Connecting Youth During the Summer

If you had to paint a picture of your child’s faith when the school year starts back up this fall, what would you want to be true? Would you like to see them being more proactive, committed, connected, growing, etc.? There probably isn’t a parent reading this who wouldn’t say those are things that they would desire. The challenge is: HOW?

On May 15, I had the opportunity to share what God is teaching when Proverbs tell us that we are to train up children in the way they should go. (If you missed it, check out the sermon video here.) One of the most important things we can do as parents is to be actively involved with our faith and our church. When we show through our actions our commitment to Christ, that can be an even bigger impact than the words we say. And a close second in importance for the spiritual growth of our kids is setting and following through on an expectation that they are also staying connected AND serving.

There are no guarantees that if your student goes to Bible study they for sure will be a more mature Christian in a few months, but I can say with confidence that if they aren’t engaged with a community of believers for the deliberate purpose of growing in maturity and discipleship, they won’t be a more mature Christian in a few months. It would be sort of like hoping to make the football team in the fall. Maybe you can exercise all summer and still get cut, but we do know if you don’t do anything to get ready, it won’t go well for you!

At Gateway, our passion for all people, adults and students alike, is to challenge us to be connected within the community of God’s people and to provide opportunities to consistently put into practice the habits of spiritual growth. Specifically, we want to encourage all of our families to connect their students with our summer Bible studies and to serving opportunities. To find more specific information about ways you can help your kids connect, check out our website at https://www.gatewayepc.org/youth and sign up for our weekly newsletter.

Specifically, we want to invite your kids to our High School Summer Study (incoming 9th graders through just graduated) that will be meeting every Monday at the County Road 9 Campus starting at 10:00am and wrapping up at 11:30am. That will start on June 6. And our Middle School Summer Study (going into 6th grade through going into 8th grade) will be meeting twice a month on Sunday evenings at our County Road 9 Campus starting on June 5 and go from 6:00pm to 7:30pm.

If you have a student in middle or high school, we also want to challenge you to get them plugged in serving at church on Sunday mornings. Statistically, we know that young people who serve at church are the most likely to stay engaged with their faith as they enter college and adulthood. We need lots of help in the summer (and all year!). You can find out more about how they can get involved on our Serve page.

It is a privilege to serve your family and invest in your kids. We can’t wait to see them continue to take ownership of their faith and grow in their passion for Jesus!