Monkey Bars - Engage Community Church

Engage Community Church Children’s Ministry
Summer 2012
Monkey Bars
Raising Moral Children
By: Kelly Chripczuk
. “In him we live and move and have our being.” Acts 17:28
I stand in the back door watching as my four year old makes his way across the top of
the monkey bars for the first time. The kids have tied a ribbon to one of the bars and
use it for Diego-style climbing on the slide. This makes them happy and me nervous.
As I stand there with my heart in my throat meditating on the inherent risks of
summer, of life, I feel my blood pressure rise and anxiety settles into its familiar
perch in the muscles of my shoulders and neck.
The weight of shepherding kids through summer is overwhelming. There’s the
burgeoning independence, the inherent dangers of pools and lakes, not to mention
the lesser evils like bee stings and poison ivy. It’s tempting to lock the windows and
doors and crank up the AC rather than have the difficult conversations about
“stranger danger” and why playing in the backyard is safer than the front.
I pull away to check on the babies crawling through the living room at lightning speed
and wonder, yet again, how we’ll all survive this summer. I try telling myself to
expect at least one trip to the emergency room, as if planning on it will make it any
less alarming to endure.
I could spend my whole day this way, the whole summer caught up in worry and
fear. But underneath it all I hear God’s still, small voice whispering and I know deep
down this is no way to live. So I choose instead to meditate on the love of God.
Surely God loves my children more than I do. And this love gives me the confidence
to step out onto the shaky bridge that leads from fear to trust. Because I know the
one who calls me there and, should I fall, I know into whose arms it will be. Like my
son on the bars I train myself to stop looking down, imagining how bad a fall would
be, and learn to enjoy the view.
I go ahead and buy the baby gates, two for good measure, and along with them
outlet covers and life vests. But I refuse to buy into the fear, choosing instead to
trust in the one who gives life and breath to us all.
When you think of disciplining your children,
what comes to mind? A constant barrage of
“no”? Do not touch that! Be quiet! Stop
running! Do you equate discipline with
spanking, and so, discard the practice? We
want to teach our children correct behaviors,
but do we always find ourselves correcting
their bad behavior in the heat of battle, in the
mist of conflict? How do we get our kids to
mind us without threats or bribing? Godly
parenting not only suppresses waywardness,
it also elevates good. The Bible gives us moral
principles to live by and we are to pass them
on to our children. When we give instruction,
we need to include the moral reason WHY.
We must train the heart, not just the actions.
For example, I’m walking through the
neighborhood with my 4-yr-old. Someone’s
yard has beautiful tulips growing near the
sidewalk and Tammy starts to reach for them
to pick them. Correction needs to include
more than a simple “no.” Instruction in
righteousness would include, “Tammy, these
flowers belong to someone else. God tells us
we should never steal because each person is
precious to God. It is wrong to take something
that belongs to another.” But suppose the
flowers are in the park? Don’t they belong to
everyone? “No, Tammy. These flowers were
put here for everyone to enjoy. Everyone who
comes to the park should have the same
freedom to enjoy the flowers that we have.
Because every person is precious in God’s
eyes, we need to make sure we leave the park
just as beautiful for those who come behind
us.” Being mindful of those who come behind
us, walk beside us, or go before us is at the
heart of biblical morality. The moral mandate
of scripture is the preciousness of others. It’s
what sets Christianity apart from every other
moral ethic. -from John and Laurie
Fitzgerald, based on teaching from
Growing Kids Gods Way.
Engage Community Church/ engagechurch.com
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GENESIS 12
THE
CA L L
O F A BR A M
12 The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your
country, your people and your father’s household to
the land I will show you.
2
“I will make you into a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
[a]
and you will be a blessing.
3
I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
[b]
will be blessed through you. ”
4
So Abram went, as the LORD had told him; and Lot
went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old
5
when he set out from Harran. He took his wife
Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had
accumulated and the people they had acquired in
Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and
they arrived there.
6
Abram traveled through the land as far as the site
of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time
7
the Canaanites were in the land. The LORD appeared
[c]
to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this
land. ” So he built an altar there to the LORD, who had
appeared to him.
8
From there he went on toward the hills east of
Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west
and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the LORD
and called on the name of the LORD.
9
Then Abram set out and continued toward the
Negev.
Easy Prayer Projects for the Mission-Minded Family
1. Take a prayer-walk around your neighborhood, quietly
praying for each neighbor as you walk by
.2.Have your children make a "Ten Most Wanted" list or
poster. Have them think of ten people who need Jesus.
These can be relatives, neighbors, famous people, or
the man who works at the convenience store. Use this
list or poster to remind you to pray for these people to
come to know the Lord.

3. Put a small map on your refrigerator, and use this
area to display newsletters from missionaries you
support, along with current international news updates.
Pray regularly as a family, perhaps around the dinner
table, for specific world needs and for people you know
who need the Lord.
Check out the Changes!
by: Lindsay deBien
Though I’m not yet a parent, I can appreciate the need for a safe and secure
space for Engage Kids. Last week, as I greeted, I directed a new family to one of
two well-marked tables directly inside of the front door to sign in their child. They
were greeted with a smile, had their questions answered and filled out the
appropriate paperwork … easy as pie! The Engage Kids volunteers always seem
so great with both kids and parents.
With the new sign-in area outside the Engage Kids door, I slipped in to check
out what the inside looked like. The closet to my left kept all of the kids’ colorful
supplies handy but out of a child’s reach while tall room dividers blocked my view
of the rooms. With the smell of lemons wafting from the freshly mopped floors, I
came to the new latching gates leading to the children’s rooms. While the
additional safety these gates provide was not lost on me, when I got a glimpse of
the kids’ rooms, I turned into a four year old!
The preschool room features a forest theme with vines hanging from the ceiling
and tree in the corner, perfect for reading under. I instantly thought of “The Secret
Garden.”The toddler and infant room contrasts with a colorful under the sea
theme, complete with boats and inner tubes hanging from the walls. To top it all
off, an inflatable beach hut sits just beyond the entrance gate. It begged me to
check out the inside. As I ducked through the plastic doorway, there was even a
mini ball pit! I squealed in excitement and giggled. (In my defense, remember that
21 years of maturity completely disappeared when I entered the room!)
Back in my grown-ups state of mind, I hear that kids in both rooms will soon have
a mural on the wall and gates decorated to match their rooms. New tables, chairs
and carpets -as well as resorting toys so they’re all age appropriate - provide a
safe space to play, do crafts and eat snacks.
You may have seen the new door in the wall past the bathroom downstairs. It
will soon lead to a brand new permanent space for our K – 5 kids to call their own.
Once construction is done in June, Engage will rent the space all week long for
the same amount that we are currently paying to use the Pretzel Spot on Sunday
mornings. I can’t even image what wonders await in that space.
I wish I was a little bit younger …
Ann Dunagan, author of The Mission-Minded Family
(AuthenticMedia, 2008), international minister
alongside her husband, Jon Dunagan
(http://www.harvestreport.net/missionminded.htm),
and homeschooling mother of seven
Engage Community Church/ engagechurch.com
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