PARENTS OF TEENS Here at Grace we realize that parents are still the main influence in a teen's life, and that they have been entrusted with the spiritual growth of their children. Although we have many different parenting styles represented at our church, we make a sincere effort to structure our ministry so that it is a support to every parent. In light of this we've been working hard on expanding our ministry to parents as well as teens, and we have added some new resources for parents as a result. We've been having parents review books that may be of help to them, and one of those is written below. We're working on posting all the reviews while continuing to review good parenting books as we are able- so please keep checking back to see what's new! We'd like to host a parent conference at our church that is open to the community about every two years. We've had the pleasure of hosting the "Generation Hope" and "Real World Parents" conferences in the past, and looking into the possibilities for our next conference in 2009 or 2010. We also host a parenting class using the resource "Running The Rapids" by Kevin Leman. We've had good response in hosting this class for a few years now, and we'll continue to offer it as there is interest. If you would like to be added to a notification list about the next time this study is offered, contact The Youth Staff and he'll write you in.

Book Reviews
About every month or two we have parents from Grace Church read and review books that parents of teens may be interested in. The Youth Staff has one copy of each book available on loan for 2 weeks at a time. Each review is posted on the Youth Newsletter or Calendar, and here is our current book review:


How To Really Parent Your Teenager
by Ross Campbell, M.D.. Review by Sharon Plunkett

This book is written to and for parents of teenagers. Ross was a clinical psychiatrist for more than thirty years, focusing on the parent-child relationship. He currently writes and lectures on parenting topics. This book devotes much of its time to assuring and teaching parents how they can be “a powerful force for good in their teenager’s life”. His primary point is that we are to love our teenager unconditionally as God loves us through Christ. God simply loves us because we are his children, and nothing can tear us from his embrace– end of story. This is the model for how we are to love our own children. We are to love proactively in a way that has nothing to do with the behavior of our children. The author goes on to explain in further chapters how to show that love while disciplining, protecting and teaching your teenager.

Ross also hits on the media influence, peer pressure, and self-image issues our teenagers are bombarded with each day. Contrasting the pressures of the world and all it is telling our teenagers to be is the truth of Jesus: “Jesus loves all people from the inside out rather than the outside in. The prophecy of Isaiah 53:2 offers this picture of the Savior: ‘He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.’ When he took the form of humanity, he came as a servant instead of a superstar; a peasant instead of a power broker. Jesus taught that the heart and the soul determine who we really are. He often chose to spend his time with the least popular – the sick and the meek. Can you see the tremendous appeal such a figure has for a teenager? Jesus stood above the social conventions and superficial evaluations. He chose truth, and the truth was that God loves us unconditionally rather than based on what we earn through appearance, deeds, or any other form of slavery. If you can teach the powerful positives of Christ, you won’t have to depend upon the nagging negatives of why we should turn off the television or boycott the movies. In other words, teach the underlying values because they are appealing and attractive. In the end, the best thing we have going for us is that our message is truth, and it works; the world’s message is a mirage, and it destroys.”

This book includes a study guide to be used personally or in a small group. ENJOY! This book is well worth the time you invest in it.

Parent Links
Mark Matlock's Planet Wisdom Website
Focus on the Family's Plugged In Online Website to get objective movie reviews as soon as films arrive in theaters.
Center For Parent/Youth understanding is a great site for parents to keep up on youth culture and find great resources.

HERE ARE SOME OTHER IMPORTANT THINGS FOR YOU TO NOTE:
MODESTY/MUSIC - Parents please support our modesty policy by watching what your son/daughter wears to church and activities. Please be aware of times especially when we may be playing games. Also, please make sure your student does not bring inappropriate music on trips in ipods, cd's, phones, etc.

I'm looking forward to a great year serving you and your students. if you have questions the best way to reach me is through This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it of by phone at at 789-0562 ext.103.

Phil de Martimprey
Youth Pastor