A publication of IBC Student Ministr y.

www.ibclrstudents.org 2014
LOOK AROUND
SCHOOL IS BACK IN SESSION! YOU KNOW ALL TOO WELL THAT THE
NUMBER ONE MISSION FIELD FOR YOUR STUDENT IS THEIR SCHOOL.
DID YOU ALSO KNOW THAT YOUR STUDENTS SCHOOL CAN ALSO BE
YOUR NUMBER ONE MISSION FIELD AS WELL? THINK ABOUT ALL THE
TIME YOU SPEND AT OR AROUND SCHOOL. FOOTBALL GAMES,
VOLLEYBALL PRACTICES, PTA MEETINGS, ETC. NEXT TIME YOU
ATTEND ONE OF THESE EVENTS, LOOK AROUND. TAKE NOTICE OF THE
OTHER PARENTS AROUND YOU. DO YOU KNOW WHERE THEY STAND
WITH JESUS? HAVE YOU ASKED?
WE CONSTANTLY TEACH OUR STUDENTS THAT THEY ARE THE MOST
EFFECTIVE TOOL TO REACHING THEIR CAMPUS FOR JESUS. THE
SAME IS WITH YOU, MOM AND DAD. THE MOST EFFECTIVE TOOL TO
REACH OTHER PARENTS WITH JESUS IS YOU, NOT ANOTHER
PARENTING EVENT, A STUDENT STAFF PERSON, IT IS YOU!
September
Issue
THIS MONTH
" THE GATHERING (9/3)
" DGROUPS START (9/7)
" HOME 22:6 PARENT ROUNDTABLE
(9/10, 9/17, 8/24)
" MENS CAR SHOW (9/13)
" MS POOL OLYMPICS (9/14)
" GIRLS MINISTRY (9/28)
COMING SOON
" FALL RETREAT (10/31-11/2)
" DISCIPLE NOW (1/16-18)
PRAYER FOR MY
TEEN
DECISION MAKING
ENGAGE
MORE TEAMS BECOMING
FAKE CHRISTIANS
EQUIP
CREATING A MEDIA-SAFE
HOME

A MONTHLY PUBLICATION TO HELP PARENTS BETTER PLUG IN TO THE

SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT OF THEIR STUDENT
PLUGGED IN
SEPTEMBER 2014


A publication of IBC Student Ministr y.
www.ibclrstudents.org 2014
STUDENT MINISTRY STAFF
Matt Hubbard
Lead Student Pastor
Melissa Sponer
Girls Ministry Associate
Ross Spigner
Middle School Pastor
Amanda Beach
Ministry Assistant
A publication of IBC Student Ministr y.
www.ibclrstudents.org 2014
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE
STARBUCKS BEVERAGE?

GRANDE WHITE CHOCOLATE
MOCHA
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE
STARBUCKS BEVERAGE?

VENTI, SALTED CARAMEL
MOCHA (EXTRA SHOT)
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE
STARBUCKS BEVERAGE?

VENTI, SEVEN-PUMP VANILLA
LATTE
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE
STARBUCKS BEVERAGE?

GRANDE GINGERBREAD LATTE
From Our Heart

It has been a blessing working in Girls Ministry over the past 5 years. Ive had the chance to meet so
many beautiful, gifted young women, with amazing gifts!
What Ive come to realize over the years is that you would never know from the outside all that these
beautiful, gifted young women struggle with privately. From struggles with self-image to depression or thoughts
of suicide, anxiety or worry
Sadly these are real issues that teen girls face all the time. They have real struggles and real needs.
From my experience in Girls Ministry, here are some needs of teen girls today:
! Someone to listen to them. To really listen and understand. A safe place for them to share how they
feel and help them navigate how they feel.
! Someone to acknowledge the gift God has given them and give them opportunities to use them.
They need to feel condent in who they are and they gifts they have.
! Someone to tell them OFTEN and regularly that they are remarkably and wonderfully made by God
(Ps. 139: 13-14)
! Laughter and times to just have fun!
! Someone who prays for them specically and they know it.
! Adult women who will be real, authentic role models and mentors for them.
! They need and want boundaries and responsibilities. It builds security and self-worth.
! A father or substitute father who will set an example of how a boy should treat a girl.
! A home where they see real, authentic faith lived out daily not a faith that is only seen on Sunday.
Its my privilege to invest my time in mentoring young girls/women. My prayer is that you would join me in
investing in the next generation.



