That time the kids took the cinnamon challenge...and then protected thehouse from sunburn...

This morning, I was feeling in a Christmas-y mood, so I decided to put some Scentsy "Cinnamon Bear" on the warmer.

 I put a movie on for Beacon and Liam Atticus was eating breakfast so I sat down to do some math with Huck. I noticed LA wasn't eating so I grabbed some cinnamon from the spice rack, sprinkled a little in his oatmeal, set it on the counter and went back to doing math with Huck. When LA had finished eating, I got him down and sent him into the living room so I could finish up with Huck. I'm starting to think that the house is smelling nice and cinnamon-y and thinking how great Scentsy is when I walk into the living room to check on the kids and find this:

And then this:

And yes, those are my clean clothes that I was planning to hang up this afternoon. Evidently, LA had stealthily grabbed the cinnamon from the counter (yes, he's that tall now) and taken it to Beacon, who, in his infinite 3-year-old wisdom, decided that it would be a good idea to dump the entire thing on the couch. Atticus then rolled in it, dragged his blankets through it, and proceeded to clean it up by licking it. I sent Beacon to timeout while I vacuumed. Thankfully, most of the cinnamon vacuumed up fairly well....except for the spot LA had licked. That part is still brown. It actually locks like that whole cushion has a mild tan....and a birthmark on the licked spot.

As I'm typing this, Huck comes running into the kitchen and says, "Hey Mom, Liam Atticus just sprayed sunscreen all over himself and the clothes (that I just folded)"....

...and the couch, and the vacuum that I had just pulled out to vacuum up the cinnamon and the coffee table)...

...and later on, I found it down the hallway as well.

I laughed so hard that I cried...

Why I Believe in Youth Ministry

Over the past month, I've had some difficult and sometimes disheartening conversations about the ineffectiveness of programs (specifically youth and children's programs) in our churches today. Then today, I read this article (http://thegospelside.com/2012/09/23/whats-so-uncool-about-cool-churches/), which i had read in the past, but which currently takes on new significance. Consequently, I have begun to look back on my personal experiences with these programs (both as a participant and a leader) and have come to the conclusion that, yes, many churches today are losing young people to the secular world. However, I don't necessarily believe that segregation of youth are to blame.

I chose the aforementioned article because it makes seemingly valid arguments, but I believe these arguments are inherently flawed. For example:

1. 20-30 year olds attend church at 1/2 the rate of their parents and ¼ the rate of their grandparents. 

While the author states this as evidence that youth segregation is failing the church, I see it as evidence that the church is failing as a whole. By these statistics, although we are attending church at only 1/2 the rate of our parents, our parents themselves only attend church at 1/2 the rate of their parents. Most of our parents were raised up in the church long before the current segregation of youth trend began. This means that something was failing in the church long before youth were pulled out to worship/learn separately from adults.

2. 61% of churched high school students graduate and never go back! (Time Magazine, 2009) Even worse: 78%  to 88% of those in youth programs today will leave church, most to never return. (Lifeway, 2010)

These statistics may be true, but there is no support for the conclusion drawn from them: "attending a church with nothing seems to be more effective at retaining youth than our youth programs." The author shows no evidence that youth from small country churches without organized youth programs are attending church on into adulthood.

So, if it isn't segregation of youth, what is causing a large number of youth to leave the church? I believe that 2 things are responsible: a cultural shift and a lack of fervent faith and discipleship amongst churchgoers. My grandparents are baby-boomers. People of their generations were raised differently. I have heard people from that age group talk about waiting to have sex until marriage not because of a conviction from God to keep oneself pure, but because "that was how things were done". I suspect that many a churchgoer from that era attended church for the same reason. Our grandparents were raised as moralists, and, in those days, having morals meant attending church. While it is possible to be a moral person without being Christian, it is impossible to have a personal relationship with God without having ones moral attitude affected. Culture has become increasingly more tolerant of sin and less tolerant of any attempts at restraint or denying oneself. These shifts go against the very grain of Christianity. Teens often use the excuse, "I want to be free to do what I want. No one can tell me what to do." They reject Christianity because of the perceived bondage (don't get drunk, don't do drugs, don't have sex outside of marriage) and run toward their perceived freedom - all the while missing the true freedom that comes with self-restraint (i.e. - having control of ones body, not having to worry about being pregnant or getting an STD). Therefore, young people view Christianity as antiquated and irrelevant and see no need to delve deeper into scripture and discover a lasting and life-altering faith.

This lasting and life-altering faith is exactly what is missing in the life of many churchgoers - not just the young people. We are failing to disciple young people because we don't have a base from which to disciple - a lived-out, sold-out, commitment to God. The view that youth are always looking for something fun and entertaining is completely false. Youth have an uncanny ability to discern truth and what they are looking for is something real. They are looking for an adult who can recognize their individual struggles and who can show them how to "work out their own salvation with fear and trembling". The Bible does not need to be "made relevant" for youth. Christ is ALWAYS relevant, but youth need to be shown how to discern that for themselves - how to read the Bible and apply it to their lives in a way that it makes an impact. This is a learned skill and one that too few adults have. Too many adults are consumers in church - worried only about what they can get from the sermon, from the music, from the programs. Too few are worried about what they can give - to God, to the church, to their community. It is important to allow those who are gifted at ministering to youth (and children) a time and place to cultivate relationships through which to minister more effectively to youth. I do believe that there is a time for corporate worship (from ages 2 months to 102 years), but I also believe that it is beneficial to our children/youth to be broken into smaller groups in order for them to have time to discuss topics that are pressing to them.

