Wednesday, January 14

All evening activities (EKLUB, Youth Group) have been canceled tonight due to weather.

2008 Recap

This is hitting our Annual Report in a few days...

2008 has been an interesting year for our ministry team. We’ll look at our ministry from the following standpoints GROWTH, EVENTS, and CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES.

GROWTH

There are many victories in the growth category. We have seen numerical growth at all of our weekly events. For the last quarter of the year on Wednesday nights, most weeks we had more that 30 middle school and high school students come to youth group. We are seeing some students make the transition from Wednesday night to Sunday morning and even Sunday night. We saw 3 students come to Christ through baptism.
In September, we introduced the “Family Table” concept to a very skeptical group of kids (and adults). Each Family Table has a Table Parent (or 2). The kids sit at the same tables with the same adults each week; this has allowed them to develop relationships with Christian adults who are there to simply engage the kids and talk to them about their life. Within a few weeks, the kids fell in love with the idea, and it is now an integral part of our culture.
At the end of the 2007-2008 school year, we had a number of adults leave our ministry; Seth and Megan Clark left to have their first child, Sher Barns left to focus more on her ministry at school, and Laurie Thomas went to grad school at UNI. For most ministries, this would have been a disaster. BUT…in May we had a meeting for adults and we had 17 attend which is amazing. We found a place for those adults, while God alone deserves the glory for what is happening here, He is using THEM to accomplish His will.

EVENTS

2008 was filled with a wide variety of events. Our typical week consisted of 3 regular gatherings. Sunday mornings we met from 8:45-9:45 for Sunday School. At Sunday School, we use the Faithweaver material, which, over the course of 3 years, leads our students through an overview of the entire Bible. Sunday nights we met from 6:00-8:00 for D-Group. D-Group is a time of deeper Bible study, we covered a wide variety of topics from the Gospel of Mark, to the Biblical statements on government and war to a study on 12 core beliefs that Christians hold to. Wednesday nights we met from 5:45-8:pm. In this time, we ate a meal together, had a group fellowship/game time, and in our small groups, talked about the Person of Jesus.
We went and served food at the Saturday Evening Meal Program in
Downtown Cedar Rapids, and we worked with Mid-American Energy’s Housing Assistance Program during our 30 Hour Famine. We left Cedar Rapids on more than few occasions, our middle school kids went to Omaha for CIY Believe, our high school kids went to Omaha for a Nebraska Christian College event. We offered two mission trips; one went to Morning Star Ranch in Florence, Kansas, and the other to San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Add in there several summer camp weeks at North East Iowa Christian Service Camp, and our students were involved in the gospel everywhere…from here in Cedar Rapids, to the states of Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska, and even in Mexico!

CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

2008 was not without it’s challenges. The biggest growth piece for us as a ministry was learning that God can and will do more than we can ask or imagine. This manifested itself on our 2 mission trips and with our 30 Hour Famine service project. Adults and kids alike were challenged to grow, they got tired, hungry, cranky, selfish…and yet, God moved and worked. All of the work that we set out to do was accomplished, and that is what God does. We grew in numbers, while our building space shrank due to flooding in our basement. Our entire ministry team turned over and we had an entire new set of adults working with our kids. God accomplished His good and perfect will with us, through us, and despite us.
2009 will be a year of opportunity. We are looking to increase our partnership with parents. The majority of the kids that come to our events are NOT Eastview students. Because of this, we’ll need to work even harder to get with parents and adults. While we have seen numeric growth, we are asking ourselves as leaders the following question: “How can we get our students to examine their own understanding of Jesus?”. We’ll continue to evaluate our events…are we simply filling calendars and giving kids something to do, or are we creating an environment where they will hear God? May God help us to be about the latter.

-Student Ministry Team

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.

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.

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

"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.

A Great Article from Fuller Theological Seminary...

Some key points from the article "Theological Principles Behind Intergenerational Youth Ministry", you can read the whole thing here.

Principle #1: Parents and the surrounding community of adults are expected to exemplify what it means to be fully-devoted followers of God. This expectation of total devotion is indicated in several portions of the Deuteronomy 6 passage. First, to declare “The LORD our God, the LORD is one …” is no small matter. It is a covenant agreement in which the people of Israel agree to follow the “one and only God” with absolute loyalty and obedience. This pledge of allegiance, often read aloud, starting with the words “Hear, O Israel,” is a “summons to those who would be Israel in any age” to align themselves with the work and will of the LORD.

Principle #2: Adults, starting with parents, are commanded to be active participants in their childrens’ spiritual formation. Several portions of the Deuteronomy 6 passage indicate parental and community involvement in a child’s spiritual formation. First, “Impress them on your children” is a phrase that indicates the parents’ responsibility and agreement to teach their children about the LORD. At the time that Moses authored this passage, the spiritual formation of children included the use of both formal and informal opportunities to teach and centered on the telling of family, tribal and national historical narratives of the Exodus and the experience of living in covenant relationship with the LORD.

Some of my thoughts:

Here at Eastview, we have more adults than ever working with our youth. Table parents, small group leaders, sponsors, they're all there. Each week, we consistently have students involved in our Sunday corporate worship, running sound or video, serving communion, singing. Many of our kids feel empowered and appreciated.

But...

However...

Please, re-read point 1 from above..."Parents and the surrounding community of adults are expected to exemplify what it means to be fully-devoted followers of God."

I'm wondering...in how many of our homes are parents "exemplifying what it means to be fully-devoted followers of God"? Here, perhaps is the "right" question...Parents, do you even know what is means to be a fully-devoted follower of God"? Week after week, the same families are MIA on Sunday mornings, not in Sunday School, not at LIFE Groups. How can we learn what it means "to be fully-devoted follwers of God" when we are not in places and situations where we are taught? Here's what I see at Eastview: in may cases, it is a "surrounding community of adults" calling your children to Jesus. And I have to ask one question. Why is that ok?

Which leads right to point 2..."Adults, starting with parents, are commanded to be active participants in their childrens’ spiritual formation."

I believe the operative word in point 2 is "active".

The Oxford American Dictionaries define the word "active" this way:

1 (of a person) engaging or ready to engage in physically energetic pursuits
• moving or tending to move about vigorously or frequently
• characterized by energetic activity
• (of a person's mind or imagination) alert and lively.
2 doing things for an organization, cause, or campaign, rather than simply giving it one's support

Here's the Oxford American Dictionary definition of the word "passive":

1 accepting or allowing what happens or what others do, without active response or resistance

A few more questions, since I'm on a roll...

Based on the definitions above...are you actively or passively participating in your child's spiritual formation? Why?

Are you teaching your children to read the Bible, or are you letting us do that for you? Why?

Are you putting yourself in situations and positions so that you can learn those skills, and then pass them down? Why or why not?

It has been said that there are 2 great times to plant an oak tree...20 years ago, and today.

Go, and sin no more.