A publication of IBC Student Ministr y.
www.ibclrstudents.org 2014
PRAYER FOR MY TEEN
This is an excerpt on Decision Making in 31 Days of Prayer for My Teen by Susan Alexander Yates (Baker Books).
DECISION MAKING IS ONE OF THE TOUGHEST CHALLENGES IN LIFE. ITS DOUBLY TOUGH WHEN WE HAVE A TEEN BECAUSE THAT TEEN
NEEDS TO LEARN TO MAKE HIS OWN DECISIONS. WE MAY NOT TRUST HIS DISCERNMENT. AND WE MAY NOT KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER
EITHER! YET LEARNING TO MAKE DECISIONS IS CRUCIAL TO MATURITY.
FATHER, MY SON HAS AN IMPORTANT DECISION TO MAKE. HE DOESN T KNOW WHICH WAY TO GO! THERE ARE SO MANY WAYS TO
LOOK AT THIS, SO MANY FACTORS TO CONSIDER, SO MANY UNKNOWNS. NOTHING IS CLEAR. ITS OVERWHELMING.
I DON T KNOW WHAT IS RIGHT EITHER. WHEN HE WAS SMALL, I KNEW HOW TO MAKE DECISIONS THAT WERE BEST FOR HIM. BUT
NOW I DON T, AND ITS FRUSTRATING. AND THIS DECISION IS REALLY IMPORTANT . IT COULD IMPACT THE REST OF HIS LIFE.
PERHAPS, FATHER, YOU HAVE HIDDEN THE RIGHT DECISION FROM ME BECAUSE YOU ARE GOING TO SHOW HIM. ITS TIME FOR ME
TO BE WEANED FROM SOME OF MY PARENTING RESPONSIBILITIES AND BEGIN TO TRUST YOU TO WORK IN MY CHILDS LIFE
WITHOUT ME. THIS IS NEW FOR ME, O LORD, AND ITS SCARY.
THANK YOU, LORD, THAT I CAN HAVE THE CONFIDENCE THAT YOU ARE AT WORK IN MY SONS LIFE.* THANK YOU THAT YOU WANT
HIM TO KNOW YOUR WILL FAR MORE THAN EITHER HE OR I WANT TO!* GIVE HIM THE POWER TO DISCERN WHAT IS BEST.* SPEAK
DIRECTLY TO HIM AND SHOW HIM WHAT YOUR WILL IS IN THIS MATTER.*
FATHER, IN THIS PROCESS HELP ME TO TAKE A FRESH STEP IN TRUSTING YOU IN NEW WAYS WITH MY CHILD. THANK YOU THAT
THIS IS NOT JUST FOR HIM . ITS FOR ME TOO. GIVE ME EYES TO SEE THE SPECIFIC LESSONS YOU HAVE IN THIS FOR ME. REVEAL TO
ME A DEEPER ASPECT OF YOUR LOVE AND YOUR SOVEREIGNTY.*
MAY THE GOD OF PEACE, WHO THROUGH THE BLOOD OF THE ETERNAL COVENANT BROUGHT BACK FROM THE DEAD OUR LORD JESUS,
THAT GREAT SHEPHERD OF THE SHEEP, EQUIP YOU WITH EVERYTHING GOOD FOR DOING HIS WILL, AND MAY HE WORK IN US WHAT IS
PLEASING TO HIM, THROUGH JESUS CHRIST, TO WHOM BE GLORY FOR EVER AND EVER. AMEN. HEBREWS 13: 20 21
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES (IN ORDER OF STARRED REFERENCES IN PRAYER): PHILIPPIANS 1: 6 AND 2: 13; PHILIPPIANS 1: 9 11; PSALM 25: 12,
14 AND JEREMIAH 42: 3; PROVERBS 3: 5 7



FA
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THE DI
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Star
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Q
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How
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peer
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sin? Death?
Tr
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W
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B
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Sin!Death (Rom
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www.vimeo
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www.twitter
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A publication of IBC Student Ministr y.
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COMING SOON
October 4 Family Go Trip - El Dorado
October 19 Girls Ministry Event - 12-2
October 29 Funfest - No Wed Night Youth
October 31-Nov 2 MS/HS Joint Fall Retreat at SOTO
2014 / September

1
Church
Building is
Closed
2 3
The
Gathering
5:45-7:15
4 5 6
9th Grade
Fellowship
6:00-845pm
(Crains)
7
HS
DGroups
Start
10th Grade
Swim Party
(After
HighPoint
@the
Ingrams)
8 9 10
MS / HS
worship/meal

Parent
Roundtable
11 12 13
Car Show
10-2
14
MS Pool
Olympics
Sunday
Night
Kickoff
15 16 17
MS / HS
worship/meal

