SPLINK for the Week of February 26th

Feb. 26 - March 3 Discipleship Follow the Leader Play an old favorite, Follow the Leader. Choose one person to be the leader and the others (join in, Mom and Dad) follow that person and do what he or she does. (March, skip, jump, swing arms, put hands on head, etc.) Ask: Do you like being the follower or leader best? Why? What would have happened if you had gone your own direction instead of following the leader? (You would have been left behind, you wouldn't be part of the game, you would be alone, etc.) Why is it important to follow God? (We don't always know the right way to go; He knows what is best; He can be trusted, etc.) Drawing in the Dark  Items Needed: blindfold White board and marker or paper and crayon Slips of paper with a name of something to be drawn on each one (dog, refrigerator, bicycle, computer, elephant, house, etc.) Draw pictures to illustrate that others can help us, if we only listen. Choose two volunteers. Designate one to draw and the other to guide. Let the guide choose an item to be drawn while the other one is blindfolded. The guide must help the person drawing by giving him or her instructions on where to place the marker, what to do draw, etc. When finished take off the blindfold and see the creation. Take turns guiding and drawing. Ask: What helped when you were drawing the picture? (The other person's instructions, having someone who could see what I was doing give me advice, etc.) Would it have been harder if you didn't have someone helping you?(Yes) How does God help us? (He gives us the Bible so we can know the right way; He gives us the Holy Spirit to guide us; He gives us people [parents, teachers, etc.] to help us.) God wants us to know the right way to go, but we must be willing to listen and do what our parents, teachers, and others in authority tell us.    Ten Commandment Toss Items needed: a ball Marker (write the numbers 1-10 around the ball or write numbers on small pieces of paper and tape them to it) The entire family should know the Ten Commandments by now. Gather the family in a circle. Toss the ball to someone. He or she must say the commandment that matches the number that is on top of the ball. (If the number 5 is at the top of the ball, he must say commandment number 5—Honor your father and mother.) We must first learn the commands of God, so we can know what to do. When we follow and keep His commands, God is pleased with His disciples.

New stuff!

Just a reminder that every Sunday I'll be updating the Home Connection ---> section with the newest download.  This great resource gives you ideas on how to reinforce at home what your kids have learned with me and my staff on Sunday.

Every Sunday I'll also be updating the Parents Page with a new parenting tip that I have found particularly helpful on my journey as a parent.  This week's tip deals with whether or not we should reward our children equally... some really thought provoking stuff!  Be sure to check it out!

Lastly, this week I'll be working to create two distinct areas under the Parents Page.  I will be separating this page into an Early Childhood and an Elementary section.

This will allow me to fine tune your available resources making it possible for you to quickly and easily download, read, and view information that is pertinent to you and the age of your child.

On this journey with you,

Pastor Beau

Comedy Clip Friday!

I love stand up comedy... there's just something about someone pointing out the obvious that makes me laugh!  The trouble is, it's hard to find good, clean comedy.

If you have yet to discover Tim Hawkins then you're in for a treat!

I first saw Tim Hawkins at Children's Pastor Conference a few years ago and thought he was hilarious!  If you like his stuff here are TONS more videos on YouTube.  And you can find out more about him here.

Some of my favorite bits of his are his song re-writes...




And his takes on kids and parenting (he has four kids of his own :)



Have fun and laugh a lot!

On the journey with you,

Pastor Beau

Updates...

There have been some subtle updates to this blog that I don't want you to miss:

• On the right hand side of every page ---> you'll find a miniature version of the full-blown calendar.  This mini-calendar has been designed to show you at a glance what is coming up within the next several days.  For example, as I write this post I see that the Pastor Beau Store is THIS Sunday.  My hope is that this calendar will keep all of us informed of the goings on regarding family and children ministry at Redding First.
• I've added a tab on the top navigation bar entitled Downloads.  This is an ever-expanding list of pertinent downloads for you, the parent.  Eventually you will be able to download permission slip forms, songs, cool memorization tools, and more!  Be sure to check back often to see what I've added!
• Under the Parent tab I've started to feature a revolving Parent Tip for us.  Every week you'll find a particularly informative or insightful parenting tip that I feel is worth sharing.  Be sure to check in periodically to see what's new!
• Also on the Parents page, under Recommended Blogs, is a list of blogs that I regularly visit.  These are wonderful resources for us that are thought provoking and at times challenging :)
• The Home Connection section in the right hand sidebar ---> makes available to you every week easy and fun ways to reinforce at home what your kids are learning from me and my staff of Sundays.  These Home Connections are also an excellent way for you to point out God Moments that may occur during your week and relate them back to what we are currently learning.

