court at 5:45 and can be picked up from the park at 7:15. Students are welcome to bring a sack dinner with them.
4. On Wednesday night, September 5th we will be having our BIGNITE:OMC. This is going to be a wild and crazy night for our students. We will provide food and music for them and then we'll play a school vs. school round of OMC which stands for Organized Mass Chaos. It's gonna be crazy messy so students might want to bring an extra set of clothes or some trash bags for the ride home!
To close out a few thoughts for you guys as parents:
As parents, you guys set the stage for the way our families view and interact with the world. And this is especially true for our kids. How we spend our money, our time, our resources - our lives - sends a clear signal to our families about what is most important to us. Throughout our Intersect series your students have been learning about their role as co-laborers with God. And what this means is that your student has an important role to play in God's story. Just as they are. As young as they are. As silly as they are. As creative as they are. They are the exact person God wants to use to effect change in this world. And your ability and willingness to support them can give wings to their God-given desire to reach out and make a difference.
So, take a moment to dig deep and reflect on how you can support your son or daughter's role as a co-laborer with God as you answer these questions:
1. Where have you seen your student get fired up to serve or to impact change in their world? Maybe it's been through a service opportunity with their youth group or a passion that was fueled after seeing a film about the needs of people half way around the world. Think about the thing that breaks your student's heart or gets them excited. Then, think about the gifts that you have seen expressed in their lives since they were little. How can these passions and gifts come together to make a change? Take some time this week to tell your student where and how you them putting together their passions and gifts to make a difference in their world.
2. How can you encourage that desire and create opportunities through your community, work relationships, church relationships, etc..? After you have talked about the issues your student is passionate about and the gifts they possess, brainstorm some resources that you have as a family. Maybe there are people you know that are directly involved with a particular cause. Or, maybe you have the skills to navigate the internet and make calls to get the ball rolling for your student. Think through ways you can support your student's involvement in God's story of reconciliation. It may even be as simple as praying with them over the things that are close to their heart - whether it's a global issue or a close friend who they are concerned about.
The bottom line is that when your student feels encouraged and supported by you in both word and deed, they will be able to take the amazing ideas and gifts that God has placed in them and do amazing things. And you will get to share in the joy of watching them bring God's heavenly kingdom to Earth
Have a great week!
Jeff
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
FBCG This Week: School's Still Out for Sumner!
Hey Parents,
That blog title is a lot more fun when you sing it to the Alice Cooper tune, but yes, school is somehow still out for Sumner schools. I know your students (and you guys too) are itching to get back out of the house, out of the "boredom" of no school so that 3 weeks from now they can talk about how much they hate school and are ready to be out again....it's a vicious cycle!
In other news, here's what's going on @FBCG this week:
1) Tomorrow night is our second session of our Intersect series...more about that in a minute...but the short version is we are going to talk about when something starts as a good idea but ends up being less than that. Send your students to The Attic @ 5:45 for some good stuff.
2) Sunday mornings our Sunday School classes kick off at 9:30 so we hope to see your students there!
3) This Sunday night, we will be starting our Sunday night Bible studies back up and we're going to be going through a series called "Generation Change" from Dave Ramsey. We'll be talking about money and money principles from a Biblical standpoint and hopefully helping to build a solid foundation for your students and their finances moving forward. This series will be taught by myself and Kathy Decker and it'll be up in The Attic from 6 -7.
4) Wednesday September 5th will be BIGNITE and we'll be getting messy playing some OMC as schools...in other words...send your kids and their friends for some good food and make sure they bring a change of clothes cause they're gonna need it! More info coming!
Now back to our Intersect series.....Tomorrow night your student is going to walk through the New Testament to get a better understanding of the temple (we walked through a bit of the Old Testament last week). But not just the temple as the building where God chose to meet with His people; they will also be studying and journeying through the idea of the ways that God chooses to intersect with His people - to intersect with us - and the purpose He is serving through that intersection: to bring the kingdom of heaven to Earth through us. We're going to be challenging them to think about their own role in bringing the particular elements of God's kingdom - peace, justice, mercy - to the world around them. And in doing this, we also recognize the major role that you, as their parent, play in this.
So, in order to move into a deeper understanding of your role as an encourager of your student's desire to be a partner with God in communicating God's kingdom here on Earth, we are going to take a quick look a roundtable discussion conducted by the Fuller Youth Institute...check this out:
I was midway through my Wednesday night youth group clean up routine. Working with a team of student leaders and adult volunteers, we were stowing away our sound system, stacking up chairs, and scooping up the candy wrappers and smashed paper cups that littered our youth room floor.
