Ministries:
Adult | Teens | Children

Pastor's Pen's:
2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001

Sermon Series:
Following Jesus
Earthly Cross
His Name Is
Apostles Creed
Dealing with Feelings
Jonah
Get Real
Promised Land Living

Grace Church
257 Kendall Street
Burlington, WI 53105

(262) 763-3021

Email:
Pastor Scott Carson

Secretary Patti Hall

PASTOR'S PENS 2006

Grace Church of Burlington September 3, 2006 “In my day, the principal concerns of university students were sex, smoking dope, rioting and learning. Learning was something that you did only when the first three weren’t available.”                                                                                    Bill Bryson             Walk into any department store across America this month, and you'll know for sure that it's "Back to School" season. Parents will hit the malls, with teens in tow, to get them ready for school—purchasing everything from Gap jeans to graphing calculators. But while American parents will spend a whopping $40.5 billion getting their kids re-geared for school, how much time will we spend preparing our kids' minds for the onslaught of often anti-Christian messages they'll face in the classrooms?             From the subtle lies that image is everything to the more blatant ones like life is nothing more than a random collision of atoms, teens will have to face challenges that their parents and grandparents never imagined. They will encounter classmates and teachers who support Gay rights, or they will make new friends with teens whose Internet MySpace pages look more like soft-porn than the yearbook pages of yesteryear. Though most schools have a zero profanity rule, teachers and students still use language that’s R-rated. So what can parents do?             1) If you love your child, spend time with your child. Though they may not say it, kids spell love – T-I-M-E. The number one problem faced by most teenagers is a lack of time spent with their parents. Each child needs one on one time with them. And they don’t need to be lectured, they need to be listened to. After they have shared, a wise parent can give direction from a Biblical worldview. It’s during time spent with your teen that a wise parent can take advantage of a “teachable moment” to share Biblical values. Parents periodically taxi their children to various activities. Invest that time in talking with your kids. Make it a fun time and a memory time.             2) Model a Christian lifestyle for your child. Typically, more is caught than taught. Kids learn by watching and imitating. If your kids know that God’s Word, prayer, giving and serving the Lord are a priority in your life, it has a greater chance of being a priority in their life. Being consistent and godly is essential if we are going to have godly children. And be very, very careful what you say in front of young ears. Over the years I’ve seen many, many young people turned off to Christ and His Church by parents who were critical and negative of the Church. Our kids will usually love what we love and detest what we detest.             3) Deal tenderly and wisely with doubts. As teens move toward adulthood, they will often question Christian beliefs. This is a normal part of taking adult ownership. Parents need to wisely and graciously answer their questions and not overreact. Most teens have not yet learned to package things well (some adults haven’t either). We need to help our children develop critical thinking skills so that convictions and values become their own. That comes from teaching them how to think, not just what to think.             4) Have a healthy sexual relationship with your spouse. Kids today hear a lot about sex but very rarely see real intimacy. It’s essential that they continually see a Dad and Mom who love each other and are committed to each other. They need to hear their parents speak kindly to one another and see that they cherish one another. Without seeing marital love modeled by their own parents, most kids will not realize that there is a difference between just sex and committed, marital love. (And if you are having serious marital issues, please get help...if for no other reason than for your children.)             5) Be familiar with your teen’s world. Too many parents assume that their kids are doing the right thing and have the right kind of friends. Teens need accountability. Parents need to know who their friends are, what their friend’s parents are like, what their kids are listening to, what they’re watching, what sites they are visiting on the Internet, where they’re spending their time, etc. Too many parents would rather live in ignorance than risk conflict. No one ever said that parenting was going to be easy. As a parent, you have to sometimes ask the tough questions and do some homework. If wrong choices are being made, then it is your responsibility to hold them accountable. If parents don’t protect their teens (sometimes from themselves), who will?             6) Use our church as a support system. Educators know that repetition is the key to learning. About the only place that your teens are going to hear your Christian values supported and repeated is in our church. That’s why church attendance, Sunday School and teen programs shouldn’t be optional. Teens are overexposed to a secular and godless worldview. This local church is one of the few places that will teach them how to live in a way that really counts for eternity.