This Week in Faith 1-30-20
/Party to Watch the Super Bowl for Middle and High School Students- This Sunday night at 6PM, at church. Join us for lots of food, great commercials, a chance to win prizes, and oh, yeah…a football game.
Faith MMO Fun Run, 5K and 10K- Just a reminder that the annual racing event to support MMO and their scholarship program is coming up on February 8 at Oconee Veterans Park. You can register online HERE. I hope you can join us!
The Mix- This event for middle and high school students is coming up February 28-March 1 but registration is open now. It is a great weekend that your student will not want to miss. The price of registration goes up tomorrow so today is a great time to sign up your student or encourage a student they have invited to sign up. You can register online HERE.
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Your Kids Need You to Talk to Them
Mission Accomplished! In fact, I’m pretty sure my kids are tired of hearing me talk to them! :) But this article is a good reminder of some of how we fulfill the call God has given us as parents. We are to pass on Biblical wisdom and truth that points them to the hero of the Bible and their savior, Jesus. There are probably many times when it feels like they aren’t listening or you aren’t getting through. But “take heart” and “don’t grow weary”, God is at work in the hearts of your kids and he’s using you to help grow them up and root them in Jesus.
Click here to read the article by William P. Smith.
The Outsize Influence of Your Middle-School Friends
This is a little bit longer read but a fascinating look into the research of the middle school brain and the power of social relationships. After 20 years of working with middle schoolers, I have given up hope of ever fully understanding them! But this definitely gets to some of the things that most powerfully drive who they are becoming and what they are doing.
The research around peers is interesting. It made me think of an interview I saw one time with a high school girl. They were asking her, as a Christian, how she dealt with the pressure she faced from the students around her. Her answer was impressive, “I am the peer pressure!”
Click here to read the article by Lydia Denworth.
Why Social Media is Not Smart for Middle School Kids
This article gives some great insight into the development of our kids, especially at the middle school age, and what they might be ready for [or not]. Every family has to make their own decisions about technology use, cell phones, and social media but it is helpful to be informed about the research that is out there. In general, I think some of what she says in this article applies to decisions we make about our kids in areas outside of technology like dating, media consumption [movies, Netflix, music], and more. With kids in 9th, 7th, and 5th grade, I know the constant pressure that comes with those infamous words from our kids “but everybody else…”. We want our families to be different because of our faith in Jesus. Sometimes this means being counter-cultural, not just a little bit different from everybody else. This is why these decisions are important. They are not easy which is why we need to ask God for the wisdom, courage and humility to lead our kids well. And to encourage each other towards that end.
Click here to read the article by Victoria Dunckley.
PODCAST: In the Word, On the Go
I found this podcast recently and it looks really good, especially if you are looking for something to help your family spend time talking about the Scriptures. Each episode is 10 minutes or less and features a guest talking about 1 Bible verse. They end with a question to help your family continue the discussion. This could be great for in the car, around the dinner table, or wherever you have 10 minutes together.