Parent
Roundtable
18 19 20
21 22 23 24
MS / HS
worship/meal

Parent
Roundtable
25 26 27
28
Girls
Ministry
Event
12-2
29 30

ENGAGE
MORE TEENS BECOMING
FAKE CHRISTIANS

If you're the parent of a Christian
teenager, Kenda Creasy Dean has this
warning:
Your child is following a "mutant" form
of Christianity, and you may be
responsible.
Dean says more American teenagers
are embracing what she calls
"moralistic therapeutic deism."
Translation: It's a watered-down faith
that portrays God as a "divine
therapist" whose chief goal is to boost
people's self-esteem.
Dean is a minister, a professor at
Princeton Theological Seminary and
the author of "Almost Christian," a new
book that argues that many parents
and pastors are unwittingly passing on
this self-serving strain of Christianity.
She says this "imposter'' faith is one
reason teenagers abandon churches.
"If this is the God they're seeing in
church, they are right to leave us in the
dust," Dean says. "Churches don't
give them enough to be passionate
about."
What traits passionate teens share
Dean drew her conclusions from what
she calls one of the most depressing
summers of her life. She interviewed
teens about their faith after helping
conduct research for a controversial
study called the National Study of
Youth and Religion.
The study, which included in-depth
interviews with at least 3,300 American
teenagers between 13 and 17, found
that most American teens who called
themselves Christian were indi#erent
and inarticulate about their faith.
The study included Christians of all
stripes -- from Catholics to Protestants
of both conservative and liberal
denominations. Though three out of
four American teenagers claim to be
Christian, fewer than half practice their
faith, only half deem it important, and
most can't talk coherently about their
beliefs, the study found.
Many teenagers thought that God
simply wanted them to feel good and
do good -- what the study's
researchers called "moralistic
therapeutic deism."
Some critics told Dean that most
teenagers can't talk coherently about
any deep subject, but Dean says
abundant research shows that's not
true.
"They have a lot to say," Dean says.
"They can talk about money, sex and
their family relationships with nuance.
Most people who work with teenagers
know that they are not naturally
inarticulate."
In "Almost Christian," Dean talks to the
teens who are articulate about their
faith. Most come from Mormon and
evangelical churches, which tend to do
a better job of instilling religious
passion in teens, she says.
No matter their background, Dean
says committed Christian teens share
four traits: They have a personal story
about God they can share, a deep
connection to a faith community, a
sense of purpose and a sense of hope
about their future.
"There are countless studies that show
that religious teenagers do better in
school, have better relationships with
their parents and engage in less high-
risk behavior," she says. "They do a lot
of things that parents pray for."
Dean, a United Methodist Church
minister who says parents are the most
important inuence on their children's
faith, places the ultimate blame for
teens' religious apathy on adults.
Some adults don't expect much from
youth pastors. They simply want them
to keep their children o# drugs and
away from premarital sex.
Others practice a "gospel of niceness,"
where faith is simply doing good and
not ru$ing feathers. The Christian call
to take risks, witness and sacrice for
others is muted, she says.
"If teenagers lack an articulate faith, it
may be because the faith we show
them is too spineless to merit much in
the way of conversation," wrote Dean,
a professor of youth and church
culture at Princeton Theological
Seminary.
More teens may be drifting away from
conventional Christianity. But their
desire to help others has not
diminished, another author says.
Barbara A. Lewis, author of "The Teen
Guide to Global Action," says Dean is
right -- more teens are embracing a
nebulous belief in God.
A publication of IBC Student Ministr y.
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Yet there's been an "explosion" in
youth service since 1995 that Lewis
attributes to more schools
emphasizing community service.
Teens that are less religious aren't
automatically less compassionate, she
says.
"I see an increase in youth passion to
make the world a better place," she
says. "I see young people reaching out
to solve problems. They're not waiting
for adults."
What religious teens say about their
peers
We think that they
want cake, but they
actually want steak
and potatoes, and
we keep giving
them cake.
--Elizabeth Corrie,
Emory University
professor
Elizabeth Corrie
meets some of
these idealistic
teens every
summer. She has
taken on the book's
central challenge:
instilling religious
passion in teens.
Corrie, who once
taught high school
religion, now
directs a program
called YTI -- the Youth Theological
Initiative at Emory University in
Georgia.
YTI operates like a theological boot
camp for teens. At least 36 rising high
school juniors and seniors from across
the country gather for three weeks of
Christian training. They worship
together, take pilgrimages to varying
religious communities and participate
in community projects.
Corrie says she sees no shortage of
teenagers who want to be inspired and
make the world better. But the
Christianity some are taught doesn't
inspire them "to change anything that's
broken in the world."
Teens want to be challenged; they
want their tough questions taken on,
she says.
"We think that they want cake, but they
actually want steak and potatoes, and
we keep giving them cake," Corrie
says.
David Wheaton, an Atlanta high school
senior, says many of his peers aren't
excited about Christianity because
they don't see the payo#.
"If they can't see benets immediately,
they stay away from it," Wheaton says.
"They don't want to make sacrices."
How 'radical' parents instill religious
passion in their children
Churches, not just parents, share some
of the blame for teens' religious apathy
as well, says Corrie, the Emory
professor.
She says pastors often preach a safe
message that can bring in the largest
number of congregants. The result:
more people and yawning in the pews.
"If your church can't survive without a
certain number of members pledging,
you might not want to preach a
message that might make people
mad," Corrie says. "We can all agree
that we should all be good and that
God rewards those who are nice."
Corrie, echoing the author of "Almost
Christian," says the gospel of niceness
can't teach teens how to confront
tragedy.
"It can't bear the weight of deeper
questions: Why are my parents getting
a divorce? Why did
my best friend
commit suicide?
Why, in this
economy, can't I get
the good job I was
promised if I was a
good kid?"
What can a parent
do then?
Get "radical," Dean
says.
She says parents
who perform one
act of radical faith in
front of their children
convey more than a
multitude of
sermons and
mission trips.
A parent's radical
act of faith could involve something as
simple as spending a summer in
Bolivia working on an agricultural
renewal project or turning down a
more lucrative job o#er to stay at a
struggling church, Dean says.
But it's not enough to be radical --
parents must explain "this is how
Christians live," she says.
"If you don't say you're doing it
because of your faith, kids are going to
say my parents are really nice people,"
Dean says. "It doesn't register that
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faith is supposed to make you live
di#erently unless parents help their
kids connect the dots."
'They called when all the cards
stopped'
Anne Havard, an Atlanta teenager,
might be considered radical. She's a
teen whose faith appears to be on re.
Havard, who participated in the Emory
program, bubbles over with energy
when she talks about possibly
teaching theology in the future and
quotes heavy-duty scholars such as
theologian Karl Barth.
She's so red up about her faith that
after one question, Havard goes on a
ve-minute tear before
stopping and chuckling:
"Sorry, I just talked a
long time."
Havard says her faith
has been nurtured by
what Dean, the "Almost
Christian" author, would
call a signicant faith
community.
In 2006, Havard lost her
father to a rare form of
cancer. Then she lost
one of her best friends --
a young woman in the
prime of life -- to cancer
as well. Her church and
her pastor stepped in,
she says.
"They called when all the cards
stopped," she says.
When asked how her faith held up after
losing her father and friend, Havard
didn't fumble for words like some of
the teens in "Almost Christian."
She says God spoke the most to her
when she felt alone -- as Jesus must
have felt on the cross.
"When Jesus was on the cross crying
out, 'My God, why have you forsaken
me?' Jesus was part of God,'' she
says. "Then God knows what it means
to doubt.
"It's OK to be in a storm, to be in a
doubt," she says, "because God was
there, too.
BY JOHN BLAKE,,WWW.CNN.COM
EQUIP
CREATING A MEDIA-SAFE
HOME

