REACHING FAMILIES FOR JESUS DISCIPLESHIP AND SERVICE WILLIE AND ELAINE OLIVER with DRS CLAUDIO AND PAMELA CONSUEGRA ALINA BALTAZAR, CLAUDIO AND PAMELA CONSUEGRA, DAWN JACOBSON-VENN, S. JOSEPH KIDDER, LINDA MEI LIN KOH, SAUSTIN SAMPSON MFUNE, DEREK J. MORRIS, ALANZO SMITH, MARIJA TRAJKOVSKA North American Division Corporation of the Seventh-day Adventist Church Editors: Drs. Claudio and Pamela Consuegra A General Conference Department of Family Ministries publication Editors: Willie and Elaine Oliver Managing Editor: Dwain N. Esmond Editorial Assistants: Dawn Venn, Ayakha Mokgwane Design and Formatting: Daniel Taipe Contributors: Alina Baltazar, Claudio and Pamela Consuegra, Dawn Jacobson-Venn, S. Joseph Kidder, Linda Mei Lin Koh, Saustin Sampson Mfune, Derek J. Morris, Alanzo Smith, Marija Trajkovska Other Family Ministries Planbooks in this series: Reaching Families for Jesus: Growing Disciples Reach the World: Healthy Families for Eternity Revival and Reformation: Building Family Memories Revival and Reformation: Families Reaching Up Revival and Reformation: Families Reaching Out Revival and Reformation: Families Reaching Across Available from AdventSource 5120 Prescott Avenue Lincoln, NE 68506 www.adventsource.org 402.486.8800 Unless otherwise noted, Scripture is taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ©2017 Department of Family Ministries General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists 12501 Old Columbia Pike Silver Spring, MD 20904, USA [email protected] Website: family.adventist.org All rights reserved. The handouts in this book may be used and reproduced in local church printed matter without permission from the publisher. It may not, however, be used or reproduced in other books or publications without prior permission from the copyright holder. Reprinting the content as a whole or for giveaway or resale is expressly prohibited. ISBN# 978-1-62909-451-9 Table of Contents North American Division V Foreword VIII How to use this book Seminars 1 Parenting Teens: Challenges and Opportunities 9 A Prodical Son 15 Marriage on the Rock Reprinted Articles 19 Cumulative Stress in Law Enforcement 22 How Successful is Your Family? 25 I'm the New FM Coordinator - CALLED 2017 29 Scars That Hurt for a Lifetime 31 We Is More Powerful than I Leadership Resources 36 Key Family Ministries Resources (English) 41 Key Family Ministries Resources (Spanish) 45 Social Media 46 Evangelism & Discipleship Process General Conference Section V Preface VI 100 Years of Family Ministries Around the World VIII How to Use this Planbook Sermons 10 What Do You Need From Jesus Today? 15 What’s Love Got to Do with It? 20 The Perfect Spouse 24 The Power of Praying Parents Children’s Stories 35 Answered Prayer for Mr. Top 37 A Sunbeam for Jesus 39 A Boy Named “W” REACHING FAMILIES FOR JESUS FOR FAMILIES REACHING Seminars 42 Becoming One Flesh: God’s Plan for Intimacy in Marriage 47 Building a Healthy Home 55 Uplifting the Non-Custodial Parent 64 Letting Go: Seminar on Empty Nest Syndrome (ENS) Leadership Resources 75 Nurturing the Faith of Pastors’ Kids: Reflections on a Pastoral Family Stress Study 79 Pastoral Marriages: A Contemporary Challenge 83 Leadership and Personal Integrity Reprinted Articles 88 Teens and Depression How You Can Help? 91 When We Get Surprised, Sharing Faith with Our Children 93 Wholesome Relationships In a Sex-Crazed World 97 He’s Outgoing. She’s Not. 4 99 I Want to Be a Father to My Son Resources 102 Altogether Wonderful: Exploring Intergenerational Worship 103 Marriage: Biblical and Theological Aspects, Vol. 1 104 Real Family Talk: Answers to Questions About Love, Marriage and Sex 105 Real Family Talk with Willie & Elaine Oliver Appendix A - Family Ministries Implementation 107 A Family Ministries Policy and Purpose Statement 109 The Family Ministries Leader 110 What is a Family? 111 Committee and Planning Guidelines 113 A Good Presentation Will Do Four Things 114 The Ten Commandments of Presentations 115 Family Life Profile Survey 117 Family Life Profile 118 Family Ministries Interest Survey 119 Community Family Life Education Survey 120 Sample Evaluation Appendix B - Voted Statements 122 Affirmation of Marriage 123 Statement on Home and Family DISCIPLESHIP AND SERVICE AND DISCIPLESHIP REACHING FAMILIES FOR JESUS FOR FAMILIES REACHING Foreword One of the most effective methods to help would prefer that church or school professionals young people maintain their faith-commitment be the ones in charge of instilling their children’s and to grow in spiritual maturity is by providing faith instead of assuming that God-given them with service-learning opportunities. As responsibility themselves.5 Freudenburg adds that Diana Garland explains, “Service-learning the parents are