The sole driving force behind this blog is to provide you with constantly renewed resources that help equip and empower you to begin taking steps toward embracing your God-given role as the Primary Soul Shaper of your children.

Really, all it takes are small, consistent steps in the right direction... a few consistently dedicated minutes a week can begin to change the dynamic of your family and strengthen your relationship with your wonderful children.

God has called us, as parents, to be His champions to our children.  God has called me to help you do just that!

On the journey with you,

Pastor Beau

SPLINK for the Week of February 19th

February 19-25 Authority Your kids are knee deep in learning the 10 Commandments.  I've had a lot of you ask for me to post the cards that I have used in the past to help the kids memorize the 10 Commandments.  Well, here they are! The 10 Commandment Cards Hint:  if you use these cards for yourself, you too will know all 10 Commandments in no time!  Try it, I think you'll be surprised how easy using these cards makes remembering the commandments in order. __________________________________________ Below you'll find 3 easy activities to do with your kids to reinforce what they have learned on Sunday. Why? Because! Items Needed: slips of paper or index cards Pencils Two small bowls to hold the slips of paper Play Why? Because! Give each person two slips of paper and a pencil. Ask them to write a question on one that starts with Why? (Why is milk white? Why do I have to go to bed at 8?) Then on the other slip, write a Because answer. (Because it's not green; because you turn into a monster at 9.) Keep the Why questions separate from the Because answers and put them in two separate bowls. Mix up the questions in each bowl. Let one person choose a Why question and read it aloud. Then ask another person to randomly choose a Because answer and read it. (Hopefully, they will not pick one that actually answers the question.)  Read all the questions and answers. This was a silly game of questions and answers, but there are many questions we don't always know the answers to. There are questions we may like to ask God. God doesn't always answer our questions, but we can know that He is wise AND good. God is in charge and He will do what is best for us when we love and obey Him (Romans 8:28).  Handiwork Ask each family member to draw a picture. When all are finished, praise each person's "handiwork”-–work of their hands. How would you feel if I grabbed your picture and tried to tear it up? (I would be angry; I would tell you to leave it alone, etc.) Just as your picture belongs to you and you have the right to say what happens to it, the world belongs to God and He has the right to rule over it. Psalm 19:1 says that the skies are God's handiwork. He made the sun, moon, and stars. He created the entire world and has the right to rule over it (Psalm 24:1). God is the ultimate authority who is wise and good. He makes good rules, but He gives us a choice to say yes or no. God wants us to say yes and do what He has asked. In this week's lesson, Balak, the rich and powerful king of Moab tried to persuade Balaam to curse God's people, the Israelites. God told Balaam NOT to curse His people. God even used a donkey to talk to Balaam. Even though the king tried to bribe Balaam, he would not curse God's people. God is in charge and can use whatever He chooses to teach us and help us submit to His authority. Better Than an Umbrella Item Needed: umbrella Use an umbrella to illustrate God's authority over us. Open the umbrella and ask: Why do we use an umbrella? (To protect our clothes from getting wet, to keep us dry, etc.) Just as an umbrella protects us from the rain, God's commands are designed to protect us from the bad consequences of wrong behavior. When we break God's commands, we step out from under His protection and expose ourselves to more trouble. Pick one of the commandments and ask: How does keeping this commandment protect us? For example: How does honoring your mom and your dad protect you?(If you do what they tell you to do, you will be safe; if you obey, you won't be punished; if you speak good about them and honor them, others will respect you; you will protected from guilt and a bad reputation, etc.) Keep reviewing the Ten Commandments. Write each number from 1-10 on a slip of paper and put them in a bag. Take turns drawing out a number. Say the commandment that matches that number. (5—Honor your mom and your dad.)

Those were (are) the days...

I'm just going to say it... I think I was born in the wrong decade.  I should have been born in 1915.

Now don't get me wrong... I LOVE technology and all of that, but deep down, at my very core, I long for a simpler existence.

I'm always surprised at how I feel when I unplug from today's technological wonders.

Last night as I finished reading my second book in one week I was reminded of how amazingly awesome reading is... I mean seriously, intellectually I know reading is great but my attention tends to get pulled in so many different directions I tell myself I have no time to read... which of course is not true.

