Generate - Young Family Ministry

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

The Change

Most of you may already know the changes that have taken place. But for those of you who don’t, I am happy to share the news with you. As of June 1st, Teya and I were asked to oversee the Children’s Department at Grace Church. We are very excited about this opportunity. It was not a decision that was made without a lot of prayer and we ask that you pray for us as we take up our new positions. We are so grateful to all of you who continue to serve in the Children’s Ministry. We are honored to rub elbows with you in service because as you know, we can’t do it without you. It’s going to be a BLAST! God is GOOD, God is FAITHFUL!

In light of the recent changes, I want to let everyone know that Generate Young Family Ministry is NOT going anywhere. We plan on hosting events that incorporate the vision of Generate, which is “strengthening the family and producing relationships”, as well as ministering to the children, which, I believe, goes hand in hand with the Young Family Ministry. What an awesome opportunity we have to work with you and your family on this big of a scale. Again, Teya and I are very excited and we hope you are too. We look forward to seeing each and every one of you soon.

God Bless,

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Watermelon Eating contest

Game Time!

Monday, May 19, 2008

Food, Fun

Clowning Around

What a DAY and What a TURN out

Teya and I would like to THANK EVERYONE for coming out on Saturday for the "End of School Year Picnic". We would especially like to thank Josh and Tracy, Chris and Stephanie, Tori and Roy and Lisa who helped with everything from setup to cooking to break down. You all did a FANTASTIC job, and it is very much APPRECIATED! We would also like to extend our THANKS and APPRECIATION to Miss Abbagail J. Gogh for coming out and painting all of our children’s faces. She was busy from start to finish and the kids absolutely loved her. We had an AWESOME time hanging out with everyone and getting to know as many of you as possible. There was never a dull moment during the event. We did everything from a Watermelon Eating Contest to kickball to blind folding all the MOM's and having them try and find their own kids… talk about funny stuff. We even tried to confuse everyone by playing a shoe pile scramble and seeing which family could find their shoes the fastest and put them on before crossing the finish line. Then we threw all the families for a loop by playing a game called "Tunnel Gopher" which is the opposite of leap frog so instead of having to go over one another they had to go under and through some legs. The parents struggled with this a little since kids obviously have the advantage in the height department. I have never seen so many smiling and laughing faces in one spot. The sack race was very popular- we all had fun hopping uphill to the finish line. We closed down the show with a good old fashioned TUG-OF-WAR. To make this exciting we had all the mom's and their children take on the dads and guess what???? The dads won! It was such a wonderful time and we thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it. The weather was perfect for the outdoor event... I even got a little color. So once again THANK YOU to EVERYONE for making this day such a success.

God Bless!

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

WORDS of Encoragement!

Everytime I read these 5 verses from the book of Romans they just seem to speak so loudly to me (especially with all that we see and hear going on in the world today!) I figured surely someone else will be blessed by what they have to say. I wanted to go ahead and share with everyone these encouraging words and to remind everyone we have a GREATER HOPE than those with out Christ and we can REJOICE in troubled times.

ROMANS 5:1-5

Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have PEACE with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and REJOICE in HOPE of the GLORY of God. And not only that, BUT we ALSO GLORY in tribulations, KNOWING that tribulations produces PERSEVERANCE, CHARACTER; and CHARACTER HOPE. Now hope DOES NOT DISAPPOINT, because the LOVE of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was GIVEN to US.

God Bless!

“Road Trip” to Muskogee Water Park

There’s no question… its HOT!

Summertime can be a fun time for the family, as long as there are basic necessities, like air conditioning. Although we do spend a lot of time “in doors” this time of year, outdoor events can be fun too as long as there is plenty of shade and lots of water. I think it’s time to schedule a trip. We really love the water park in Muskogee and we think it would be great to spend a day there with our Grace Church family.

For those of you who have never been, here is a link to their website.

http://www.cityofmuskogee.com/shell.asp?pg=92

One thing is for sure, it’s very inexpensive in comparison to the water park here in Tulsa which makes the 40 minute drive a piece of cake. There is plenty to do for you and your children no matter what their age. So, here are all the details…

Generate Young Family Ministry “Road Trip” to Muskogee:
Where: River Country Water park in Muskogee
When: Saturday, July 19th, 2008 (Park is open from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.)
What to Bring: Swimming attire, sun block, towels, water, snacks etc. Technically, there are no coolers allowed in the park, however, they do have Concessions available for cash only purchases.

So, pack up the kids, gas up the car and meet us in Muskogee. We’ll probably arrange to go pretty early so we can stake out a big enough area for our group. If anyone would like to caravan we would be happy to do so. Please reply to this email with a yea or nay or stop Teya or me in church to let us know that we will be seeing you there.

Up Coming Family Events

The Freedom Festival is Sunday, June 29th. Come and celebrate our country with your Church family and friends. We will be sitting on the lawn just east of the Children’s Building and we would love to have any or all of you join us. This will be the perfect location—right by the games, AND right by the food… not to mention it will be a wonderful spot for the Firework show. The Car show starts at 5:30pm and the rest of the fun events start at 6:00pm.

Questions? Email us at-
rselleck@gracetulsa.com
tselleck@gracetulsa.com

See you there.

Communication Pop Quiz

Please answer each of the following questions in terms of your relationship with your "spouse" if married, or your "partner" if dating or engaged. It is recommended that you answer these questions by yourself and not with your spouse or partner.

Use the following 3 point scale to rate how often you and your spouse/partner experience the following:

1=Almost never or never
2=Once in a while
3=Frequently

Note: It is recommended that you do not share the answers to the questions just the total score.

1 2 3
Little arguments escalate into ugly fights with accusations, criticisms, name calling, or bringing up past hurts.

1 2 3
My partner criticizes or belittles my opinions, feelings, or desires.

1 2 3
My partner seems to view my words or actions more negatively than I mean them to be.

1 2 3
When we have a problem to solve, it is like we are on opposite teams.

1 2 3
I hold back from telling my partner what I really think and feel.

1 2 3
I think seriously about what it would be like to date or marry someone else.

1 2 3
I feel lonely in this relationship.

1 2 3
When we argue, one of us withdraws…that is, doesn’t want to talk about it anymore; or leaves the scene.

What Does My Score Mean?

8 to 12 “Green Light”

If you scored in the 8-12 range, your relationship is probably in good or even great shape at THIS TIME, but we emphasize at “THIS TIME” because relationships don’t stand still. There is no need to stop, but it is probably a great time to work on making your relationship all it can be and to prevent problems in the future.

13 to 17 “Yellow Light”

If you scored in the 13 – 17 range, it’s like you are coming to a “yellow light.” You need to be cautious. While you may be happy now in your relationship, your score reveals warning signs of patterns you don’t want to let get worse. You’ll want to be taking action to protect and improve what you have.

18 to 24 “Red Light”

Finally, if you scored in the 18 –14 range, it’s like approaching a red light. Stop, and think about where the two of you are headed. Your score indicates the presence of patterns that could put your relationship at significant risk. It is important to stop and learn ways to improve your relationship now!