Grades 9-12 | Questions From a Rich Young Man We’re halfway through our series focusing on the questions of Jesus. Each week, students are examining a different passage of Scripture to discover what was behind some of the questions Jesus asked in the Gospels. In this second lesson, we explored Matthew 19:16-22, where Jesus encountered a rich young man. He had lived an exemplary life but felt that something was still missing. Jesus’ question about his focus on the good things of this life rather than a focus on “the One who is good” challenged the young man’s priorities. This week, I encourage you to spend a few minutes talking with your teenager about our lesson. Consider building your conversation around these questions:
Grades 6-8 | God Is Just & Merciful We’re continuing our series called “God Is.” Each week, we’re discussing important character traits of God and how those traits invite us to know and love God more.
In this second lesson, we explored John 3:16-21, where Jesus talks about his purpose and summarizes his good news in a familiar verse—John 3:16. Jesus brought hope to an unfair world. We all have sinned. We have Adam and Eve to thank for that; their actions brought sin into the world. But through Jesus, we have the opportunity to be freed from the penalty of sin—separation from God. Jesus’ mercy doesn’t make his justice obsolete—by his Spirit, we can live in the tension between the righteousness of God and the mercy, grace, and forgiveness of God. This week, I encourage you to spend a few minutes talking with your teenager about our lesson. Consider fueling your conversation with these questions:
Thanks for all you do to love, encourage, and support your teenager at home. Have a great week! Grades 9-12 | The Power of a Question We’ve launched a new series focusing on the questions of Jesus. Each week, students are examining a different passage of Scripture to discover what was behind some of the questions Jesus asked in the Gospels. In this first lesson, we explored Luke 8:26-39, where Jesus encountered Legion—a man who had been rejected and banished because of his demon possession. Legion’s main issue was that there were so many competing voices in his head that he didn’t know who he really was. Our conversation focused on how Jesus’ simple question to Legion allowed for a miraculous interaction. This week, I encourage you to spend a few minutes talking with your teenager about our lesson. Here are some questions that can help fuel the conversation:
Grades 6-8 | The Power of a Question We’ve started a new series called “God Is.” For the next three sessions, our teenagers will look at different character traits of God and how those traits invite us to know and love God more. We also will explore how these traits impact their relationship with Jesus.
In this first lesson, we dug into Genesis 39, where Joseph experienced God’s presence in both the good (leading successfully) and the bad (being thrown in prison). God is everywhere and nearby. That may sound like a contradiction, but it shows us the beautiful character of God. God is near you when things are going well, as well as on the worst days. Take some time to talk more with your teenager about this lesson. Use these questions to get started:
Know that we're praying for you and your family. Have an amazing rest of the week! Grades 9-12 | Jesus and His Parables Sunday we looked at a one-off lesson on the question: “Who do you say that I am?” In this lesson, we drilled deep into the parables Jesus told, to understand better what the “values” of his “family” are like (the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), and to understand better the character and personality of God. As you go throughout the week, help reinforce this lesson in your child’s life by using these questions to fuel conversation as you have the opportunity.
Grades 6-8 | God the Holy Spirit--Our Guide We’ve wrapped up our series titled “Who Is God?” We finished by discussing God the Holy Spirit. While the Bible describes the Holy Spirit as having many roles, we mostly focused on the Holy Spirit’s role as a guide, our source for power, and our source for truth.
Our kids are surrounded by temptation, and many struggle to make decisions that honor Jesus. The Holy Spirit is our helper, and he leads us toward making right choices. God has given us a guide and offers power to live a Jesus-centered life because he knows we need help along the way—and the more we’re familiar with God’s truth, the more we benefit from the Holy Spirit’s guidance and power. This week, I encourage you to spend a few minutes talking with your teenager about our conversation. Consider fueling your discussion with these questions:
Have a great week! Grades 9-12 | Dating & Relationships We’re continuing our series on relationships. In our first week we studied Jesus’ definition of love and saw how it contrasts with our common cultural understanding of that word. We also discovered that the Bible presents love as a sacrificial act, seen most clearly through Jesus’ death on the cross. This week we plunged into the topic of dating and relationships. We emphasized that dating should never be done without prayer, a high level of intentionality, and wise counsel—especially from you! Because dating relationships often move toward greater levels of intimacy, young people should seek Jesus’ guidance in all their dating decisions. Consider asking your teenager some of the following questions this week:
Grades 6-8 | God the Holy Spirit--Our Guide We’ve wrapped up our series titled “Who Is God?” We finished by discussing God the Holy Spirit. While the Bible describes the Holy Spirit as having many roles, we mostly focused on the Holy Spirit’s role as a guide, our source for power, and our source for truth.
Our kids are surrounded by temptation, and many struggle to make decisions that honor Jesus. The Holy Spirit is our helper, and he leads us toward making right choices. God has given us a guide and offers power to live a Jesus-centered life because he knows we need help along the way—and the more we’re familiar with God’s truth, the more we benefit from the Holy Spirit’s guidance and power. This week, I encourage you to spend a few minutes talking with your teenager about our conversation. Consider fueling your discussion with these questions:
It’s a joy and honor to partner with you in the spiritual development of your teenager! I’m praying for you and your family as you continue to pursue Jesus and discover what it means to be one of his followers! Have an awesome week! GRADES 9-12 | Defining Love We’ve launched a three-lesson series dealing with relationships. Each week students will explore different Scripture passages to help them understand God’s definition of love. In the first lesson, we defined love by gaining a biblical understanding of it. To do this, we read 1 John 3:16–4:21, an extended reflection on the love God offers us and calls us to share. We realize this material is sensitive and your teenager is inundated with alternative messages advocating different understandings of love. With that in mind, we invite you to ask your teenager some of these questions throughout the coming week:
We’d love your prayer support during the next few weeks as we address these challenging yet important topics. GRADES 6-8 | Defining Love Our teenagers are continuing their series titled “Who Is God?” Each conversation focuses on important truths about God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. This week we talked about Jesus, God the Son—our Savior and King. In this second lesson we discussed what the Bible says about Jesus how came to earth as fully God and fully human—the Savior of the world and the one who paid the price for our sins. This week, I encourage you to spend a few minutes talking with your teenager about our lesson. Consider building your conversation around these kinds of questions:
Thanks for letting us partner with you in helping your teenager follow Jesus. Have a wonderful week!
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