Northwood Parents

Mrs. F is being considered for membership by the Martha Stewart Admiration Society!  She has cleaned the clubhouse from top to bottom — not a spot of dirt anywhere.  Representatives from the Admiration Society are coming to talk with Mrs F about membership!  It all sounds good … until Agnes and Sam get involved.  Agnes destroys the place during a scavenger hunt!  It’s a wreck and now they have to face the consequences!  Will Mrs. F stay mad forever?  Agnes comes up with a plan..find out what happens tonight!

We want kids to understand that God offers us forgiveness.  We’re talking about Peter during the Good Book Look tonight.  Peter denied Jesus before He was crucified, yet Peter was the very one that God used in Acts 2 to lead over 3,000 people to Christ.  When we mess up, God still offers us joy.  We all mess up!  God understands that we’re going to mess up and wants to forgive us!  On the ride home, talk to your child about the mistakes we make (lying, cheating on a test, fighting with our brothers and sisters, disobeying our parents).  Help your child understand that God forgives us and loves us in spite of our mistakes. If God can restore Peter, he can definitely restore us.

For those of you that have not enrolled your child in a LIFE Class on Sunday nights, you might want to think about the Heart of Worship class.  Kids are learning what it means to worship and why it’s important for us to worship.

I believe worship is what we are created to do.  I believe that, if children can learn about worship at an early age, it will make a difference in their lives!  When kids worship, they are doing the very thing that God created them to do.  There is nothing more special than a child truly worshipping his Creator!

“I can’t find my shoes!”  Ever hear that right before you walk out the door on Sunday?  I think all parents have!  Not being able to find shoes leads to a late start to church, and an argument on the way…I thought it would be good for you, as a parent, for me to share some ideas I have for preparing your family for worship here at Northwood on Sunday mornings!

~ Make sure your child attends Bible Fellowship at 8:45.  We worship with your child in every age group here at Northwood on Sunday mornings.  We worship “kid-style.”  We want kids to know that they can worship, just like they are — even as kids!

~ Decide on Saturday what your child is wearing on Sunday.  I hear about he Sunday morning battles every week!  Some of those battles will end just by deciding what to wearing and layingout your child’s clothes for church before Sunday!

~ On the way to church, talk to your child about worship!  Help your child understand that your family is coming to church to worship God!  Help your child understand that church is a fun, loving place to be!

~ Get up early on Sundays.  Don’t wake your child up at the last minute and expect him to be ready to walk out the door on time.  Give your child time to wake up, get ready, and be adjusted to another day before your get in the car to come to church!

~ View Sunday morning worship as a special time for your family.  Create an atmosphere in your home of “I can’t wait for Sunday to get here, so we can go to church!”  Help your child understand that church isn’t a place we have to go — it’s a place we get to go!

Worship is vital for kids!  Church is vital!  You are vital!  Get ready — Sunday’s coming!  Make sure you’re ready this week!

Here’s what we’re talking about with your children this Sunday…

Preschoolers are in Acts 16:22-34.  Preschoolers are learning that Paul and Silas praised God — even when they were in jail.  Preschoolers will learn that when they are scared or sad, they can know that God is with them!  Sometime after Sunday, tell your preschooler about a time when you were scared or sad.  If your preschooler has a story, let him share it with you.  Together, sing a song that would have made you feel better during that time.  Remind your preschooler that God loves him and wants us to praise Him!

Elementary kids are finishing up a month of talking about Joy - finding a way to be happy, even when things don’t go your way.  Sunday, we’re focusing on the times in our lives when we’ve messed up!  We want elementary kids to know that God can give us joy, even when we make mistakes.  God is a forgiving God and wants to show us grace and forgiveness.  Sometime after Sunday, alone with your child, talk about a specific event over the past week when he messed up or did something he shouldn’t have done.  Explain to your child that God can and will forgive that mistake if we ask Him!  Because God is a forgiving God, we can rejoice!  Take some time to praise God with your child through prayer or singing or just talking to Him!  Praise God because He gives us joy, even when we make mistakes!

Take some time to “flesh out” what we talk about on Sunday … it’ll make a difference if you do!

Here’s what’s happening at UpStuf tonight…

We’re going camping!  Tyler and Vinny head out for the camping trip of a lifetime!  They get to their campsite and things get a little dicey!  They start hearing noises - they are alone - what if their parents set them up to be eaten by the coyotes?  Watch tonight as Tyler and Vinny face their fears and discover that God is always with them no matter what!