also up against a culture that has combines methods of experiential education taken over the responsibility that they deliberately with the needs of the neighborhood or larger or by default have given to others.6 It is true, as community. It involves families in learning about Renfro asserts, that while most parents admit they needs, studying what the Bible has to say about have the responsibility for their children’s spiritual i those needs and the church’s response, gaining development, the majority neglect to engage knowledge and skills needed for service, engaging in any activity that might guide their children in service, and reflecting on these experiences.”1 toward that goal.7 In assuming responsibility for Service-learning takes place when the family the spiritual growth of children and becoming a learns together through reflection and study as an parent substitute by hiring professionals to work expression of Christian love and commitment.2 with the children, some churches have actually, though unintentionally, discouraged parents The late General Conference Ministerial from taking up their disciple-making role.8 Other Secretary Jim Cress wrote that visitors to a church churches, Holmen adds, have usurped the place do not automatically or immediately become of the family as disciple-makers9 by creating mature, committed, or engaged members of programs that stand in their way of accomplishing the same, but rather to get there, they must go that task,10 or, as Freudenburg says, by “subtly through a process of assimilation.3 Winseman valuing its organizational priorities over family describes the engaged members as people who “are rhythms and priorities.”11 loyal and have strong psychological and emotional connections to their church or parish. They are DeVries also writes of the dramatic importance more spiritually committed, they are more likely of parents in the faith formation of their children to invite friends, family members, and coworkers explaining that when parents talk about faith to congregational events, and they give more, and involve them in service activities it doubles both financially and in commitment of time.”4 and sometimes triples their children’s chances of living out their faith as adults.12 Freudenburg The Church and Home Partnership cites studies conducted by his denomination that Unfortunately, as Holmen states, many parents DISCIPLESHIP AND SERVICE AND DISCIPLESHIP show four family practices that are particularly Notes important in helping young people grow in faith 1Diana Garland, Family Ministry: A Comprehensive Guide (both in childhood and adolescence): (1) talking (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1999), 388. about faith with their mother; (2) talking about 2Ibid., 389. faith with their father; (3) having family devotions or prayer; and (4) doing family projects to help 3Cress, You Can Keep Them If You Care, 30. other people. Unfortunately, fewer than one-third 4Winseman, Growing an Engaged Church, 67. of the youth reported any of these activities as REACHING FAMILIES FOR JESUS FOR FAMILIES REACHING happening often in the past or currently in their 5Holmen, Building Faith at Home, 37, 47. See also Timo- homes.13 Barna’s research affirms that in a typical thy Jones, Family Ministry Field Guide, 83-84. week fewer than ten percent of parents who attend 6 church regularly with their kids read the Bible Freudenburg and Lawrence, The Family Friendly Church, 77. together, pray together or have family worship together.14 The Valuegenesis15 studies conducted 7Renfro, Shields, and Strother, Perspectives on Family Min- among Adventist young people also confirm the istry, 23. See also, Baucham, Family Driven Faith, 7, and important role parents play in transmitting their Timothy Jones, Family Ministry Field Guide, 25. faith to their children not only by talking about 8Joiner, Think Orange, 89. but by joining them in helping-projects in their community or missionary endeavors.16 9Holmen, Building Faith at Home, 22. 10Ibid., 23; Freudenburg and Lawrence, The Family In this year’s Planbook we are emphasizing Friendly Church, 21, 45, 83; Renfro, Shields, and Strother, the importance of service as part of the discipling Perspectives on Family Ministry, 108. process in our families. As you work with families in your congregations, encourage them 11Freudenburg and Lawrence, The Family Friendly to perform ministry acts of service together as a Church, 83. ii family, with their children. Doing so will increase 12DeVries, Family-Based Youth Ministry, 63. the possibilities they will remain committed to God and engaged in the life and ministry of the 13Freudenburg and Lawrence, The Family Friendly church. Church, 17. 14Barna, Grow Your Church From the Outside