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January 2014 FOR PARENTS OF TEENS

TIPS >>> PONDER THIS

THE REASON FOR THE SEASON

Of all the resolutions your family could draft for 2014, the most important is to

center your lives around Jesus Christ. In 99 Thoughts on Jesus-Centered Living

(Simply Youth Ministry), Rick Lawrence provides practices for changing how you relate to Jesus. One involves chewing on deep questions. Below are examples of

questions your family can ponder together this year:

Which word best describes how you see Jesus: nice, fierce, or mysterious?

Jesus said he’s the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). So why do we often

believe that “being a good person” is how we get to heaven? Today, how has Jesus been your way, truth, or life?

What’s the difference, if any, between loving Jesus for who he is and for what

he can do? What’s one thing about Jesus that makes you grateful?

How can you live in the spirit of Jesus and do something kind for a “fringe

person”—the kind Jesus was drawn to?

If you sat next to Jesus on a plane, what are the first three questions you think

he’d ask you (besides your name)? Today, what’s one question you’d like Je-

sus to ask you?

THE VIEW

Ponder these findings about peo-

ple’s focus and priorities:

Teenagers say their top need is

“help building a positive rela-

tionship with God.” —Group magazine

Personal activities, hobbies,

hanging out with friends, and

earning money come well ahead

of evangelism as priorities for

the average Christian teenager. —Dare 2 Share

Only 12% of American adults

say faith is a top priority in their

lives. —Barna Group

What types of things would you say your life is centered

around?

What would you have to

change to center your life

around Jesus more?

How can your family focus on

Jesus and faith during the up-

coming year?

Use these “orbital questions” from 99

Thoughts on Jesus-Centered Living

for holidays this year:

New Year’s Day—Most good friendships are based on mutual

giving. It’s easy to understand what

Jesus offers us, but what do we have to offer Jesus that he doesn’t

already have? (Read John 15:14-

15.)

Valentine’s Day—Jesus never mar-

ried, and there’s no indication he

was romantically interested in any-

one, but do you think he ever flirted

with a girl? Why or why not?

Easter—Sometimes people who

don’t believe in Jesus say the bibli-cal accounts about him were made

up by the Bible’s authors.

What’s something Jesus said or did

that no one could’ve made up?

Independence Day—Jesus often

withdrew by himself to spend time

alone; why do you think he needed

so much alone time?

Halloween—If Jesus were a little

boy now, would he go trick-or-treating? Why or why not? If he

did, what costume would he wear?

Thanksgiving—Jesus is preparing a special room in his “Father’s

house” for each of us. What do you

think your room will look like?

What do you hope it has in it? Why

would Jesus put that in your room?

Advent—If Jesus were a little boy

now, would his parents take him to

see Santa? What might he ask for?

BIBLE FOCUS

Jesus asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still oth-ers, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Matthew 16:13-16

GET TO KNOW JESUS Expert Insights for Parents of Teenagers

By Brian Berry

RESOURCE

Proof, a six-lesson study on the gospel of John, explores the ques-tion “Who is Jesus?” It encourages kids and families to understand the awesome privilege of knowing and being known by Jesus. Availa-ble at SimplyYouthMinistry.com.

Psychologists say all of us hold on to “mental models” of people we know.

Due to the overwhelming amount of in-

formation our brains must organize, we

tend to defend the established way we see something or someone. Even when

we get new information that challenges

our mental model, we hang on to what we’ve come to believe is the truth.

A great example of this is Richard Jew-ell, a private security guard at the 1996

Summer Olympics in Atlanta. He dis-

covered a pipe bomb, alerted police, and

helped evacuate the area before the bomb went off. In the media, he was

initially celebrated as a hero. But

the FBI grew suspicious and pointed to Jewell as a suspect. Though he was nev-

er charged with a crime, the cloud of suspicion around Jewell gave people a

“mental model” of him as a terrorist—

even after the real bomber admitted the

crime.

This dynamic explains why few of us

have an accurate grasp of Jesus. Once our understanding of him is established,

we tend to ignore or tune out new infor-

mation that doesn’t fit. One way to get rid of these mental models of Jesus is to

blow them up, as if we were demolition

experts. Ask these three questions when-

ever you read anything about Jesus in the Bible:

1. What did Jesus really say? (What

was the context of his remarks—who was he speaking to, where

was he speaking, and why was he speaking?)

