Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Upcoming Events...

Depending on when you read this, I hope you either HAVE a Merry Christmas or that you HAD one. Here are some things coming up that you should be aware of:

Sunday January 4: D-Group 101. For those interested in coming to d-group from January-May 2009, attendance is required. We'll be talking about what d-group is, what it isn't, requirements, etc.

Wednesday January 7: First youth group of 2009. We'll have new family tables and small groups for the new year. This go round, the family tables and small groups will be the same. We'll be dividing the groups up by gender and age range; middle school boys, middle school girls, high school boys, high school girls.

January 14: Registration forms and $20 deposit for GORF are due. GORF is an event for middle school students, put on by Nebraska Christian College in conjunction with the Iowa/Nebraska Christian Convention. Total cost for this event is $100, and includes food, lodging...everything but spending money. The permission slip is available to the left, under "Forms".

January 17: Annual Parent's Meeting @ Eastview, from 11am-1pm.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

The New Sexuality

Dear Parents,

I spent part of my afternoon today viewing the video portion of the material that we’ll be using in February as part of our “New Sexuality” curriculum and all I can say is “wow”. To see some of the videos, hop on over here.

There are 16 discussion starters (topics) to choose from. Many are gender-specific; some are only for girls, some only for guys. Some of the videos are definitely for high school students only. Here’s a quote from Rusty Van Deusen, a 30-year youth ministry veteran and interlinc (the curriculum provider) writer.

“I’m for an honest face-to-face look at the ‘new sexuality.’ My input from students is that Christians are in total denial about the pervasive involvement of Christian students in a broad range of sexual activity. I believe Youth Leaders Only (the material) is the forum to address sexual honesty and in a way that says to students, ‘These guys get it.’ Let’s address pornography, same-sex issues, hooking-up, and the ‘gone wild’ culture head on. The kids are. Let’s engage them.”

This material will be a part of our annual parent’s meeting on January 17, from 11am-1pm. It is my hope that you’ll be there with us.

Saturday, December 6, 2008

December 2008 Parent Letter

December 3, 2008

Dear Parents,

This will be the final letter for 2008. On behalf of all of our adult sponsors and leaders, I want to thank you for allowing us to work with your kids in 2008. We had a great year! In January, I’ll include our ministry team’s annual report for 2008 in my letter home to you.

Our youth group Christmas party is scheduled for Wednesday night, December 17, at our normal youth group time. Students should bring a “white elephant” gag gift for another student. It can be a stuffed animal from, but purchased gifts should be less than $5 and god for a boy or a girl. We’ll also have them bring either a snack or drink, but those details are coming soon.

Here are a few of the BIG things coming in 2009…

• Annual Parent Meeting is Saturday, January 17 from 11am-1pm.
o Because we have so many new students, I’d like to spend some time listening to you and sharing with you about our ministry for 2009. We’ll also spend time talking about our February/March teaching series, entitled “The New Sexuality”, and we need your input. We have 21 topics to choose from, issues like pornography, same-sex questions, the issue of oral sex before marriage, and sexual integrity, and we need you to tell us what issues you want addressed, and more importantly, what you don’t want talked about. We’ll also be talking about our 2009 calendar of events and answering questions. Please come and be a part of this important meeting.

• Summer Camp season at North East Iowa Christian Service Camp. Our camp theme for 2009 is “Thirst”. The kids will be challenged to see what they’re filling up their lives with.
o Our middle school camp week in 2009 is June 14-19, and is for students going into grades 6-8 for the 2009-2010 school year.
o Our high school camp week in 2009 is July 5-11, and is for students going into grades 9-12 for the 2009-2010 school year.

• Mission: Kansas. We are returning to Morning Star Ranch in Florence, Kansas for our 2009 mission trip.
o Tentative dates are June 28-July 4.
o While this trip will be available to all students that come to Eastview, like all of our trips, mission trips are a privilege, not a right. There will be a basic registration process, and a few pre-trip meetings where attendance is mandatory. The cost for this trip will be approximately $140/student.
o All details will be finalized by March. We’ll have an informational meeting on Saturday, March 28th.

It is our hope and prayer that you have a blessed holiday season. In an age of declining stock markets, rising costs and troubled times, Jesus Christ is the rock on which believers stand. He alone is the Unfailing One.

Closing out 2008…


John Mulholland
Next Generations Minister
Eastview Christian Church
jmulholland@eastview.net

Monday, December 1, 2008

"Ethics of American Youth" survey

Courtesy of one of our parents, Mike Greene, comes a link to the 2008 Report Card on the Ethics of American Youth. It is based on a survey of nearly 30,000 students in high schools across the U.S. "The results paint a troubling picture of our future politicians and parents, cops and corporate executives, and journalists and generals."

Sadly, there are few differences between students who attend religious-oriented schools and those who do not.

Excerpts from the summary:

"STEALING. In bad news for business, more than one in three boys (35 percent) and one-fourth of the girls (26 percent) — a total of 30 percent overall — admitted stealing from a store within the past year. In 2006 the overall theft rate was 28 percent (32 percent males, 23 percent females).

LYING. More than two of five (42 percent) said that they sometimes lie to save money. Again, the male-female difference was significant: 49 percent of the males, 36 percent of the females. In 2006, 39 percent said they lied to save money (47 percent males, 31 percent females).

CHEATING. Cheating in school continues to be rampant and it’s getting worse. A substantial majority (64 percent) cheated on a test during the past year (38 percent did so two or more times), up from 60 percent and 35 percent, respectively, in 2006. There were no gender differences on the issue of cheating on exams."

You can view the entire report here.