But then came a not-so-routine conversation, one that forever altered the way I involved parents in justice and service. Two mothers walked up to me, both of whom were concerned about their 14-year old sons.
The mother who reached me first shared her anxiety: "Ever since the series that you taught on missions, my son keeps saying he wants to go to Guatemala on a short-term missions trip this summer. I lay awake at night, worried that something bad will happen to him. He's only 14 and I'm afraid that he'll get hurt."
The second mother, having overheard the first mom, sighed and shared one of the more convicting statements I've ever heard one parent share with another. "I wish that was my problem. My son doesn't want anything to do with church or God anymore, and I think his friends are into drugs. I'd give anything to have a son who wants to serve the Lord in Guatemala this summer."
Was the first mother wrong to be concerned about her son's safety? Of course not, but seeking to right wrongs through acts of justice and service are always risky on some level. Perhaps the deeper issue was her hesitation about justice work in the first place. God was inviting her son to participate in the kingdom through acts of justice, but allowing her son to RSVP to that invitation felt way too uncomfortable.
As youth workers, the justice invitation we extend doesn't stop at the in-box of the 14-year old. Like pretty much everything else we do in youth ministry, our impact on both the 14-year-old and our planet will be magnified when we do the hard work of adding parents' names to our invitation list.
Look, here's why parents matter. In 2006, MTV conducted a nationwide survey in order to understand how and why youth in America are already active in social causes. Here's what that study found:
In the midst of these findings, one theme emerges: Justice needs to hit kids close to home. It needs to hit close to home thematically as we help students understand how particular injustices relate to their lives. But it also needs to hit home literally as we invite parents both to exemplify and to encourage their own kids to right wrongs around them.
Have a great Tuesday and we hope to see your students tomorrow night....also remember by text box, email box and office door is always open if you guys ever want to chat about your students or whatever you want!
Jeff
That blog title is a lot more fun when you sing it to the Alice Cooper tune, but yes, school is somehow still out for Sumner schools. I know your students (and you guys too) are itching to get back out of the house, out of the "boredom" of no school so that 3 weeks from now they can talk about how much they hate school and are ready to be out again....it's a vicious cycle!
In other news, here's what's going on @FBCG this week:
1) Tomorrow night is our second session of our Intersect series...more about that in a minute...but the short version is we are going to talk about when something starts as a good idea but ends up being less than that. Send your students to The Attic @ 5:45 for some good stuff.
2) Sunday mornings our Sunday School classes kick off at 9:30 so we hope to see your students there!
3) This Sunday night, we will be starting our Sunday night Bible studies back up and we're going to be going through a series called "Generation Change" from Dave Ramsey. We'll be talking about money and money principles from a Biblical standpoint and hopefully helping to build a solid foundation for your students and their finances moving forward. This series will be taught by myself and Kathy Decker and it'll be up in The Attic from 6 -7.
4) Wednesday September 5th will be BIGNITE and we'll be getting messy playing some OMC as schools...in other words...send your kids and their friends for some good food and make sure they bring a change of clothes cause they're gonna need it! More info coming!
Now back to our Intersect series.....Tomorrow night your student is going to walk through the New Testament to get a better understanding of the temple (we walked through a bit of the Old Testament last week). But not just the temple as the building where God chose to meet with His people; they will also be studying and journeying through the idea of the ways that God chooses to intersect with His people - to intersect with us - and the purpose He is serving through that intersection: to bring the kingdom of heaven to Earth through us. We're going to be challenging them to think about their own role in bringing the particular elements of God's kingdom - peace, justice, mercy - to the world around them. And in doing this, we also recognize the major role that you, as their parent, play in this.
So, in order to move into a deeper understanding of your role as an encourager of your student's desire to be a partner with God in communicating God's kingdom here on Earth, we are going to take a quick look a roundtable discussion conducted by the Fuller Youth Institute...check this out:
I was midway through my Wednesday night youth group clean up routine. Working with a team of student leaders and adult volunteers, we were stowing away our sound system, stacking up chairs, and scooping up the candy wrappers and smashed paper cups that littered our youth room floor.
But then came a not-so-routine conversation, one that forever altered the way I involved parents in justice and service. Two mothers walked up to me, both of whom were concerned about their 14-year old sons.
