What's up everyone?! I want to make sure that we are all on the same page regarding camp which is July 12-16.

 

First of all, I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who helped with/helped sell both Valentine's Banquet tickets and Spaghetti Plates for our fundraisers. Both were very successful, and I am very grateful for the role you all played in that.

 

Currently, we have 24 students signed up to go to camp. To lock in their spot, all students who are going need to turn in a $30 non-refundable deposit by April 30th. All students who do not turn in the deposit by that date will be taken off of the list to go to camp. 

 

We will also be having a parent/guardian meeting that is required for parents of students who are going to camp. The meeting will be on April 28th at 7:00, immediately after youth group. It is very important that I get to communicate with parents/guardians of ALL students who are attending camp so that I can make sure information is being accurately communicated. If you for any reason cannot attend the meeting, you will need to contact me to set up a meeting time by the end of April for your student to be allowed to attend camp. Students whose parents/guardians cannot attend the meeting and who do not make an alternative time to meet with me will be unable to attend camp.

 

We still have a decent bit of money to raise if we are to get camp completely paid for for everyone. At the meeting, we will plan and discuss our next fundraiser. If we have a very successful fundraiser, it could be our last one!

 

If you have any questions about anything in this letter or anything else, feel free to contact me at 870-997-0133!

1. Please do not pick up your student before church unless there is an emergency. We offer the after school program for the purpose of getting kids in church, not for childcare purposes. Students that come to the after school program and skip church will not be allowed to come after school the next week. This will be strongly enforced beginning this week.

 

2. Please do not interrupt services. After we get started at 5:30 until we end at 7:00 please do not come into the SWAMP or try to pick up your child unless absolutely necessary. It is extremely disruptive and distracting when things like this take place. The SWAMP is locked during services for this purpose. The goal of our ministry is to share the gospel with our students for the purpose of them coming to the saving knowledge of Jesus. This can be greatly hindered by distractions such as these.

As part of our year-long focus on #RESET here at Second Baptist, we are beginning a study on priorities. As people who are raising young people, it is crucial to make sure that your priorities are in the right order. The things that you place the most importance on will greatly impact the things that are most important to your child. We often say we have our priorities properly aligned, but indicate with our time and resources that they're mixed up. For a lot of us, our investments are far greater in the things of this world than the things of God. 

 

In DGroup, we recently studied where Jesus said that to follow Him, it is required that we deny ourselves, take up our cross daily, and follow Him. This is something that we like... on paper. Unfortunately, when it comes to shaping our lives around it, it's a different story. School, work, extracurricular activities, sports, and even being tired often seem to be displayed to our kids as being more important than following Jesus in a serious, committed way. 

 

Denying ourselves is all about putting away the things that we want for the sake of pursuing what God wants. Taking up our cross is all about saying that our life is as if we died and are now living a new life completely focused and centered on God. These two things along with the final part where Jesus simply says "Follow Me" completely do away with the idea that we can passively follow Jesus while doing whatever we deem most important. These things require us to miss out on some things that we might have liked to participate in. These things require us to choose things that may be considered less fun or less comfortable. These things, however, will lead us to following Jesus the way that He would have us to. 

 

The things of God are far greater than anything in this world. The greatest things in this world can last only for a lifetime. The things of God last for eternity. This is what I try to convey to our students, but I only get a small time with them every week. It is what you model for them in your life that will lead them most strongly towards following Jesus. So as you continue through your day, your work week, and even the rest of your life raising and leading your kids, ask yourself the question often: Are my priorities aligned? And does what I invest time and resources in reflect that?