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April 2012 FOR PARENTS OF TEENS

REMIND TEENS OF GOD’S GRACE

Easter is a perfect time to focus on the gift of God’s grace. One often-heard

definition of GRACE is “God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.” The good news

of the gospel is that though we’ve all fallen short of God’s expectations, we’re

made righteous, or pure, by Jesus’ death and resurrection (Romans 3:23-24).

Because Jesus took our place on the cross, we have forgiveness and new life.

That’s what makes grace so amazing.

Young people often feel overwhelmed by and unloved because of their short-

comings. Even mature Christians struggle with understanding and accepting

God’s grace because we’re surrounded by anti-grace messages from the time

we’re young. “Do this to earn that. Play fair and you’ll get your reward. You

got what you had coming to you.” And so on.

Steep your kids in the radical idea of grace. Talk about how God’s abundant

love for us is never based on what we do. Instead, it’s always an undeserved,

free gift, based on what Jesus did on the cross. We’ll always fall short. We’ll

never be good enough. But God sent Jesus to die for us once and for all so we

can live in God’s amazing love and grace. We don’t ever have to try to earn our

salvation. God’s grace doesn’t make any sense when we’re playing by the nor-

mal, everyday rules of “you get what you deserve.” None of us deserves God’s

grace, but all of us can be recipients of it. Thank God!

THE VIEW

Got grace? According to surveys of

thousands of Christian teenagers

(conducted at Group Workcamps),

young people need assurance that

God has wiped away all their sins:

Half of respondents agreed

with this statement: “I’ve done

things no one really knows

about that impact my ability to

feel loved by God.”

One-quarter of respondents

agreed with this statement:

“Because of the things I’ve

done or said in my life, it’s

hard for me to believe that I

can do something great for

God.” —Group

TIPS >>> PONDER THIS

Part of the appeal of video games is

the ever-present chance to start over

with a clean slate. The good news is

that God gives each of us a clean spir-

itual slate. Use video games to start a

conversation about grace with your

teenagers and their unchurched

friends:

What’s the draw? Ask kids why

video games appeal to them. Do

they like solving things? Are they

captivated by puzzles, mazes,

questions, problems? Are video

games a good escape from real

life? Why or why not?

What’s the problem? Next, ask

kids what things in life they think

are critically important to figure

out; for example, deciding on a

career, a spouse, a belief system,

etc. After listening,

share what’s important to you—

including how you decided to become

a follower of Jesus.

What’s the answer? Finally, ask

kids if they understand that Jesus of-

fers us a clean slate, or grace. Share

with them God’s gift of forgiveness

through Jesus and his promise to re-

move our sins “as far as the east is

from the west” (Psalm 103:12).

Game on! Make sure young people

know that when they’ve discovered

Jesus, they have the power of starting

over with a clean spiritual slate. And

they can share this good news with

others, so they can hit reboot and

begin a “new game,” as well.

—Jane Dratz of Dare 2 Share Ministries

(writing at SimplyYouthMinistry.com)

How confident are you of God’s

complete forgiveness of all your

sins?

What are some helpful reminders

for you to live in God’s grace?

What are some practical ways you

can demonstrate God’s grace to

other people, including your fami-

ly members?

DUMP THE OUGHT-TO’S Expert Insights for Parents of Teenagers

By Steve Merritt

RESOURCE

In Fresh Start (Simply Youth Ministry), Doug Fields helps young people get a grasp of what God has done and ex-amines how they can rest securely in God’s grace. The study guide contains 10 foundational lessons that will help new Christians and will offer refreshers for young people who already walk with God.

BIBLE FOCUS For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.

Ephesians 2:8-9

When I was a wilderness guide, our

group was fond of pranks. I’ll never for-

get when we put two large rocks in an-

other guide’s pack. We were sure he’d

find them right away, so it was funny

when, in dismay, he pulled the boulders

from the bottom of his pack after a week-

long, 40-mile hike.

“Rocks” have an uncanny ability to enter

our lives, and, like the unknowing guide,

we can end up carrying them a long time

before realizing they’re weighing us

down. Christians of all ages are bearing

heavy spiritual knapsacks, feeling as if

they aren’t doing enough for God and are

failures because they can’t stop sinning.

Recently, a quote and a Bible verse have

lightened the load in my own backpack.