The mother who reached me first shared her anxiety: "Ever since the series that you taught on missions, my son keeps saying he wants to go to Guatemala on a short-term missions trip this summer. I lay awake at night, worried that something bad will happen to him. He's only 14 and I'm afraid that he'll get hurt."
The second mother, having overheard the first mom, sighed and shared one of the more convicting statements I've ever heard one parent share with another. "I wish that was my problem. My son doesn't want anything to do with church or God anymore, and I think his friends are into drugs. I'd give anything to have a son who wants to serve the Lord in Guatemala this summer."
Was the first mother wrong to be concerned about her son's safety? Of course not, but seeking to right wrongs through acts of justice and service are always risky on some level. Perhaps the deeper issue was her hesitation about justice work in the first place. God was inviting her son to participate in the kingdom through acts of justice, but allowing her son to RSVP to that invitation felt way too uncomfortable.
As youth workers, the justice invitation we extend doesn't stop at the in-box of the 14-year old. Like pretty much everything else we do in youth ministry, our impact on both the 14-year-old and our planet will be magnified when we do the hard work of adding parents' names to our invitation list.
Look, here's why parents matter. In 2006, MTV conducted a nationwide survey in order to understand how and why youth in America are already active in social causes. Here's what that study found:
- Of the kids they surveyed, 70% say it's important to help others in need. Only 19% are "very involved" in doing so.
- 62% say the issues that matter most to them are those that have touched them or someone they know.
- 70% of kids involved in activism report that their parents' encouragement played a major factor in their choice to get involved.
In the midst of these findings, one theme emerges: Justice needs to hit kids close to home. It needs to hit close to home thematically as we help students understand how particular injustices relate to their lives. But it also needs to hit home literally as we invite parents both to exemplify and to encourage their own kids to right wrongs around them.
Have a great Tuesday and we hope to see your students tomorrow night....also remember by text box, email box and office door is always open if you guys ever want to chat about your students or whatever you want!
Jeff
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
This Week @ FBCG: INTERSECT
Hey Parents,
Well it was supposed to be the start of school this week for most of our students, but looks like you get them for a few more days at least!! Need to get them out of your hair for a few hours??? Then make sure they come to IGNITE tomorrow night!!
We are starting a new series tomorrow night called Intersect. The wonder of God is all around us. But sometimes we're too overloaded with answers to see the beautiful mystery behind all our questions. For the ancient Hebrews, the wonder of God was present in their very history - in the God-stories they passed from generation to generation. And when the God of those amazing stories chose to dwell within the temple - when He chose to reveal Himself to His people - that wonder was accessible to them 24/7. But God didn't stop there. He sent His son so that the temple, the place where He chose to dwell, could move from a place to a person. Because of Jesus, we have become the temple. Because of what Jesus did, we are the tangible representation of God to the world. We are now the place - we are the way - that God chooses to intersect with the world.
We're gonna have a great time of beginning to explore that truth this week...we'll have the worship band, some videos and some small group discussion time...and also a new look to the stage for this series so come check it out....doors open to The Attic at 5:45 PM
Also, just a reminder that all of our new 6th graders are welcome to come and start their time with the youth tomorrow night as well....goodbye .kids and hello IGNITE!
A few other bits of info for you...
1. This Sunday morning, all 6th graders will be moved up into our youth Sunday School department....we've made a few changes in our staff and I want to let you know about those, so here's our roster of teachers for this year:
Middle School Group Time : Josh and Lydia McMillan
6th-8th Guys - Marty Meadows and Mark Klassen
6th-8th Girls - Michelle Carpenter and Lesia Brown
High School Group Time: Jeff Rush and Jeff Kelly
9th Guys - Andrew York and Mike Allen
10th-12th Guys - David Carpenter and Jeff Rush
9th-10th Girls - Jackie Norman and Melissa Meadows
11th-12th Girls - Crystal Kelly and Janet Bowman
Our Sunday School Coordinator will be Lisa Brooks.
Our classes get going right at 9:30 so try to get their on time!
2. Sunday night, August 19th we will be starting a new series called Generation Change from Dave Ramsey. This is a curriculum aimed at helping your students begin to understand that money doesn't grow on trees in the backyard and it approaches the subject of money from a Biblical standpoint. Kathy Decker and Jeff Kelly will be leading our students through this series and we encourage you to send your students to help them get a jump start on dealing with their personal finances!! We'll be meeting in The Attic on Sunday nights @ 6 PM
3. BIGNITE for September 5th is going to be an OMC night...OMC stands for "Organized Mass Chaos" and it is a 22 minute, messy, crazy, all around good time. We are going allow the students to compete as school groups, so we are encouraging our students and you as parents to get out and invite some friends and families to come and watch the madness that is OMC....more info to follow!
