It S Just A Phase So Don T Miss It

Every church knows that kids matter. A better question is, does your church act like every kid matters at every phase? A phase is a timeframe in kids' lives when you can leverage distinctive opportunities to influence their future. That means the whining infant, the dramatic fifth grader, and the stressed-out tenth grader are not just going through a phase that should be wished away. Instead, they are transitioning through a critical phase that you are called to discover, celebrate, and navigate strategically with them. This book presents a challenge to churches to treat every kid who breathes like they are made in the image of God. When you keep acting like every kid and teenager has the potential ... to believe, imagine, and love ... to care, relate, and trust ... to reason, improve, and lead It can change ... how the parents next door see your church. how the elders value teenagers. how the executive staff views children and youth ministry. how you organize what you do every week. how first graders see themselves. But more importantly ... it can change how every kid sees God, and that could change every kid's future.

Parents have approximately 936 weeks from the time their child is born until he or she graduates from high school. It goes by fast. The responsibility to shape a child’s faith and character can seem overwhelming. If you are a parent, you have probably realized by now that you can’t make a toddler share. Can’t force a child to have faith. Can’t compel a teenager to make smart decisions. But there is something parents can do. They can make this week count. And then do it again, and again. In Don’t Miss It, authors Reggie Joiner and Kristen Ivy help parents discover that what they understand about their kids now has the potential to change their kids’ future. If parents don’t miss what’s happening during this phase of their kids’ lives, then maybe kids won’t miss some important things they need to know about life. That’s why what parents do this week matters. It’s just a phase. And none of us wants to miss it.

What if the primary mission of the church is not to help the family, and the number one priority of the family is not to go to church?What if they are both designed to work together to show a generation who God is?It's not either/or. It's both/and.In Think Orange, Reggie Joiner shows how two combined influences can make a greater impact than just two influences separately. Church leaders who "think orange" make radical changes so they can ?Engage parents in an integrated strategySynchronize the home and church around a clear messageProvoke parents and kids to fight for their relationship with each otherRecruit mentors to become partners with familiesMobilize the next generation to be the churchWhen you think orange, you rethink the way you do ministry for children and teenagers.

Women who opt not to be mothers are frequently warned that they will regret their decision later in life, yet we rarely talk about the possibility that the opposite might also be true—that women who have children might regret it. Drawing on years of research interviewing women from a variety of socioeconomic, educational, and professional backgrounds, sociologist Orna Donath treats regret as a feminist issue: as regret marks the road not taken, we need to consider whether alternative paths for women currently are blocked off. She asks that we pay attention to what is forbidden by rules governing motherhood, time, and emotion, including the cultural assumption that motherhood is a “natural” role for women—for the sake of all women, not just those who regret becoming mothers. If we are disturbed by the idea that a woman might regret becoming a mother, Donath says, our response should not be to silence and shame these women; rather, we need to ask honest and difficult questions about how society pushes women into motherhood and why those who reconsider it are still seen as a danger to the status quo. Groundbreaking, thoughtful, and provocative, this is an especially needed book in our current political climate, as women's reproductive rights continue to be at the forefront of national debates.

In 1981, Heinrich Boll returned to the streets of his childhood in this remarkable collection of nonfiction. This volume captures the musings of a mature Boll as he looks back with fondness and with anger on his formative years: as a student who avoided school but lived for his education on the street; and as a young man forced to grapple with the moral horror that was Hitler. What's to Become of the Boy - superbly translated by Leila Vennewitz - provides uncommon insight into Boll's maturation as an author and as a man.

A modern parenting classic—a guide to a new and gentle way of understanding the care and nurture of infants, by the internationally renowned childcare expert, podcaster, and author of No Bad Kids “An absolute go-to for all parents, therapists, anyone who works with, is, or knows parents of young children.”—Wendy Denham, PhD A Resources for Infant Educarers (RIE) teacher and student of pioneering child specialist Magda Gerber, Janet Lansbury helps parents look at the world through the eyes of their infants and relate to them as whole people who have natural abilities to learn without being taught. Once we are able to view our children in this light, even the most common daily parenting experiences become stimulating opportunities to learn, discover, and connect with our child. A collection of the most-read articles from Janet’s popular and long-running blog, Elevating Child Care focuses on common infant issues, including: • Nourishing our babies’ healthy eating habits • Calming your clingy, fearful child • How to build your child’s focus and attention span • Developing routines that promote restful sleep Eschewing the quick-fix tips and tricks of popular parenting culture, Lansbury’s gentle, insightful guidance lays the foundation for a closer, more fulfilling parent-child relationship, and children who grow up to be authentic, confident, successful adults.

What if knowing the answers to five simple questions could give a kid hope?In a world where kids are known by a number on a jersey, digits on a car pool tag, and random usernames, we need more adults who will stop and take the time to know them personally.It's Personal is for volunteers and other leaders who work with children and teenagers. A practical guide for a personal (and more effective and fulfilling) approach to leading kids, It's Personal revisits the story of Zacchaeus and explores Jesus' simple model for how to be personal. Jesus' encounter with Zacchaeus shows us how to engage kids and teenagers personally to give them a renewed sense of identity, belonging, and purpose.Something remarkable can happen when you start seeing people the way Jesus sees them.Taking the time to answer the five questions in this book for a kid or teenager could radically change someone's faith, maybe even yours.