2. What did Jesus really do? (In the

context of “normal behavior” in Jesus’ culture, what impact—both

positive and negative—did his

actions have on people who heard him?)

3. How did people really experience Jesus? (What array of emotional

reactions did people have to Jesus,

and why do you think they reacted

that way?)

—99 Thoughts on Jesus-Centered Living

MEDIA SPOTLIGHT

MAINSTREAM MUSIC

EMINEM Background: From Detroit’s under -

ground rap scene, Eminem climbed his

way to become the best-selling artist of

the 2000s. But controversy has always

dogged him. One of his first hits was a

song about taking his infant daughter to

dispose of his wife’s body. Eminem’s lyrics are very raw, with language, im-

agery, and subjects that teenagers should-

n’t be exposed to. He’s had problems

with prescription drugs and alcohol but

became sober about five years ago.

Albums: The Marshall Mathers LP 2

(2013), Recovery (2010), The Marshall

Mathers LP (2000)

What Eminem Says: About using ho-

mophobic slurs, he says, “I never really

equated those words [with homosexuali-

ty]. That word was just thrown around so freely back then. It goes back to that bat-

tle, back and forth in my head, of want-

ing to feel free to say what I want to say,

and then [worrying about] what may or

may not affect people.”

Explore: The explicit video for

Eminem’s new song “Berzerk” is availa-

ble here: www.youtube.com/watch?

v=ab9176Srb5Y

CHRISTIAN MUSIC

SWITCHFOOT

Background: Although Switch-

foot dislikes being called a

“Christian band,” their faith

shines through in all they do.

Their catchy songs have in-your-face lyrics, and this lack of sug-

arcoating seems to contribute to

their popularity. Switchfoot’s

music has been featured in TV

ads and movies, and they’ve gar-

nered many awards. The latest

album also serves as the sound-

track of a documentary about the

band, which loves to surf.

Albums: Fading West (2014), Vice Verses (2011), Hello Hurri-

cane (2009), The Beautiful Let-

down (2003)

What Switchfoot Says: Singer

Jon Foreman says, “None of

these songs has been born again,

and to that end there is no such

thing as Christian music. No.

Christ didn’t come and die for

my songs; he came for me.”

Explore: You can read more of

that insightful interview here:

www.ctkblog.com/2013/12/05/

why-switchfoot-wont-sing-

christian-songs/

MOVIES

Movie: I, Frankenstein

Genre: Action, Horror

Rating: PG-13

Synopsis: This film is based on

a graphic novel, where gargoyles

and demons fight for power. Somehow this is related to

Frankenstein and his creation,

Adam.

Our Take: This is from the

same people who made the

“Underworld” films. Those

weren’t good movies for teenag-

ers, so we’d advise caution.

Movie: Jack Ryan: Shadow Re-

cruit

Genre: Action, Adventure,

Suspense

Rating: Not yet r ated (likely

PG-13)

Synopsis: This new film is a

reboot of author Tom Clancy’s

Jack Ryan character. Here Ryan

(Chris Pine) uncovers a financial

terrorist plot.

Our Take: With Clancy’s re-

cent death, there might be more press and hype surrounding this

film. In the past, these have been

well-done and action-packed.

VIDEO GAMES

Doki-Doki Universe—This adventure game looks strange, weird, and wonderful. You’re a robot on a mission to

learn what it really means to be human. The game claims that players will learn something about themselves, too.

(Rated E10; PS3, PS4, Vita)

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds—This new take on the classic game incorporates some 3D ele-ments. Link can also go to 2D and hop onto walls to solve puzzles. (Rated E; 3DS)

JANUARY 2014 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thurs Fri Sat

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New Year’s Day No Fusion

No Epic

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No Epic No Fusion

Fusion 6:30-8:30pm

Big Epic Games @ the CBC Gym 6:30-8:30pm

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2nd Sunday Breakfast 9:45 Epic 11:15 Fusion HS Summer Missions Parent Info Meeting 12:30pm @ The WareHouse

Fusion 6:30-8:30pm

Epic 6:30-8:30pm

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9:45 Epic 11:15 Fusion

MLK Jr. Day

Fusion 6:30-8:30pm

Epic 6:30-8:30pm

26 27 28 29 30 31

9:45 Epic 11:15 Fusion

Fusion 6:30-8:30pm

Epic 6:30-8:30pm

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