So what can we as a church do to retain our young people after they grow up? The main thing that we can do is to make youth ministry relational and Spirit focused. There is nothing wrong with having pizza socials, youth ski trips, and capture the flag tournaments. All of these activities help the youth to build solid relationships with each other and with adult youth workers. However, this should not be the basis of our youth groups and entertainment/fellowship should not be the primary goal. Mentoring kids and directing them to a meaningful relationship with Christ should always be the primary goal. Can this goal be assisted by youth rallies that appear to outsiders to look like rock concerts? Absolutely. Just because its mainstream and accepted doesn't mean that it's ungodly. Another way that we can retain young people in the church is by showing them what it means to be dedicated followers of Christ. Young people who see Christ having an impact in the lives of their parents, teachers, and other adults at their churches are likely to possess a deeper understanding of what a relationship with Christ entails.  Don't just take your kids to church, worship and serve together as a family. Be transparent with your teenagers and reveal to them a little about your own struggles and how Christ helps you in your daily walk. Pretty soon, they'll be standing at the threshold into adulthood and instead of abandoning religion to their newfound "freedom", they'll be running toward the One who offers true freedom.

Up and blogging

Finally got a blogger app on my phone so I'm going to get back into the blog-o-sphere...

Gotta get the kids down for a nap and some clothes folded first...

It's "not me" Monday and on that note, I most certainly DID NOT contemplate putting a child out on the porch in the snow and rain after 1 and 1/2 hours of non-stop screaming. After said child fell asleep, I DID NOT feel the need to eat something really sweet to calm myself. Consequently, I DID NOT make myself a chocolate cake in a mug in the microwave because I had no cookies.

Nope, that could not have been me. And I AM NOT contemplating making another one and sitting at the computer all afternoon while I should be cleaning and packing. :o)

sleeping babies make me smile :o)

Huck and I now frequently take our afternoon naps on my bed - which means he nurses until he falls asleep and I work on the computer until he falls asleep and then try to quietly slip out of the bed. By the way, this rarely works as the minute I move, I inevitably knock something over or kick something noisy or elbow him (I'm a total klutz) or, like today, I get to a sitting position and he cracks one eye and looks at me like, "What do you think you're doing?" I then proceed to start laughing which shakes the bed and makes him smile. But thankfully today, he did go back to sleep. :o)

Now, if only I didn't have to wake him up to go to handbell practice. :o/

I love Christmas music...

I must admit, I am one of those semi-annoying people who blasts Christmas music on their car stereo in October. I just can't help it! I absolutely LOVE Christmas music - Bing Crosby, Perry Como, Karen Carpenter - they all just have the perfect voices to listen while you're drinking hot chocolate and sitting in front of a fire. I really do love pretty much all Christmas music. The only ones I don't care for are songs like "Christmas Shoes" (which is depressing to me) and "Same Old Lang Syne" (which is also depressing and not about Christmas). These songs just don't fit the mood of the season. Huck also enjoys Christmas music - especially when I dance around with him while singing "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree." We watched "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" yesterday and are planning to watch "White Christmas" repeatedly before the end of the year. Huck really enjoys music, in general. I'm glad because I think it is important to pass on to your children the things that are important to you. I can't think of two better things than Christ and music, which is probably why I like Christmas music so much. :o)

he's here!!!

Ok, so I thought it would be easy to blog when the baby came and I had things to write about....who was I kidding?!?!....it's enough work just to survive the day!...so the updates are:

Our precious little boy - Charles Huckleberry "Huck" Brantly was born June 13, 2009 at 6:00 pm after 18 hours of labor...we chose the name Charles after my stepfather who died just 4 days before Huck was born.

We are so enjoying introducing Huck to the world...he is so curious about EVERYTHING...he loves a crowd and praise and worship music...he hates lying down or riding in the carseat and would prefer to be either standing up or riding facing out in a carrier...he is taken with blonds and little girls and is already pretty good at flirting with them :o)...we are trying to be good parents and teach him important things - like how to do laudry...

how to make friends...

how to be musical...

and how to say "War Eagle!!!"...

Huck rolled over for the first time today - Sid and I cheered, of course, but he seemed to think it was no big deal. I had alot of trouble with gallstones during prenancy so I had my gallbladder removed this week - which was a very simple procedure and one I was very glad to have done. Sid has spent the week working on building an airplane that he designed. In fact, even as I type this, he is downstairs determined to finish it and go to work early tomorrow to test it's flying capabilities. (I'll try to post video when I get some). We are getting used to functioning on little sleep as our little guy is not sleeping well yet. (He is currently in his swing fighting falling asleep despite the fact that he is warm and full.) I, myself, am welcoming the idea of going to sleep as I hope to get up and go to the gym in the morning because with breastfeeding and the pregnancy weight lingering on my hips, my wearable wardrobe has gotten very small and with football season right around the corner, I really need to be able to comfortably fit into my Auburn clothes so I can proudly display my Auburn spirit in UK country. :o)