Help for Parents to Discuss Spiritual Things at Christmas

Christmas is a great time for parents to have extended times of conversation with their teens. Donald Whitney has put together a useful tool to direct conversations at any Christmas gathering. I would encourage parents to use this with their families as a way to focus our attention on Christ.

Ten Questions to Ask at a Christmas Gathering

Many of us struggle to make conversation at Christmas gatherings, whether church events, work-related parties, neighborhood drop-ins, or annual family occasions. Sometimes our difficulty lies in having to chat with people we rarely see or have never met. At other times we simply don't know what to say to those with whom we feel little in common. Moreover, as Christians we want to take advantage of the special opportunities provided by the Christmas season to share our faith, but are often unsure how to begin. Here's a list of questions designed not only to kindle a conversation in almost any Christmas situation, but also to take the dialogue gradually to a deeper level. Use them in a private conversation or as a group exercise, with believers or unbelievers, with strangers or with family.

1. What's the best thing that's happened to you since last Christmas?
2. What was your best Christmas ever? Why?
3. What's the most meaningful Christmas gift you've ever received?
4. What was the most appreciated Christmas gift you've ever given?
5. What was your favorite Christmas tradition as a child?
6. What is your favorite Christmas tradition now?
7. What do you do to try to keep Christ in Christmas?
8. Why do you think people started celebrating the birth of Jesus?
9. Do you think the birth of Jesus deserves such a nearly worldwide celebration? 10. Why do you think Jesus came to earth?


Of course, remember to pray before your Christmas gatherings. Ask the Lord to grant you "divine appointments," to guide your conversations, and to open doors for the gospel. May He use you to bring glory to Christ this Christmas.

Copyright © 2003 Donald S. Whitney.

Copyright Disclaimer: All the information contained on the Center for Biblical Spirituality website is copyrighted by Donald S. Whitney. Permission granted to copy this material in its complete text only for not-for-profit use (sharing with a friend, church, school, Bible study, etc.) and including all copyright information. No portion of this website may be sold, distributed, published, edited, altered, changed, broadcast, or commercially exploited without the prior written permission from Donald S. Whitney.

For more short, reproducible pieces like this, see www.BiblicalSpirituality.org

Special Speaker on Sunday

Parents

On Sunday, December 20th after the worship service during Adult Bible Communities the youth ministry will have a special speaker:Sam Burba. Sam is going to share about his drug abuse and how it was the power of the gospel which finally freed him from his addiction. We are delighted to have Sam encourage us in the gospel. Sam has spoken to several thousand teens sharing his story and the gospel in public schools throughout Phoenix, Arizona.


We not only want our teens to hear Sam and his story, we also want all parents of teens to come as well. This will be a tremendous opportunity for parents to use Sam's testimony as a platform to speak with their teens about drug abuse and any other addictive behavior (video games, TV, sex, pornography) and how the power of the gospel can break the power of sin. Please join us as we will have good food and good coffee and most important we will all be encouraged in the gospel of Christ.

Denver Post Reports on Sexting

Here is an article which showed up in last week's Denver Post. In the article a teen who has been involved in sexting is interviewed his response is astounding, "I just don't see it as that big of a problem, personally."
Parents should read and be aware.


Sexting Among Young People More Common Than You Might Think

Written by Libby Quaid

WASHINGTON — Think your kid isn't "sexting"? Think again.

Sexting — sharing sexually explicit photos, videos and chat by cellphone or online — is fairly commonplace among young people, despite sometimes grim consequences for those who do it. More than a quarter of young people have been involved in sexting in some form, an Associated Press-MTV poll found.

That includes Sammy, a 16-year-old from the San Francisco Bay Area who asked that his last name not be used.

Sammy said he had shared naked pictures of himself with girlfriends. He also shared naked pictures of someone else that a friend had sent him.

What he didn't realize at the time was that young people across the country — in Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania — have faced charges, in some cases felony charges, for sending nude pictures.

"That's why I probably wouldn't do it again," Sammy said. "(But) I just don't see it as that big of a problem, personally."

That was the view of nearly half of those surveyed who have been involved in sexting. The other half said it's a serious problem — and did it anyway. Knowing there might be consequences hasn't stopped them.

"There's definitely the invincibility factor that young people feel," said Kathleen Bogle, a sociology professor at La Salle University in Philadelphia and author of the book "Hooking Up: Sex, Dating and Relationships on Campus." "That's part of the reason why they have a high rate of car accidents and things like that, is they think, 'Oh, well, that will never happen to me.' "

Sexting doesn't stop with teenagers.

Young adults are even more likely to have sexted; a third of them said they had been involved in sexting, compared with about a fourth of teenagers.

Those who sent nude pictures of themselves mostly said they went to a boyfriend, girlfriend or romantic interest.

But 14 percent said they suspect the pictures were shared without permission, and they may be right: Seventeen percent of those who received naked pictures said they passed them along to someone else, often to more than just one person.

Criminal charges aren't the worst consequences of sexting. In at least two cases, sexting has been linked to suicide. Last year in Cincinnati, 18-year-old Jessica Logan hanged herself after weeks of ridicule at school; she had sent a nude cellphone picture to her boyfriend, and after they broke up, he forwarded the picture to other girls.

And three months ago, 13-year-old Hope Witsell hanged herself after relentless taunting at her school near Tampa, Fla. She had sent a nude photo of herself to a boy she liked, and another girl used his phone to send the picture to other students who forwarded it along.

Other teenage suicides have been linked to online bullying, also a subject of the AP-MTV poll. Half of all young people said they have been targets of digital bullying.

The poll, conducted Sept. 11-22, involved online interviews with 1,247 teenagers and adults ages 14-24. It has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 2.8 percentage points.

The Associated Press
Posted: 12/04/2009 01:00:00 AM MST

Does God Care How we Parent?

All parents have a particular style or principles by which they parent. Yet how many of us have considered what God says about parenting. In this sermon Randy Stinson gives us a basic overview of what a Biblical understanding of parenting might look like. Dr. Randy Stinson is the Dean of the School of Church ministries at SBTS and Randy also serves as president for the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. (Once you press play the video quality is very good)


Part 2