"Prime Ministers"
Parents are the primary spiritual teachers and trainers of their children. Why? Because God has given parents this responsibility in His Word. It makes perfect sense. Why? Because there is no one more influential in a child's life than parents. Research data confirms this truth. In other words, parents are the "prime ministers" of their children.

The Student Ministry of FBC Celina loves teenagers and desires to see them develop into fully-devoted followers of Jesus Christ. And what better way to do that than to encourage and equip parents. Our student ministry is committed to helping parents fulfill their God-given role as the spiritual trainers of their children.

Chrisitan parenting is hard-work but worthy work. It takes wisdom, courage, patience, and love. Let us not shrink back from the fight. We must engage! Thank you for what you do as parents. May God guide you, and may His blessings and grace be all over your family!

Below you'll find a few items and resources just for you. This is by no means an exhaustive list. Just a few tips and suggestions.

1. HAVE A WEEKLY FAMILY DEVOTIONAL ~ This is a great way to give your family another helping of God's Word. And we can never get too much of that. Just remember, it will remain words on a page for your child until they see it come alive in you! Lead through your actions and attitudes. You won't always get it right...none of us do. But strive to be a doer of God's Word.

2. ESTABLISH A PRAYER TIME ~ Sure, there are many things that make this suggestion difficult. Yes, you can and should pray for your child on your own. You're the spiritual leader though. Your children need to be engaged in prayer with you...hearing you...seeing you...experiencing prayer with you. Why should family prayer fall by the waste-side as our children get older?

3. KEEP CHURCH INVOLVEMENT A PRIORITY ~ Schedules can fillup quick! With so much competing for our children's attention, church involvement can at times become optional. Don't allow this to happen to you or to your family. There are so many positive reasons to keeping church involvement a priority. But the strongest reason I can think of is consistent exposure to God's Word. You keep 'em comin' and we'll bring the Word.

4. ADDRESS THE DIFFICULT ISSUES ~ How do your children interpret and process the "hot" issues of our day (abortion, euthanasia, marriage & family, homosexuality, sexual purity, alcohol/drugs, getting to heaven, suffering, etc.)? It's important to teach our children how to think Biblically. These are tough issues facing your children and someone is teaching them how to think about each one of them. Is it you?

A FEW BOOKS TO BUY
Age of Opportunity - Paul Tripp
Family Driven Faith - Voddie Baucham Jr.
Now That's a Good Question - R.C. Sproul
The 7 Secrets of Effective Fathering - Ken R. Canfield
Every Young Man's Battle - Arterburn and Stoeker
Every Young Woman's Battle - Ethridge and Arterburn
Teens, Sex, and Choices - Marilyn Morris
Parenting with Kingdom Purpose - Hemphill and Ross

A FEW LINKS TO CLICK
Plugged-In
Parenting Teenagers
Brio
Breakaway
Center for Parent/Youth Understanding
Understanding Your Teenager
Covenant Eyes