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Parent Newsletter
March 25, 2011 |
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Welcome to spring! We're excited about the all great things Ignition has coming up and the ways God plans to transform lives! Read on for the following helpful information.
- A Word From Mark
- Upcoming Lesson Series
- Upcoming Student Events
If you ever have questions about Ignition, feel free to contact Ignition Coordinator Andy Hermanson at student@hopewdm.org or 515-222-1520.
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Welcome back from Spring Break!
I hope you and your family had a chance to rest, but if I had to guess, you probably need some recovery time FROM Spring Break... Amazing how vacation works that way.
At Ignition we are turning the page -- literally! We are about to embark on a series called "Dear Galatians..." We are asking the students and maybe you, to join us in cracking open the Bible to pour through this wonderful letter from Paul. He was writing to the church in Galatia, which resides in modern-day Turkey. They were Gentiles, not Jews, and as such were new to the Christian faith and the promises of God. Paul had witnessed to them about the Gospel at one point and a church was born! They were on fire! All of their lives they had been told that because they weren't Jewish, the promises of God weren't for them. The message of Jesus and the Gospel changed all of that. They were set free and big things happened. But like all of us who get excited about our faith, somewhere along the way, they were led to believe that just trusting in Jesus wasn't enough. This idea of "Jesus and " started to permeate their society. This spurred Paul into writing his letter...
In it he urges them to trust in Jesus for their salvation and to not turn back to the LAW as a means to be made right with God. Keeping all of the laws at that time was mind boggling and not at all feasible. But somehow they got the idea that just trusting in Jesus wasn't enough. They got the Christian "to do" list and were running with it. Paul needed to remind them once again that the Gospel and the saving power of Jesus Christ had set them free from all of that. At one point in chapter 6 we actually see Paul use the first ever recorded instance of ALL CAPS TO MAKE HIS POINT... see Galatians 6:11. I find that cool! Paul needed to get their attention again so that they didn't lose sight of what is first -- GOD. And out of that love we are to love others. There is no need for "Jesus and..." We just need to be loved! I think all of us need to be reminded of that. We are excited to dig into this awesome letter as a reminder of what God has done for us and how we are to live freely and share that message with others. I encourage you to read along with us and possibly even include this in your family devotion time if you so choose. It would be a great way to participate in this series at home.
Blessings!
Mark Brandt
Minister of Children's & Student Ministry
Mark.Brandt@hopewdm.org
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We all like to receive letters. These days they come primarily in an e-mail form, but in biblical times, letters were handwritten. The apostle Paul wrote a lot of letters, many of which are included in the Bible. His letters were intended to help the early church sort out what it meant to really follow Jesus. But the Galatians may not have been too excited to get Paul's letter to them because Paul was mad. The Galatian church was a mess. People were saying that what Jesus did on the cross wasn't enough. They were looking around them and determining who was in with God, and who was out. So Paul set out to bring some clarity to the situation in the passionate, sound way that only he could. And while this may seem like a great look back in history, we probably have more in common with the Galatians than we would care to admit.
Week 1: Jesus + (March 29)
If Paul was around today, he would be e-mailing and tweeting all the time -- and for good reason, because people needed his help. God had placed Paul in a strategic point during the early church to help bring some clarity to the chaos. And there was chaos . . . a lot of chaos. People were trying to add to the gospel, saying Jesus' death and resurrection weren't enough. That it needed a few extra things to help someone "be a Christian" and be "in" with God. That got Paul fired up, and he set out to clear things up. And thousands of years later, Paul's words are a great reminder for us because it's easy to think and act as if what Jesus did wasn't enough.
Week 2: The Checklist (April 3)
What does a Christian look like? Stop for a minute and think about that, because aside from the basic belief that Jesus was the Son of God, He died for our sins and rose from the dead, there are some things that most of us would add to that. Maybe our response would be someone who reads the Bible or helps people in need. Maybe it's someone who prays every day and attends church regularly. Maybe it's someone who has memorized a bunch of Bible verses and knows a lot about the Bible. But we also have some responses we probably wouldn't feel very comfortable saying aloud-things like the kind of music someone listens to, what someone wears or what someone says. So what does a Christian look like? The answer is probably a lot more simple than we make it out to be.
Week 3: With Love (April 10)
So with all this talk about what it does and doesn't mean to be a follower of Christ, does that mean that a Christian doesn't do anything? Not exactly. It's not always about what you do, but your reason for doing it. For example, are you reading your Bible because you want to love God and others more, or are you reading it to prove how spiritual you are to anyone who asks? It's the "why" factor. So are you doing what you're doing because you're motivated by love -- love for God and love for others -- or by something else? Have a question about this series? Feel free to send Mark Brandt or Andy Hermanson an e-mail.
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 It's not your average group activity. (This one saves lives.) Nearly 8,000 kids die each day because of hunger. Some starve. Some get sick and their hungry bodies are too weak to fight. Either way, the result is the same. Another child dies every 10 seconds.
We can do something about it. We can band together with students all over the world through World Vision to fight hunger. Save lives. Write a different story for the planet.
Ready to change lives? We'll play games. We'll build a box city and spend the night under the stars. We'll learn about poverty and starvation and Hope. We'll serve Des Moines through various projects. Most importantly, we'll LOVE HUNGRY. We'll fast for 30 hours to live in solidarity with the thousands of kids dying each stay from starvation. We'll end the event with a meal following the 5:00 pm worship service on Saturday. Let's do this. Students, register today.
Parents/Adults? Want to help with fundraising or during the event? Contact Katie Kroeger at katie_mckroeger@hotmail.com. kroeger@hotmail.com to find out how. Click here for more details! |
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BigStuf Registration can be found here. |
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As always, if there is anything we can do to help, we are only a phone call away. Sincerely, Ignition Student Ministry Staff
  
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