Hey there!
This week (and next), we will be holding a Student Leadership meeting after Youth Group from 8:15-9:15pm. All students are invited to participate and grow in their leadership. (Only those who applied and joined the team are expected to be there.) We will be talking about our understanding of the Gospel and learning how we can share the gospel with our friends.
See a note from me at the bottom of this email for more info about why we are talking about student leadership.
WHAT WE’RE LEARNING
Our Series
We are looking at some of the various ways we compare ourselves with others and learning how Jesus teaches us to be in the world.
This week we are studying Luke 15:25–32 & Matthew 20:1–16 and focusing on how to seek God and his perspective.
FOLLOW UP
Questions You Can Ask
If you’d like to start a conversation with your student about our lesson, consider these:
How do you try to earn God’s blessings of love, forgiveness, and grace?
When have you felt that God unfairly blessed someone else instead of you?
What are five things you can thank God for today?
RESOURCE
Parent Study
If you are the kind of person who likes to learn along, or maybe there’s another parent (or a group of you!) who want to have a discussion together, you can use these discussion guides!
UPCOMING
Events
Don’t forget to put Nerf Night and Fall Retreat on your calendar!
Nerf Night
Friday October 3 from 6:30-10pm
Eat dinner before. We’ll supply snacks
Fall Retreat (Price has gone up! Contact Pastor Ryan if you didn’t have a chance to register before.)
Friday-Sunday October 10-12
Find the registration at oakhavenchurch.org/youth
LEAD
Student Leadership
One last thing.
Youth ministry is so often seen as an opportunity for our students to be poured into and taught and mentored, etc. and it is certainly that. But if Ephesians 4 talks about how the expectation of leaders in the church is to “equip God’s people to do his work” than the job of leaders in youth ministry is to equip our students for God’s work. This means more than just putting on a good program, having events to attend, and talking about Jesus.
This year marks a turning point where our goal is no longer just to minister TO students, but THROUGH them. Our ministry should be less like a show to watch and more like “on the job training” for faith! That’s the goal anyway.
Student leadership is going to be an avenue where your kid gets developed in the skills they need to reach their friend for Jesus. We hope that the opportunities that God gives them to grow will impact the students in our ministry, in our schools, and reach far beyond what any of us can dream right now!
Please consider encouraging your student to join the team, or at least attend our leadership meetings. I know it can be inconvenient to wait for your student for ANOTHER thing that takes an hour but I believe this time will be richly worth it!
That’s it! Please email with any Questions.