For better or worse, media has a
powerful inuence in our kids lives!
Todays media sends nonstop
communication, delivering its voice
through television, movies, Internet,
music, magazines, books, computers,
smartphones, tablets, and more.
Frankly, it is impossible for parents to
have control over every message that
is being sent to our kids.
Because parents cant control all of
their kids media consumption, some
feel lost, hopeless, or paralyzed when
facing todays technology and media.
We may complain, but it is time for us
to quit whining, and do something.
Dont give up. Dont bail out. There are
things we can do and environments we
can foster to create a media-safe
home.
Watch, Listen, and Read. Creating a
media-safe home requires that you
become a student of the culture. The
easiest way to get a handle on what
media your kids are consuming is to
watch what they watch, listen to what
they listen to, and read what they read.
Look for every opportunity to ask and
learn from your kids.
Evaluate. Evaluate everything you see
and hear with your kids. When you
evaluate, dont just play the bad-guy
role. At times, this will likely be
necessary, but also tell your kids what
you like and why, and help them learn
to discern what they are putting into
their minds.
Examine Your Own
Behavior. Too many
parents want their kids
to make good media
choices but arent willing
to discipline themselves.
Remember the old
adage: Children see,
children do. Set the
example you want your
kids to follow.
Discuss and Listen;
Dont Lecture. Anytime
we can truly dialog with
our kids about media
use and inuence, it is
better than any lecture
or sermon we could ever
deliver to them.
Ultimately, you may
choose to disagree with your kids
opinions but they will at least feel you
were willing to listen.
Develop Clear Expectations. Work
together with your teens to come up
with clearly expressed expectations
about media consumption and use of
the devices that deliver media. As
technology changes rapidly, youll
need to revisit the expectations from
time to time to keep them relevant and
current.
BY JIM BURNS,PRESIDENT OF HOMEWARD
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A publication of IBC Student Ministr y.
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