Parents

How to Connect

As a Youth Ministry, we want to connect with parents as much as we do with students.  We send out weekly emails to parents and that's our #1 way of communicating with parents.  If you're not receiving weekly emails, please let us know.  You can email Kevin Davis at davisk@stlukesumc.com to make sure you're receiving the right emails.  In addition to keeping parents in the loop, we like to offer various opportunities for parents to be involved.  Here are some ways we're doing that...

FAMILY FELLOWSHIP NIGHT

The third Sunday of every month is Family Fellowship Night at St. Luke’s! Join other families of our church at 5PM for a pizza dinner, followed by “Mission Possible Kids” for elementary-aged children, and parenting study groups for adults (childcare will be provided for children aged kindergarten and under).  Students 6th-12th are invited to the Lodge from 6-7:30 - doors open at 5:30!  Come connect with other families and take time with other parents to reflect on the challenges and joys of parenthood.

VOLUNTEER LEADERSHIP

Many of our volunteers are parents!  We have parents who do a variety of things with us from joining on a retreat or activity, to leading a small group.  There are multiple ways parents can volunteer and we always encourage parents to volunteer where they can best use their time and strengths.

PARENT CUE

With both Jr. High and Sr. High, we offer a way for you to be as engaged as your child with what we're talking about here at St. Luke's.  These "cues" include helpful ways to keep the conversation going on at home and practical ways to support your child's spiritual development at home. 

Jr. High Parents

What do you get when you combine yellow and red?  Orange.  Ok - this isn't a pop quiz in primary colors.  This is a strategy our youth ministry is intentional about.  Yellow represents the light of the CHURCH while red represents the heart and passion of the HOME.  When you combine the two, you get ORANGE.  Two influences working on the same thing isn't as influential as two influences working on the same thing at the same time!  It's about teaching three things: wonder, discovery, and passion. 

WONDER
I’m amazed at the power and mystery of a heavenly Father who created everything, and who loves me and desires to be in a relationship with me forever.  Wonder can be defined in these three ways:

    #1: Design: What I see around me reveals a God I cannot see.
    #2: Identity: I am the child of a perfect Father with an unending love.
    #3: Connection: God is continually pursuing a relationship with me.

DISCOVERY
I have been offered forgiveness and redemption through Jesus, and His Spirit has the power to continually transform who I become.  
Discovery can be defined in these three ways:

    #1: Faith: I am invited not just to believe in Jesus, but to follow Him with my life.
    #2: Transformation: God’s Spirit is transforming my unique and imperfect life into the character of Christ.
    #3: Truth: My response to God’s Word shapes how I see God’s story of redemption at work in and around me.

PASSION
I am connected to a global community of believers whose mission is to demonstrate Christ’s work of redemption to everyone. Passion can be defined in these three ways:

    #1: Restoration: God designed me to participate with Him in restoring a broken world.
    #2: Compassion: My faith in Christ is marked by my compassion and care for others.
    #3: Community: I choose to live in the complexity of family and community because of the value God places on them.

You need a plan. You need a strategy. You need the tools. You need them to fit YOU. THAT’S WHERE XP3 COMES IN.

This curriculum centers around partnering with parents to maximize the impact we can make on students.  To learn more about what you can do, visit www.orangeparents.org.  A big part of the curriculum is a "parent cue."  The parent cue is a way for us to partner with you, the parent, as your child move along the journey of XP3.  Each week we'll study a topic and there'll be a way for parents to stay connected to what your child is learning about.  It will include discussion tips, ways to talk to your child about what they're learning. 

Sr. High Parents

Sunday night's LIVE! at the Lodge program is a big group style meeting with plenty of opportunities to meet other students, engage in activities based on your interests, and break down lessons and topics for everyday life application.   Breakout groups will be based on common interests and students can choose to go to whichever breakout group they want each week. Ideas for breakout groups include sport groups meeting in the gym that will play sports and engage in a short discussion of the message, a coffee and conversation group that will meet in the Cafe to discuss the message, and an art expression group that will focus on different ways to express their interpretation of the message and its meaning through artistic mediums. Suggestions for other interests and ideas are welcome!

Click here for the LIVE Parent Newsletter!

Suggested Reading

Parenting Beyond Your Capacity - R. Joiner and C. Nieuwhof  //  Engage your family in a bigger story, a story that involves more than just your family - one that involves other influences who are on a journey to discover why a relationship with God really matters.

Disconnected by Chap Clark  //  It is an obvious fact that parents and children see life differently. Parents and children often assume that the way they view and experience the world is the only way to see and experience the world.

To Own A Dragon by Donald Miller  //  A book for guys who grew up without Dads.

Body. Beauty. Boys. by Sarah Bragg  //  This book offers encouragement and advice, and guided journaling for girls who think they may have a body image problem.