Just For Parents

Deuteronomy 15:7-11; 24:10-15,17-18

share generously, treat with dignity, protect with mercy

Conversation Starters

How can you keep this conversation going at home? Try bouncing some of these questions around at the dinner table, as you’re driving your kids to school or an activity, or even while you’re shopping together:

For Preschoolers

• Teach your preschooler about giving by handing them a quarter or another sum of money to give in the offering plate. Explain that we give to God because He loves us and gives to us.

For School-Age

• Teach your elementary school child to give by helping her count out a tenth of her allowance and give it in an offering envelope. Tell her that God gives us 100% and only asks for 10% back in order to help others.

For Students

• With your teenager, establish a working budget based on allowance and any part-time job he has. Help him learn to contribute a tenth of all income. Be sure to lead by example, and be open to discussing your budget and your giving habits.

by Polly House

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Jackie Kendall is a straight talker. She tells moms straight out, “Don’t let your daughter marry a Bozo!”

Kendall was one of the breakout conference leaders during the .Mom (pronounced Dot Mom) event, held Sept. 23-24 in Birmingham, Ala.

Speaking to a room full of women, Kendall didn’t hold back from telling them they have a great responsibility for keeping their girls safe from predatory guys.

“The greatest abuse is letting your [daughter] grow up thinking the world revolves around her,” she said. “The easiest way to make sure a girl is a Bozo-magnet is to teach her that everything is all about her.

“Is your girl growing in her love for Jesus?” Kendall asked. “Does she see that you are? Does she have a pattern of doing for others at home and at church?”

She cautioned that girls who aren’t helping other people are usually self-focused and will attract guys who are aware of this vulnerability.

“Do you know why older guys date younger girls?” she asked. “It’s because they are easier to seduce.”

She cautioned moms to step in if they see their freshman daughter dating a senior boy (in high school or college). “These guys see these younger girls as easy fruit. A girl will be all swooning and flattered that the older guy is interested in her, but you need to stop that relationship. He isn’t interested in her, just interested in using her.”

Kendall warned the women that in their roles as moms, Sunday school teachers, or any other where they are around girls regularly, they need to watch for signs of abuse in girls who are in relationships with guys.

“Remind them that sex will ruin a good relationship and sustain a bad one,” she said. “If you see a girl in a really bad, abusive (verbal, emotional or physical) relationship, there is sex involved. These precious girls get involved with these Bozo guys and get led around like dogs.”

She said girls need to be reminded that they need to require guys treat them with respect. “No sexual control before marriage means no sexual control after marriage. Fornication will lead to adultery.”

Kendall is author of several books, including Lady in Waiting: Becoming God’s Best While Waiting for Mr. Right; The Young Lady in Waiting: Developing the Heart of a Princess; and A Man Worth Waiting For: How to Avoid a Bozo.

“These girls have to know that waiting for Mr. Right is important,” she said. “What is worse than waiting? Wishing you had!”

We at Ridgecrest Summer Camps hope that these questions about seeing God in our day to day lives can spark some good conversations with your kids!

For Children
Work with your child to put together a leaf collection. Collect 6-10 different leaves. Try to collect two leaves from each tree, one that has not turned its fall color yet and one that has. Identify each leaf and place it on a sheet of construction paper. Bind the collection together with string or put in a folder. Use the process to talk with your child about how the change takes place because God designed it that way.

For Students
Encourage your students to do an Internet search for “miracle stories.” Instruct them to look for stories that seem legit and those that seem to be fake. Discuss reasons why people believe or don’t believe present-day miracle stories. Talk about whether or not your students believe Jesus still does miracles.

I remember spending a few weeks with my Grandma in northern Virginia one summer.  I believe I was in Middle School at the time.  I traveled up to her house with my dad.  He dropped me off and then traveled around the area for his job.  He would come check in every so often to see how I was doing.  Even while I was with family, I made myself physically ill because I just wanted to go home.  It wasn’t a comfortable setting to me.

After I finished my junior year of High School, I went to Windy Gap (a Young Life camp just outside of Asheville) as a leader with some inner city kids for the week.  There were more than enough leaders with my group, most of which I did not know.  After the first day, I made myself physically ill because I just wanted to go home.  I was not familiar with my surroundings and the people I was with.  Unfortunately I did not stick it out and my brother came to get me.

These are two (out of many) very memorable times in my life when I became homesick.  When I hear the topic of “homesickness”, I think of myself.  I often felt there was something wrong with me because I was homesick so much.  I was embarrassed but I couldn’t help feeling that way.  I never thought I’d say this, but I am thankful for those times because I know somewhat how kids feel when they come to camp for the first time.  Those experiences have helped shape me into the person I am today.

If I had a child I was sending to camp for the first time, I would do a couple things to help prepare my child to be away from home.  I would have my child stay the night or possibly two nights at a friend’s house on a semi-regular basis.  This will allow them to have “nighttime” experiences away from their parents.  It will allow them to make decisions on their own and build confidence.  I would also help them become familiar with camp surroundings.  You may not physically be able to see camp before you come, but looking at pictures from previous summers, watching videos, and looking at the daily schedule may help.  You may even know another family in your area that has been to camp that can help you become familiar with the program.