This got me thinking of all the great books I've read and one jumped out at me as a very influential book from my childhood.

When I was growing up my mother would take my brother and me to the library.  I would immediately go to the Arts and Crafts or Science section and sit in awe of all the cool things hidden between the pages of the books on those shelves.

One such book that I continually looked for (and still do to this day :) was The Great American Depression Book of Fun.  I LOVE this book! It's chocked full of ideas on how to make toys from everyday items found around your house.  You'll learn how to make fighting kites (complete with flour torpedoes!), slide whistles, spinning tops (the first Beyblades), and my personal favorite... RUBBER BAND GUNS!

I can't tell you how many hours I spent as a child reading the stories of how kids during the Great Depression had "a good-time romp through the hard times", imagining myself as a kid during the '30's.  The drawings in this book made me want to try everything out... and I'm sure I did!

I can remember my buddy Dylan and I spending days shaping, sanding, fine-tuning, and practicing our aim with the rubber band guns my dad helped us make.  In fact, as I reflect on this now, those were some of the best times I can remember.

With today's video game, 3D TV, internet, download instantly, spoon-fed, media rich way of life, I'd like to challenge you parents to take a step or two back from technology and unplug your family for a weekend.

Sure, you'll have some gnashing of teeth, some "what are we going to do" and "I can't live without my DS" but, I think you'll discover the joys of a simpler life, if only for a day or two.

Here are some suggestions on what to do:

• Find a copy of The Great American Depression Book of Fun and see how people had fun with next to nothing.
• Bring out those old board games
• Read a book together
• Find your family picture albums and reminisce
• Make some origami jumping frogs and have a race
• Teach your kids how to play a new card game
• Go on a walk in the park and count how many different animals/bugs you see
• Learn a new game called Ghoulash (it's like battleship but cooler :).  Here's another maze for you!
• Do a puzzle
• Make a model
• Go to the local 'zoo' (on our case, that means PetCo :) and look at all the cool animals that God has created... my current favorite is the way cute Bearded Dragon!
• Write a story as a family and illustrate it

And hey, spending some quality time together as a family without any distractions can only strengthen your relationships, right?

Try it, I think you'll be surprised at what you discover!

What I learned in Kid's Church...

Last night in Kid's DNA (our Wednesday night study for kids) we talked about sharing the Good News.

As I was preparing for class I was reminded of a youth event I attended when I was in high school.  It was called SEMP, which stands for Student Evangelical Mission Project.  This giant event was held in Santa Cruz and hundreds of teens from all over came together to learn how to share the Good News with others.

I remember being really excited at the prospect of gaining new tools in sharing my faith.  But when it was all said and done I was left wanting.  Something was missing.

Years later I put my finger on it:  I left that event thinking that I had to change people into Christians by using a special catchy phrase, or kitschy, clever acronym.  I was given some tools, but not the whole toolbox.

Yes, we are commanded  to share the Good News that sin can be forgiven, we are to share that Jesus died for us, we are to share the hope that can be found in Him... but it's not our job to convict them of their sin.  It's not our responsibility to change people's hearts.  It's not our job to save them.

John 16:8 makes it very clear that that job belongs to God... and God alone.

John tells us in this verse that the Holy Spirit will convict people of sin (the wrong they are doing) of godliness or righteousness (reminding them of the proper thing they SHOULD be doing) and of judgment (the consequences for them continuing down a destructive path).

This was something I was not told as SEMP.  I came away from that event with an unbelievable burden that I had to force, cajole, debate, outwit, out quote, or guilt people into being a Christian.  And that is simply not the case.

Our responsibility as followers of Christ is to pray for them.  To love them.  To speak the truth in love. To tell them what God has done in our lives.  Our responsibility in NOT to convict them... that's the Holy Spirit's job, and I'm pretty sure He doesn't need our help.

So, what's the take home for us as parents?

You will hear me say this over and over... God has called you, by virtue of being a parent, to be His example to your children. YOU are the primary spiritual leader in your childrens' lives.

With this in mind, as you interact with your children in the normal ebb and flow of the day I encourage you to be mindful of how you are showing them, by your actions and words, how to be witness for Christ to others.

Your children are constantly watching you and how you relate to others.  They are taking notes and applying what they learn from you to their own lives.  They look to you for leadership in how to love others, how to pray for others, how to speak the truth in love, and how to tell others what God has done and is doing in your life.

So lead well.

On the journey with you,

Pastor Beau