Hope everyone has a great week and as always please text, call, Facebook, or tweet me if you have any questions about anything going on!!
Jeff
Well it was supposed to be the start of school this week for most of our students, but looks like you get them for a few more days at least!! Need to get them out of your hair for a few hours??? Then make sure they come to IGNITE tomorrow night!!
We are starting a new series tomorrow night called Intersect. The wonder of God is all around us. But sometimes we're too overloaded with answers to see the beautiful mystery behind all our questions. For the ancient Hebrews, the wonder of God was present in their very history - in the God-stories they passed from generation to generation. And when the God of those amazing stories chose to dwell within the temple - when He chose to reveal Himself to His people - that wonder was accessible to them 24/7. But God didn't stop there. He sent His son so that the temple, the place where He chose to dwell, could move from a place to a person. Because of Jesus, we have become the temple. Because of what Jesus did, we are the tangible representation of God to the world. We are now the place - we are the way - that God chooses to intersect with the world.
We're gonna have a great time of beginning to explore that truth this week...we'll have the worship band, some videos and some small group discussion time...and also a new look to the stage for this series so come check it out....doors open to The Attic at 5:45 PM
Also, just a reminder that all of our new 6th graders are welcome to come and start their time with the youth tomorrow night as well....goodbye .kids and hello IGNITE!
A few other bits of info for you...
1. This Sunday morning, all 6th graders will be moved up into our youth Sunday School department....we've made a few changes in our staff and I want to let you know about those, so here's our roster of teachers for this year:
Middle School Group Time : Josh and Lydia McMillan
6th-8th Guys - Marty Meadows and Mark Klassen
6th-8th Girls - Michelle Carpenter and Lesia Brown
High School Group Time: Jeff Rush and Jeff Kelly
9th Guys - Andrew York and Mike Allen
10th-12th Guys - David Carpenter and Jeff Rush
9th-10th Girls - Jackie Norman and Melissa Meadows
11th-12th Girls - Crystal Kelly and Janet Bowman
Our Sunday School Coordinator will be Lisa Brooks.
Our classes get going right at 9:30 so try to get their on time!
2. Sunday night, August 19th we will be starting a new series called Generation Change from Dave Ramsey. This is a curriculum aimed at helping your students begin to understand that money doesn't grow on trees in the backyard and it approaches the subject of money from a Biblical standpoint. Kathy Decker and Jeff Kelly will be leading our students through this series and we encourage you to send your students to help them get a jump start on dealing with their personal finances!! We'll be meeting in The Attic on Sunday nights @ 6 PM
3. BIGNITE for September 5th is going to be an OMC night...OMC stands for "Organized Mass Chaos" and it is a 22 minute, messy, crazy, all around good time. We are going allow the students to compete as school groups, so we are encouraging our students and you as parents to get out and invite some friends and families to come and watch the madness that is OMC....more info to follow!
Hope everyone has a great week and as always please text, call, Facebook, or tweet me if you have any questions about anything going on!!
Jeff
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
BIGNITE is TONIGHT
Parents,
August is here and so is BIGNITE....tonight we'll be having a Crazy Costume Skate Party at Rivergate Skate Center. Students are welcome and encouraged to dress as crazy as they want to and to come out for a fun night of fellowship! We'll be leaving the church at 5:45 and returning about 8:10. The cost is $5 plus extra money for snacks from the snack bar if they want them. Hope to see your students there!
Here's a parenting thought for you guys...have a great afternoon!
A House Divided
It used to frustrate me as a kid.
I would ask my parents if I could stay up later than my bedtime to watch TV or to play Nintendo or to talk on the phone (back when people used phones for that...). If I didn't get a "No," I would usually get "I have to check with your dad."
Having a devious kind of mind, I would go to my dad before mom could get to him hoping to find a chink in the armor. As soon as I asked the question, my dad would respond with, "What did your mom say?"
It was always with some resignation in my voice that I'd say, "that I have to ask you..." my voice trailing off at the end.
Sometimes, I would flip between my parents as the "messenger" three or four times to try to get an answer and would only hear, "It depends on what your mom/dad thinks." By the end of it, I was so tired I either wanted to go to bed or couldn't remember what I was asking about in the first place.