Author Larry Crabb says, “Make every

effort not to sin less but to love more,”

and Colossians 3:3 says, “Your life is

hidden with Christ in God.” These words

put into perspective my overwhelming

crowd of good intentions. My endless to-

do list, even when filled with Godly pur-

suits, often prevents me from remember-

ing that my life is hidden with Christ—

and my sins are covered by his grace.

When I boil everything down, I want to

love. And when I don’t love well (which

is quite often), this thing called grace

picks me up and calls me onward toward

God and others.

Christians driven by ought-to’s can be

inspiring, yet their ultimate impact is ex-

haustion—for themselves and for every-

one around them. By contrast, believers

who truly love and who revel in God’s

grace inspire with their hearts. Ultimate-

ly, they challenge us at deeper levels.

They give us permission to go off-duty

yet encourage us to take risks and give

our hearts with abandon.

Your life is hidden with Christ in God.

So dump the ought-to’s. Now just love.

—Counselor Steve Merritt, writing at

SimplyYouthMinistry.com

MEDIA SPOTLIGHT

MAINSTREAM MUSIC

RASCAL FLATTS

Background: This three-man pop-

country band has had incredible

success since starting in the late

’90s. Many of their albums have

gone multiplatinum. They’re very

popular with young people; in a

2007 poll, they were the sixth-most

-popular act among preteens. The

band, which has raised millions of

dollars for various charities, re-

ceived a Humanitarian Award from

the Academy of Country Music.

Albums: Changed (2012), Unstop-pable (2009), Me and My Gang

(2006)

What Rascal Flatts Says: When

Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital

named its pediatric surgery center

for Rascal Flatts—after it raised $3

million for the project—they

responded, “It was an emotional

day. It’s emotional any time you

walk in there because it’s such a

magical place and a place of

hope…. That’s probably our big-

gest accomplishment to date.”

Explore: Nearly all of the band’s

albums are available on Spotify.

CHRISTIAN MUSIC

SIDEWALK PROPHETS

Background: This Christian

rock band started at Anderson

University, wanting to

“integrate worship with real

life.” Their first major-label

debut spawned two hit singles,

and their second album, Live Like That, released in March.

They won the 2010 Dove

Award for Best New Artist.

Albums: Live Like That (2012), These Simple Truths

(2009)

What Sidewalk Prophets

Says: “Hopefully, our music

paints a picture that is a reflec-

tion of the faith, hope, and love

that we’ve experienced through

the grace of God. We want to

be real, we want to be candid,

and we want God to move

through us.”

Explore: You can hear the

band’s first album on Spotify

and watch the video for their

new single at

www.youtube.com/watch?

v=GfosSggwQS0.

MOVIES

Movie: The Three Stooges

Genre: Comedy

Rating: PG (for slapstick action

violence and some rude and sug-

gestive humor, including language)

Synopsis: In this fictionalized ac-

count, the Stooges are left on an

orphanage doorstep and grow up

into slapstick wiseguys. Somehow,

they manage to get caught up in a

murder plot. Eye-pokes abound.

Our Take: Though it’s rated PG,

this film was written and directed

by the Farrelly Brothers, so be

aware. The previews show a nun

getting out of a pool in a very re-

vealing swimsuit, for example.

Movie: Wrath of the Titans Genre: Action, Adventure

Rating: PG-13 (for intense se-

quences of fantasy violence and

action)

Synopsis: Because of man’s dimin-

ished worship, the gods’ powers are

weakening. That allows the Titans

to break free from their prison and

wreak havoc on earth. Perseus must

leave his quiet life and fight again.

Our Take: This movie will be pop-

ular with kids who love Rick

Riordan’s “Percy Jackson” book

series. The first film wasn’t very

good but made enough to spawn a

sequel. You can discuss false gods

and how they differ from the one

true God.

For more media discussions and

ideas, go to

www.MinistryandMedia.com.

VIDEO GAMES

Kinect Star Wars—This is just the type of game we’ve been waiting for since the Kinect was first announced. You

can swing a lightsaber, ride on speeder bikes, and use the Force on enemies by making the movements in real life.

Kinect and Star Wars fans hope this game is as awesome as it sounds. Rated T for mild language, mild suggestive

themes, and violence.

Xenoblade Chronicles—The Wii has very few games of any length or depth—especially RPGs. This game boasts

100 hours of play. If it’s like most Japanese RPGs, it will have a confusing and mostly nonsensical plot but immer-

sive gameplay and lots of monsters to fight. Rating is pending (probably T).

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No Classes

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