While my child is at camp, I would consider writing a letter or sending an e-mail after the first few days of the session not after the first day.  When I was in Virginia at my Grandmother’s house, I loved receiving letters from my brothers and talking to my mom on the phone.  But each time it would make me realize that I wasn’t at home and it provoked the homesickness.  When communicating to your child, emphasize the positives about camp and let them know that you are proud of them.  Try not to focus on things that are happening at home or on pets.

Homesickness is not an abnormal thing and children shouldn’t be embarrassed by those feelings.  Our staff are trained in how to handle homesickness and do their best to make sure campers have the time of their life.  If you have any further questions about homesickness at camp, please give us a call at 1-800-968-1630.

Sharon Aylestock

Assistant Director, Camp Crestridge

Acts 10:9-15,22-23,28-29a,34-36

Peter’s vision teaching that God does not show favoritism, here between Jews and Gentiles

Family Connection

For Preschoolers

Find books that present different individuals from various cultures. Read aloud to him, pointing out how God created everyone, no matter where they were born. Help him understand that all people are God’s special creation.

For School-Age

Discuss the children in your elementary-age child’s class or grade. Ask her about her understanding of their heritage and culture. If needed, spend time with your child’s teacher learning about the variety of cultures represented in her class. Help your child by finding Web sites and books that teach about the cultures of individuals in her everyday world.

For Students

Discuss current events with your teenager. As issues of different cultures come forth, spend time researching and discussing the background and back stories of the people involved. Attempt to develop an understanding of those involved in order to grasp the event and their response from their perspectives.

Talking with your kids isn’t always the easiest thing. Especially the older they get. That’s one reason we at Ridgecrest Summer Camps love these Conversation Starters. This month, as you do your best to hang out and talk with your kids, talk to them about talking about Jesus. But before you do, think about why it might be hard for them, in their situation, to talk about Him.

For Preschoolers
Who do you know that tells people about Jesus? Who tells you about Jesus?
Who can you tell about Jesus?

For Children
Do your friends at school ever talk about God? What do they say about Him?
Do you ever talk to your friends about what you believe? Why or why not?

For Students
Talk to your teenager about their friends.  Ask, “Who would be on your list of people you would like to meet Jesus?”
Do you think people learn better if they are told something or if they are shown something? How do you apply this to “telling” people about Jesus?

Through the years, we have seen some big changes at our camps!  At Crestridge, the first year, the campers and staff had to eat in the Dining Hall at our conference center.  Back in the ‘50’s, they required that the girls wear dresses in the dining hall.  So, before every meal, the campers and staff would have to change from their “camp clothes” to dresses, walk to the conference center for their meals, walk back, and then change back into their camp clothes for activities.  I think they probably spent most all of their time doing that!  Glad that the dining hall was built for the second summer!

I bet many of you didn’t know that at Camp Ridgecrest, there used to be a swimming pool down in Apache Circle.  It was there in the 30’s… made from concrete block, and fed by a stream… I’m sure the water was nice and warm!

Probably one of the biggest changes that I have seen in my 35+ years at camp is the need for a summer camp experience for our young folks.  Back when I first started here, in the mid 70’s, most kids still got out and played in the neighborhood, many rode their bikes to school, and “Pong” (one of the first TV video games) didn’t keep too many kids inside.

Now, with many more safety concerns, video games, iPhones, and a plethora of movie and television channel choices, it seems that young people rarely get outside.  And with Facebook and chat, there is much less face-to-face social interaction.  Camp can give your child the outdoor experience that they need, as well as face-to-face time with their peers.  For camps like ours that don’t allow electronics or cellphones, parents are relieved, and campers find that they can live for two or more weeks without checking Facebook every five minutes or so.

So as your write that check this year for camp tuition, and wonder if you could be spending your money in a better way, just remember that you are providing your children with experiences that they can’t get anywhere else… time in the outdoors, away from “civilization” and all that entails, and the chance to spend time with friends from all over the country in a Christian community with incredible college age students as their role models.  What better way could you spend your money… or they spend their time?  We look forward to them being with us this summer!

Ron Springs
Director, Ridgecrest Summer Camps

Psalm 139:1-6,13-18

Sanctity of Human Life Lesson; God values us, has a plan for us, is with us

Conversation Starters

How can you keep this conversation going at home? Try bouncing some of these questions around at the dinner table, as you’re driving your kids to school or an activity, or even while you’re shopping together:

For Preschoolers

• Have you ever done something that made one of your friends say they didn’t want to be your friend anymore? How did that make you feel?

• Do you know that God loves you no matter what? How does THAT make you feel?

For School-Age

• [If you have a pet] What are all the things we have to do to take care of our pet? Why do we do them?

• What are some ways God takes care of animals in nature? Do you know that people are much more important to God than animals are?

For Students

• Psalm 139:16 says, “All my days were written in Your book and planned before a single one of them began.” What does that tell you about your future? About how God cares for the unborn?

Parents, do you have a plan for your kids’ spiritual growth? At LifeWay, we’ve developed the LifeSpan spiritual growth strategy for children, from infants to high school seniors. Regardless of your kids’ ages, you can be confident that LifeWay curricula, events, and other resources provide targeted objectives that encourage spiritual growth with a strong biblical foundation. Bret Robbe explains how you can do all of this while keeping your family worshiping and growing together.

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