While that's a bit frustrating for you when you're 8 years old, my parents had a great strategy going: stay united. They realized that kids can spot division a mile away and enjoy driving trucks through whatever division they find.
What I've discovered through conversations with parents is that it's incredibly difficult work to stay on the same page as your spouse sometimes. Even though it's difficult, being on the same page as parents is so incredibly important.
So how does division between spouses happen? While there are more than a few causes, here are three practices that can lead you and your spouse off the same page:
Different approaches to parenting between parents: Chances are one of you is "strict" and the other more permissive. Believe it or not, your kids can sense that, and they'll use it to their advantage. Your different approaches to parenting get revealed over time and in specific situations. You might have started parenting thinking you had identical approaches. Only over time and testing do you realize you are worlds apart.
Snap Decisions: Your kids always want an answer now. Ever notice they rarely ask when your spouse is in the room? Because they see their need as urgent, you think you need to respond in an instant. Only later when you connect with your spouse do you learn how upset they are at the decision you made.
A focus on the short term: Every time your child or teen make a request, they are only thinking about the moment. As a parent, it's tempting for you to answer in the moment. If you want to foster an inconsistent approach to parenting and escalate conflict between you and your spouse, only focus on the short-term implications of every request you get. While the division between you and your spouse might not be that wide to start out with, a great way to ensure a giant chasm erupts is to only focus on the short-term implications of every request that comes your way. After a few years of this, you will be increasingly dissatisfied with where your family is heading and be increasingly resentful of your spouse.
What other practices have you noticed that get you and your spouse off the same parenting page?
Have a great week,
Jeff
August is here and so is BIGNITE....tonight we'll be having a Crazy Costume Skate Party at Rivergate Skate Center. Students are welcome and encouraged to dress as crazy as they want to and to come out for a fun night of fellowship! We'll be leaving the church at 5:45 and returning about 8:10. The cost is $5 plus extra money for snacks from the snack bar if they want them. Hope to see your students there!
Here's a parenting thought for you guys...have a great afternoon!
A House Divided
It used to frustrate me as a kid.
I would ask my parents if I could stay up later than my bedtime to watch TV or to play Nintendo or to talk on the phone (back when people used phones for that...). If I didn't get a "No," I would usually get "I have to check with your dad."
Having a devious kind of mind, I would go to my dad before mom could get to him hoping to find a chink in the armor. As soon as I asked the question, my dad would respond with, "What did your mom say?"
It was always with some resignation in my voice that I'd say, "that I have to ask you..." my voice trailing off at the end.
Sometimes, I would flip between my parents as the "messenger" three or four times to try to get an answer and would only hear, "It depends on what your mom/dad thinks." By the end of it, I was so tired I either wanted to go to bed or couldn't remember what I was asking about in the first place.
While that's a bit frustrating for you when you're 8 years old, my parents had a great strategy going: stay united. They realized that kids can spot division a mile away and enjoy driving trucks through whatever division they find.
What I've discovered through conversations with parents is that it's incredibly difficult work to stay on the same page as your spouse sometimes. Even though it's difficult, being on the same page as parents is so incredibly important.
So how does division between spouses happen? While there are more than a few causes, here are three practices that can lead you and your spouse off the same page:
Different approaches to parenting between parents: Chances are one of you is "strict" and the other more permissive. Believe it or not, your kids can sense that, and they'll use it to their advantage. Your different approaches to parenting get revealed over time and in specific situations. You might have started parenting thinking you had identical approaches. Only over time and testing do you realize you are worlds apart.
Snap Decisions: Your kids always want an answer now. Ever notice they rarely ask when your spouse is in the room? Because they see their need as urgent, you think you need to respond in an instant. Only later when you connect with your spouse do you learn how upset they are at the decision you made.
A focus on the short term: Every time your child or teen make a request, they are only thinking about the moment. As a parent, it's tempting for you to answer in the moment. If you want to foster an inconsistent approach to parenting and escalate conflict between you and your spouse, only focus on the short-term implications of every request you get. While the division between you and your spouse might not be that wide to start out with, a great way to ensure a giant chasm erupts is to only focus on the short-term implications of every request that comes your way. After a few years of this, you will be increasingly dissatisfied with where your family is heading and be increasingly resentful of your spouse.
What other practices have you noticed that get you and your spouse off the same parenting page?
Have a great week,
Jeff
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