Tonight, I’m telling the story from Luke 24:36 - 48 when Jesus appears to His disciples following the resurrection!  I want kids to understand that if Jesus could appear to his disciples, even through a locked door, he is - for sure - with us!  When we are afraid, we can still have joy because we know that God is always with us and will never leave us - no matter what!  God is with us when we take a test at school, when we’re sick in bed, when we hear a noise in the dark - ALWAYS!

On the ride home, play a game with your child.  Think of places like:  in the car, at home, in another state, in another country, etc.  Everytime you say a place, have your child respond with “God is with you!”  Help your child discover that God is always with us, no matter where we are — when things are hard and when they’re easy!

Thank you so much for your comments about this year’s Spring Fling!  Thank you to all of our volunteers that make our community events happen every time!  You guys are the ones that make the difference!  Whether you set up tables, ran a carnival game, gave out balloons, served a hot dog, or shook a hand — you may never know your impact!  We gave out 872 wristbands and countless volunteers also participated in this year’s event!  Some people experienced the love of Christ, through us, for the very first time!

We also had some incredible people who provided for us financially and some who provided financially but didn’t want any published notice of their donation.  I want to publicly thank these people for their donation:

Panera Bread

Truett Automotive

Pony Express Towing

ShellTree Realty

Anne Fuller and Associates

Southern Pools

Greer Storage

McCullough Properties

Deal Depot

Tires Unlimited

Jazzercise of Taylors

The Colditz Group

Campbell’s Lawn Service

McFeely Amusements

It takes all of us working together to make an event like Spring Fling happen every year!  Thanks for all you do!  Thanks for allowing us to share Christ with this community!  The impact YOU make is INCREDIBLE!

LIFE (Living In Full Effectiveness) Classes begin this Sunday night, April 27 at 6:00 and run through June 8.  We’re offering three choices for children.  I want to talk about the choices today, so you’ll know what to sign your child up for…

Friends and Heroes 2

This is a continuation of last session’s Friend and Heroes.  We’re taking a look at the heroes of the Bible.  We’re creatively talking and learning about their lives and what their lives mean to us today.  We’re looking at the lessons our heroes in Scripture teach us about how we live our lives.  This class is a hands-on, creative class that has kids up and moving the whole time!  Younger kids, especially, will love it!

Everything You Need To Know To Be A Teenager 2

We’re continuing to look at the issues facing teenagers today.  This class is specifically for fifth and sixth graders.  We’ll look at the physical, emotional, and social changes coming to kids as they become teenagers.  What choices will I have to make?  Why do I feel like I do?  Does God still care about me?  How do I make new friends in middle school?  We’ll try to answer all of those questions!

Heart of Worship

I am really excited about this class!  Teresa Reid and Keishia Wilson are writing the curriculum for this class!  Kids will learn about worship and why we worship.  Why is worship important?  Does God really care if we worship?  Why do we worship God anyway?  We’ll also be writing our own praise and worship song too!  If your child plays an instrument, he needs to bring it too!  Your child will learn to use his gifts in worship to God!  This class is a creative class to teach children the joy of worshipping their Creator.

Alright, so those are the classes.  How do you sign up?  Pick up a white card in the Worship Center or Children’s Ministry Area.  Complete the card and drop it in the offering plate or bring it by the Children’s Ministry Area.  You can also shoot me an email to let me know what class your child will be attending by clicking here.  If you have other questions about LIFE Classes, feel free to let me know!

Here’s what we’re talking about with your children on Sunday…

Preschoolers are continuing to learn that God loves them!  Sunday, your preschooler will learn that Paul traveled for one reason … to tell people that God loved them.  Sometime after Sunday, play a game with your preschooler.  Pretend that you and your child are going to travel and tell people God loves them.  Place stuffed animals around the house to mark your stops.  As you walk through the house with your child, pretend you are climbing a mountain, riding a bike, or driving a car.  When you approach a stop, have your child say, “God loves you” to the stuffed animal.  Play the game for a few minutes, reminding your preschooler that God loves her!

Elementary kids are in Luke 24:36-48 and John 20:19 when Jesus appeared to the disciples.  Our Bottom Line for this week is … When things seem bad, remember that God is with you.  We want kids to know that God is with us through everything!  No matter what happens, we can be sure that God will never leave us!  Here’s some questions to talk about with your child:  How do you know God is with you if you can’t see Him?  If you could see Jesus standing next to you all day, what would you do differently?  Help your child understand that God is not some far out Being.  He is our personal Father!  He will never leave us — no matter what!

