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Fall 2020 Hope Student Ministries Update

HSM Fall Newsletter
Hi Parents!

Earlier this summer we sent out an email with our tentative plans for our youth ministry during the fall. Provided below are our plans for us to continue safely and meaningfully meeting as a youth group. Please note that the middle school and high school groups will no longer be meeting together. The first night for middle school group will be Wednesday September 9, and for High School our first night together will be Sunday September 13. There will be no youth group for either group this Sunday. We understand that there still may be some who don't feel comfortable meeting together physically and there will be a recording of each youth group message. Yet, it is also my prayer that with the precautions we have in place that the risk is small enough for people to feel safe continuing to come. Below I will list out more information for both groups. As always if you have any questions please feel free to contact me.

Pastor Aaron
(661.972.7797)

High School Youth Group

When: Sunday nights at 6:30-8:00 (Starting Sept. 13)
Where: Inside the Student Center at HCC
What: Small Game*, Singing*, Message
* All students are required to wear masks and all activities in doors will be safely and properly distanced

High School Small Group:

When: Tuesdays at 3:00pm (Starting Sept. 17)
Where: Guys will meet in Student Center; Girls will meet in Classroom A
What: Small study through a book, time for prayer and fellowship*
*Same guidelines for during youth group

Middle School Youth Group:

When: Wednesday nights at 6:30-8:00
Where: Inside the Student Center at HCC
What: Small Game*, Singing*, Message
*All students are required to wear masks and all activities in doors will be safely and properly distanced

Middle School Events:

When: Various dates throughout the fall (TBD)
Where: At HCC
What: Socially Distanced Movie Night, Harvest activity
Five Ideas for Communicating Christ to Your Kids
Jim Burns -President of HomeWord and Executive Director of the HomeWord Center for Youth and Family at Azusa Pacific University
If you find it challenging to talk with your teen about God and spiritual issues, you are not alone. It's not that parents don't want to talk about faith with their kids, but rather that they don't know how to get started. Here are five practical suggestions to get faith conversations started in your home.

1. Be yourself. You don't need a seminary degree to talk to your kids about God. You don't have to speak like a pastor giving a sermon. Just be yourself in conversations with your teenager. Share your understanding of who God is and why He matters to you in a way that reflects the real you.

2. Don't limit your faith conversations to Sunday mornings. Don't get caught in the trap of compartmentalizing faith issues to certain days or times. Let you kids know that spiritual issues are important in your life all of the time! Don't go overboard, but make faith issues an ongoing discussion with your family.

3. Let your kids catch you in the act of doing something spiritual. Spending time alone with God is great, but how will they know about the value you place on spiritual disciplines if they never see you engaged in them? Let your kids "see" you involved in these disciplines. Your actions teach your teenagers much about your faith, and likely communicate more than your words.

4. Look for natural opportunities to engage in faith conversations. Be on the lookout for opportunities along the road of life where issues almost beg to be discussed in light of your Christian commitment and faith. Try utilizing news items and entertainment media sources as springboards for faith conversations.

5. See yourself as a "fellow-learner" rather than a teacher. Taking the posture of a "fellow-learner" takes much of the pressure off of you and sends the message that you don't claim to know everything about the Christian faith. It's truly healthy when your teen asks a faith question that you need to reply with, "I don't know the answer. Let's figure it out together."

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Fall 2020 Hope Student Ministries Update

HSM Fall Newsletter

Five Ideas for Communicating Christ to Your Kids