FAMILY PLUS High School - May 11

Hello HS Parents!

I hope you are gaining helpful insight from the current message focus at our church right now: God's Masterpiece.  We are actually complementing that focus in our Bible teaching classes with a study called SHAPE. Both of these are designed to help you see how God has uniquely gifted you to serve Him. Although I have been through the SHAPE study and have led others through it many times - it has been affirming to walk through it again and revisit what God has SHAPED me to do. I hope you are taking advantage of it.

Robert and I are walking middle and high school students through the SHAPE study as well. This coming Sunday we will be talking about the big "A" in SHAPES: Abilities. I'm thinking this one will really ring true with high school students. The Spiritual Gifts (S) and the Heart (H) can be a little intimidating, but most students will be able to recognize, easily, their Abilities. I'm really counting on some "a-ha" moments for your teens this week.  Here's some of the things we'll talk about:

  1. What are some things you are good at? What abilities do use when doing these things?

  2. What is something you do well, but no longer do? What made you stop doing it?

  3. How could you use natural abilities to benefit others?

For those of you walking through SHAPE in your own Bible study class, take a few minutes to unpack what you're discovering with your student. Don't be afraid to reveal a little about what you're learning about yourself. You might find they take will follow your lead and open up about what they are learning as well.

A few things I want you to know about:

1 - Next week we will be having a concert outside Annex II on the parking lot. The Cast and Crew Band will be back with us from 6:30 to 7:30 on the lot.

2 - On Wednesday night, May 23, we will have a VERY special guest speaker. Amy Brown from Union University will be sharing with our students about her teenage years and how God delivered her from a horrible home life, through a multitude of bad decisions, and ultimately to a life that honors Him. Hers is an extremely powerful and compelling testimony that will capture the attention of your students.

3 - We are taking a few weekend trips over the next few weeks to help to promote the camp that we'll be doing in July in New Orleans. The trips are only $25 per person and students can sign up on Wednesdays and Sundays in the Annex.


Whew! I know that's a lot. If you made it this far, I hope you have a GREAT weekend!  Let me know if I can pray about something for you or your family.

Michael

FAMILY PLUS High School - April 30

Hello HS Parents

Last week we began a new series on Wednesday nights called Fake I.D. This series focuses on the identity we have in Christ and the different ways we are called AND equipped to express that identity. Robert and I felt led to run this series parallel to our Sunday morning focus on S.H.A.P.E. as a means of reinforcing our teaching to students and encourage discovery of who God has shaped them to be.

Yesterday was our second week of the S.H.A.P.E. discussion and focused on spiritual gifts. Students walked through a list of spiritual gifts with their peers and adult leaders and shared with the group what they thought their spiritual gifts might be. I asked them to receive affirmation and/or alternate suggestions about their gifts from their peers. We ended the day by encouraging students to step into service in some fashion without waiting for a message written in the clouds about what their S.H.A.P.E. might be. By stepping into service, students will be able to figure out if they are serving within their gift sets by how they experience serving.

My prayer is that at this critical point in your student's life he or she will discover how God has uniquely gifted him or her. Knowing their S.H.A.P.E. before they graduate high school can (and will) help students make critical choices about their future in a season where "right" choices can give them a "head start" on a life-long journey of using their gifts to honor and expand God's Kingdom. 

A great way for you to discuss this with your students would be to take a list of spiritual gifts (there was an insert in the bulletin yesterday with a list of spiritual gifts) and ask them what they believe your gift is. Talk about that for a bit, and then ask your students what they think their gift is. Ask them what areas they think you might be able to serve in that would best utilize your gifts. Ask your students what area they could serve in that might maximize their gifts.

Let me know what I can pray about for you.

-Michael 

FAMILY PLUS High School - March 31

Hey High School Parents!

WOW!! It's been a couple weeks since I've been able to get an email out to you guys, and a LOT has happened!

1 - Completed our Spring Mission Trip to New Orleans.

2 - Voted as a church to build a New Generations Building to house our High School Ministry (and other NG Events)

3 - Relocated temporarily to Annex II.

This past Wednesday night was our first in Annex II. I asked your students to take the artwork they created as a response to worship a few weeks ago and decorate the building with it....it looks GREAT! It really helped (in my mind, and theirs, too, I think) to identify with that temporary space a little better.

But the COOLEST thing happened as a result of our history in Annex II already. You see, every time we head to New Orleans for our mission trips, we leave from that building. In fact, the original purpose for Annex II was for it to be a center for much of our mission work here at the Glade. Every time we go "on mission" to The Big Easy, we stage, pray, and are "sent out" from The Glade Church Missions Center. (Okay - that's not the "official" name....but allow me the poetic license for the sake of my point).

On Wednesday, I reviewed some Scripture from 1 Corinthians 12 - 14 and suggested to our students that they are not just to be "on mission" in New Orleans, but here at home as well. I also challenged them that Annex II is not just a place that we go "from" to minister. Rather, it is a place we come "to" for the sake of being ministered to by others - AND - it's a place we come "to" for the sake of ministering to others. I challenged students to look at our temporary home as a place to find and nurture their spiritual gifts for the sake of ministering to their peers as described in the New Testament.

My prayer is that your students will continue to learn to be the Church to their peers, to their teachers/coaches/bosses, and even to you - their parents. I'm excited about this time of transition for all of our age levels, and appreciate your prayers and support as we strengthen our facilities to better minister to your family.

Let me know what I can pray about for you. Here are some things you can be praying for me:Clarity...we have a LOT going on right now. Pray that God keeps me focused on what He finds holy, glorious and good. Balance....Pray that God would help me balance work and home and to also well balance responsibilities at each. Protection....Busy times are strategic for the enemy - pray him away from my home, family and our ministry.