Also, don’t forget our Spring Fling is coming up this Sunday from 6 - 8 pm!  You don’t want to miss it!  We’ve got games, rides, live music, free hamburgers and hot dogs, and prizes! 

Tyler’s trying to make a movie and you know what that means…trouble!  Tonight, Tyler comes the conclusion that God doesn’t like him!  Nothing ever goes right for Tyler!  Nothing ever goes his way!  Tonight, with a little help from his friends, Tyler learns that God has a big plan for his life!  Ever when things go wrong, we have to remember that God sees the BIG PICTURE — we only see a part of the plan!

On the ride home tonight, talk to your child about God’s plan!  Help your child think about things that have happened in her life that seemed like problems, when actually they were a part of God’s BIG PLAN!  Help your child understand that God has a plan that is better than we can understand.  Sometimes it seems like life is going all wrong, but God is working His plan out for us!  Tonight, we’re looking at Luke 24:13-35.  Take some time to read through this passage with your child tonight before she goes to bed!

Can’t wait to see you tonight!  Remember, you do your part — we’ll do ours!

Today, I want to look at childhood fears and the problem that parents have dealing with the fears of their children.

Dr. James Dobson offers some practical advise:

1.  Help your child understand how these fears can keep him from enjoying life.  If your child is always afraid of the dark or leaving mom and dad, it is impossible that he is going to enjoy life like he should.

2.  Take a look at the atmosphere of your household.  Determine whether you are contributing to your children’s anxieties by living at a hectic pace or allowing a high level of stress at home.

Both adults and children have fears in their lives.  The difference is that adults have developed coping mechanisms to help them deal with our fears and concerns.  So, how can you help your child through their fears?

Here’s some suggestions for you:

~ Pray - Ask God to help and intervene in your child’s heart.  Faith offers the greatest courage and peace that is possible!

~ Be There - Sometimes you, as a parent, don’t need to offer advice or say anything at all.  Just be there.  Hugs are worth more than any words you can possibly say!

~ Listen - Do you really hear what your children are telling you?  Listen beyond the words your child says.  A lot of times, children have a hard time identifying their fears and nervousness, much less expressing them with their words.

~ Be Honest - Let your child know that you have fears too!  When you share your fears, it helps your child feel less isolated and embarrassed about his fears.

~ Be Observant - Are there any factors that may be adding to the fear your child is feeling?  Is he hungry, tired, or overscheduled?  Sometimes a snack or a nap works better than anything else.

One final piece of advice, bring your child to church every time the doors are open!  We talk about fear and how we can deal with fear because of what Jesus has done for us on a regular basis here at Northwood!  Your child will hear from us, and you can reinforce it at home — Jesus is more powerful than anything we are afraid of!

It’s that time again — Sunday’s on its way!  Here’s what we’re talking about this week…

Preschoolers are learning about prayer this week!  They are learning what it means to pray, why God wants us to pray, and what we should pray for when we talk to God.  On the ride home Sunday, talk to your preschooler about prayer.  Allow her to pray for lunch — in her own words.  Help your preschooler understand that praying is simply talking to God, just like we talk to our family and friends.  Sunday afternoon, find a piece of paper.  Write each day of the week on the paper and draw a line next to it.  Help your preschooler think of one thing that he can talk to God about each day.  Write those ideas on the paper and hang it next to your preschooler’s bed.  When you put your child to bed each night this week, remind him that God loves for us to talk to Him.  Help him say a simple prayer like, “Dear God, thank you for my bed.”  It’s so important that children begin developing a prayer life early!

Elementary kids are in Luke 24:13-35 as they continue to talk about Joy - finding a way to be happy, even when things don’t go your way.  We are encouraging kids to remember that God has a BIG plan for their lives.  When things get us down, we need to remember that God has a much bigger plan than we can see.  On the ride home Sunday, ask your child this question:  What would you talk about with Jesus if you walked down the road with Him?  What is something you really want Jesus to know about your life.  Guess what?  He already knows!  It’s under control!  He has a plan!  That’s a promise!

Take some time to talk to your children about what we talk about here at church!  Without your help, our ministry to your kids cannot be effective!  We need you!