Camp Grace Big Group Presentation

While normally our Big Group time involves levity mixed with Biblical truths, this weekend we had a more serious presentation.  In an effort to come alongside you as you lead your children, we wanted you to see the slideshow that was presented.  For this blog, we put the slide show in a movie format, but here's what we explained about each slide:

1. Title: Jesus Is Our Sacrifice. We studied through Leviticus and the Old Testament system for sacrifice.
2. Preview: The Old Testament feasts, sacrifices, etc., were previews of something better to come.
3. Sin separates us from God.
4. Animal sacrifices were required to pay the price for sin in the Old Testament times.
5. Jesus died on the cross for our sins.
6. Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice, fulfilling the Old Testament requirement.
7. Priests were a bridge to God. Aaron and his descendants talked to God for the people.
8. Jesus is our bridge to God. Like animal sacrifices, priests were a preview of Jesus.
9. Jesus connects us to God. He's all we need to get near to God.
10. List of the major festivals in Old Testament. Each festival pointed to Jesus.
11. Jesus. Everything in the Old Testament is intended to point to Jesus.
    

If you have any questions about this presentation, email Joey Espinosa. 

The Holy Spirit Unites Believers Together in Christ

Not only does the Holy Spirit work in the hearts of individuals, He “also works to unite all saved people together within a beautiful and joy-filled family, a body of Christ’s own people” (“Big Truths for Young Hearts,” pp. 161).  But this unity is not an end to itself; rather, there should be an outward manifestations that flow from this inward reality.  This can be seen in a simple cause-effect relationship, as seen on pages 162-164 of this book. 

• Cause #1:  Believers are brothers and sisters of one heavenly Father (Romans 8:14-17; Galatians 3:26)
• Cause #2:  Believers are parts of the same body of Christ (I Corinthians 12:13)
• Therefore:  Believers should seek God’s grace to truly love one another (I Corinthians 12:4-26)

That is, the fact that we Christ-followers are Spirit-led should be obvious in how we are loving each other.  We are called to use the gifts He has given us to advance His kingdom and to bless others. 

How has the Spirit led you to be united with and bless other Christ-followers?

Scared Straight Marriage Speech

'If you have kids, don’t ever say that you “have to babysit them” while your spouse goes out. You don’t babysit your own kids. You watch them. Huge difference.'

Want more marriage advice?  Read the full article here.  If you don't want to click through now, here's my favorite: 

'If your wife or husband has a job that doesn’t allow them to go out to lunch, don’t describe the delicious lunch meeting you had in exquisite detail when you get home. “The Ahi Tuna was almost too fresh, you know? I’ve just never seen it that perfect. It was kind of intimidating it was so delicious. But enough about me, how was your peanut butter & jelly sandwich? How’s chunky peanut butter working out for you?”'

 -- Joey Espinosa

Coats for Kids - Continued

We had a great start to our collection in our preschool programming.  (Click here for a description of what we're doing.)  This coming weekend (February 6-7) will be the last weekend that we will be collecting money, and then a volunteer will purchase the coats for Pendleton Place, and emergency children's shelter.  Please make sure that your preschool-age child brings $1 to his or her small group.  If we all do a little, we can have a big impact.

Future Men Video -- Respect for Authority

Here's another video answer, this time to a question we've received last fall as a part of our Future Men equipping event.  "What's the best way to get a young boy to respect authority in general, and not just his parents?"  You can watch this videoed response from Bill White, and some related videos, on the playlist below.  If you have any other parenting questions, please let us know. 

What is Our Well-Child Policy?

With lots of illnesses going around, we want to remind our parents of our wellness guidelines for the young children in our weekend programming.  If your child has any of the following symptoms, please do not bring him or her to his small group:

• Fever (child must be fever-free for 24 hours)
• Vomitting or diarrhea
• Runny nose with green or yellow mucous
• Skin rash of any kind (particularly in the nursery)

We want to create a safe and secure environment, both to protect the children's well-being and to allow their parents to rest assured. But we also need to balance that with not wanting to create a culture of fear (a group of children's ministers once created a list of 80 safety procedures!). Kids do get sick and hurt, and with 700-800 children every weekend, we know that there will always be germs around. We need to take appropriate precautions, but we need to trust God with (and not fear) what we cannot control.

To see our full safety plan, see our website.  And let us know if you have any questions.

Dealing with a Lack of Male Leadership?

Bill White addresses this issue to moms who are concerned about a lack of male leadership for their sons.  This can apply for situations where the father is emotionally-disconnected or ill-equipped, or where the father is physically-absent from the home. 

First, he cautions that we need to clearly understand what "spiritual leadership" actually is, which may involve moving away from some common viewpoints of this.  Second, moms in this situation need to not fear the lack of male leadership, but to trust in God. In humility, we need to live in repentant faith in our loving God, and not in proud unbelief.

What does a mom do, if she is parenting alone in the home?

1. She still needs to teach and encourage his son to be a man.
2. She needs to be connected to the local church.  Don't just attend, but be serve and be a contributor. 
3. She needs to respect her husband. 

Watch the video on our YouTube channel.