Advent Schedule

Sunday, December 24th- 4th Sunday of Advent Worship at 10:30 AM, NO SUNDAY SCHOOL

Christmas Eve Services: 5 PM- Family Christmas Eve Service

11 PM- Lessons and Carols Candlelight Service

Sunday, December 31st- Worship at 10:30, NO SUNDAY SCHOOL

SAFE Seminar

I'm sure the last thing you're thinking about is 2024, but it will be here in just a few weeks! I hope you will make plans to join us for the SAFE Seminar Friday, January 19th, and Saturday, January 20th. SAFE stands for Sexual Awareness and Family Empowerment. This seminar's goal is to show parents how they can be their kids' main resource for information about sex, bodily development and safety. We'll discuss how to talk to your children about sexual development, body awareness and helping your kids trust their intuition to prevent unsafe situations and sexual abuse. Leann Gardner, a licensed clinical social worker and ordained minister, will be our speaker and facilitator for this seminar. We will meet in the Joyhouse from 6:30 PM- 8:30 PM on Friday night, and then 9 AM- 2 PM on Saturday. Tickets are $30 for a single ticket, or $50 a couple. Childcare will be available, and the cost includes snacks, continental breakfast, and lunch on Saturday. Sign up here for this important event!

Talking to Little Ones

As a parent, you find yourself having to teach your children how to regulate their emotions, how to resolve conflict, and how to be kind in their relationships that they have. And these are all VERY DIFFICULT things to teach, especially when your child is pitching a fit over the fact that they don't want to wear the purple socks, they hate the color purple, even though they were their favorite socks yesterday.

That's where the tools from the book: How to Talk So Little Kids Will Listen come in handy (I HOPE). This book is geared toward parents of 2 year olds- 7 year olds, but these tools would also be helpful for parents of older children.

Tools at a Glance: Chart of the Tools to use to help kids deal with emotions, resolve conflict, and more

How to Talk So Little Kids Will Listen book summary- it is 17 pages, but if you have time, there's lots of good stuff in it, including examples for using these tools in the grocery store, with sibling rivalry, and more!

Engaging Your Child's Curiosity

Have you been wanting to help your child engage with the Bible but you either weren't sure where to start or didn't have the time to spend trying to figure out what you need to do? I have created a new resource that I hope will help you. It's based on the book I Wonder: Engaging a Child's Curiosity about the Bible. I've divided into two groups: Preschool and Elementary. You can find it here:

Engaging Your Preschooler's Curiosity about the Bible

Engaging Your Elementary Child's Curiosity about the Bible

Each mission will be a month long, so kids and families have plenty of time to complete them. Then, once they are completed, encourage your children to let me know so that I can give them a sticker for completing their monthly mission.

Please let me know what questions you have!

Bible Reading Plan for Families

If you haven't yet, I hope you will check out the booklet, Building Blocks of Faith: Teaching the Bible to Children, that I wrote that is on the Children's Hall. It includes a weekly Bible reading plan for families, giving you a guide to use to teach your kids about the Bible and the characters in it. I hope this will be a helpful resource for you as you help your child grow in their faith.

School Lunch

Is your child's school open to visitors at lunch again? Would your child like me to come eat with them? Fill out this form and let me know! Then I'll reach out and schedule a time for me to come eat with your child.

Looking Ahead:

• January 19th and 20th- SAFE Seminar- Learn more about it here
• February 3rd- Daddy Daughter Sock Hop

VBS- June 10th-14th- Scuba VBS!

Passport Kids Camp at Rock Eagle (Eatonton)- July 14th-17th (Sun-Wed)