Michael

FAMILY PLUS High School - March 11

Hello HS Parents!!

I'm hoping this email finds you well. I'm currently in Metairie, LA, with about 80 of our high school students and nearly 20 leaders. We've had a pretty interesting ride down here complete with a few unexpected hiccups. But we're here safe and ready to have a great week. In fact, I'm about to start waking up students to get ready for church.

This week in New Orleans we will be working with over 2,000 elementary age students, working in 4 different homes, and building a pavilion in St. Bernard Parish (our men are doing this project). I'm praying that your students will be encouraged by the opportunity to serve a group of people who have captured our hearts down here.

Please be praying for our safety and for God to move in the life of your teenager. We have found that this particular setting breaks down barriers for students and gives way to an open heart to hear Him speak to them. Again, please pray for that in their lives - and yours.

- Michael

FAMILY PLUS High School - March 4

Hello HS Parents!!

Wow! There is a LOT going on right now in the life of our church! On the immediate horizon for high school students:

1 - John Mackay (creationist from Australia) will be with us this week. He will be speaking this Wednesday night in the District. About 60 of our children and students will be on a field trip with John on Thursday.

2 - This weekend we will be leaving for New Orleans with about 80 high school students and 20 leaders. We will be working in five elementary schools, three homes, and at a local park building a pavilion for the community.

3 - We are preparing for our moves that will happen at the end of this month. For the next few months, high school students will be meeting in Annex II. Middle schoolers are moving to the District, and the Premier Room will be remodeled for our Children's Ministry.

We continued our series "Evolve" this past Wednesday night. We shared with students that we recognize that as they get older, their parents' voice will become increasingly softer. We shared with them that we believe that they are to ABSOLUTELY still honor their father and mother, and that as their parental voices decrease - the need to replace those voices appropriately is critical.

I shared with students that at forty years old, my father's voice is still one of the most critical and treasured in my life. But my father's voice is not the most "present" in my life. I spend more time and interact with other voices more than I do with my father's voice. Granted, my life consists of my own immediate family now. I've left my father and mother and joined another. But, again, the need for wise parental counseling seems to be something difficult to outgrow. I just need it. And I hope that I have conveyed well to your student(s) that they, too, need a parent's voice in their lives. And when that voice is softer or less immediate, it is CRITICAL to have replaced (or supplemented) that voice with wise counsel.

Please be praying for these transitions and for our students as they are on mission to New Orleans. Please let me know if there is something I can pray about for you or your family.

-Michael

FAMILY PLUS High School - February 23

Hello HS Parents

This past Wednesday night we started a new series in the District called Evolve. For the next few weeks we will be focusing on the fact that students are in the middle of a transitional period where the parent/child relationship is in a constant state of change. In fact, I suggested to them that they should really be prepared for the next few years to be a time where they are learning to adapt to the changing relationship they have with you...and...to LEAVE ROOM for your ever important voice in their lives as they walk through a time where your voice can be distant compared to others in their lives.

I also wanted to share with you how Robert and I put into practice a tool we regularly suggest to parents. We had the privilege of meeting a young man for lunch this week - he's a guy we've had a little difficulty "connecting" with at church. But we took our own advice: we took him out to lunch and to hit a bucket of range balls. We all three had a GREAT time getting to know each other and there was much less pressure because our focus was not gaining information - it was having fun and hanging out. Guess what - the "gaining information" part just happened. The student learned about us and we learned about him, but none of us were "trying" to do that - we were just hanging out.

I had a similar conversation with a parent recently who wanted to do a Bible study with his son. The son was VERY adamant that he did not want to participate. But the dad and I re-strategized the plan for the two of them to view a DVD study together once a week and go have dinner afterward. This gives them time in the car (to and from the restaurant) to talk. Again, the focus is on something else, but natural conversation can (and likely will) happen based on both of them focusing on something else. The content of the study (it's a pretty deep study that will make BOTH of them think) will help facilitate conversation.

Remember - sometimes you need to have targeted, intentional conversation with your students. But sometimes you should just "do life" with them and allow the content of your conversations to happen naturally. It is likely that your student will stumble into talking to stuff that is closer to their hearts than they might convey if you are interrogating them like the gestapo!

Let me know how I can pray for you.

-Michael


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FAMILY PLUS High School - February 11

Hello HS Parents!

Great ending this past Wednesday night to our "Lost in Translation" series. We wrapped up by talking about the word: salvation. Typically, students think about salvation as a means of being saved "from" something. What we discussed Wednesday night is the fact that our salvation in Christ saves us "to" something. Although we are certainly interested in being saved FROM hell, we are more interested in being saved TO heaven, Christ, and His plan for us.

This coming Sunday we will continue our study on purity. This series has been interesting as it has allowed us to explore the "heart" issue of a life of purity rather than just focusing on behavior. This is largely because our Wednesday nights have been so narrowly focused on matters of the heart and how they drive our behavior.

It has been interesting for me to see and hear the relativism that our students believe as a matter of principle. In other words - many of them are totally okay with the notion that what might be true for "me" doesn't necessarily have to be true for "you." It's been pretty telling to listen to them describe the basis for this mindset, especially since it crept in through a discussion on purity. I hope you'll explore the notion of Truth with your students and the fact that there is, without a doubt, a Truth about every situation they encounter. Two things in contradiction to each other about a particular belief can't both be true. Our students have a very difficult time with that. We're planning to tackle that and other things again this Sunday.

Please let me know if there's something I can pray about for you or your family!

Michael