Summer Discipleship in Mount Carmel Kids

By: Lisa Davis

As I write this blog, my heart is full. No, that’s not really it. I think the state of my heart is actually overflowing. It’s overflowing with thankfulness. Vacation Bible School has always been a highlight of summer for me; both as a child and then years of leading. There is just something so special about seeing the kids every day. Seeing them worship, laugh, play, learn, eat, and absolutely love being together. I think I’m especially thankful for VBS this year because we’re able to be back in the building at Mount Carmel. There’s just something special about it.  Parents, you’re amazing! You’ve engaged, sang, listened, played with your kids this week. I hope that you’ve been blessed by the investment of your time you’ve given.  Parent/child discipleship is what I’ve seen. Again, I’m thankful.

Our preschool through 2nd graders can also participate in Bubbles, Buddies, and Books this summer. These events take place on various Thursdays this summer. It’s a fun time to create friendships; both for parents and kids. We play, read and explore sensory stations together. These events are from 11:30 – 1:00 PM and take place at Batavia Township Park. Check out the dates on our website.

Deeper Dive is another opportunity for discipleship. We will do a deeper look into our Sunday morning material. We’ll break into small groups broken down by age/grade. There is so much more we’d love to do on Sunday mornings that time doesn’t permit. We’re excited to have the time to do this. Again, check out the dates/times on our website.

Summer Discipleship in Mount Carmel Students 

By: David Rimarski

Discipling students is something that can sometimes take the back seat when it comes to student ministry. Many student ministers want to have a place where the students can have a great time, relax, and feel comfortable. Now there is nothing wrong with this at all, but when only having a good time takes priority over actual discipleship of the student is where we can get into some trouble. That can include losing their faith and/or not being prepared to defend or explain their faith when that time comes. I believe that discipling the students here at Mount Carmel is to be the ministry’s top priority. Are there times when we get together and have a great time? Absolutely, but we don’t shy away from the tough questions, the intentional communication, and the investments we put into your students.

So, what are we doing to disciple your students? Here is what we do! Every Sunday morning, we have a middle school service at 11 am upstairs in the student center. This is for those who are in grades 6th-8th. We have a great time up there playing an opening game, worshiping with a live band, and diving into scripture with the message for the day. After the sermon is over, we break off into small groups This is where the leaders are very intentional about the questions they ask and really work hard to get the students to feel comfortable to add to the conversation.

Small groups are where we get most of our discipling done with meeting sometimes three times a week between our middle school service, our ALL-IN events, and the high school only small groups. All of these small groups are led by amazing leaders who are very intentional and loving towards your students. Just the other day one of our new 6th graders saw one of our volunteers, Kristen Van Huss, and said, “Look mom, that’s the leader I was telling you about!” These are the type of leaders who go above and beyond for the students here because they all have a heart for discipling students.

We are not just stopping there though. We are working on more ideas to better reach, connect, and disciple your students. The student ministry team is going to be working on new plans over the summer to put these new ideas into effect so please be praying for these new plans and for God to use them to connect with the students and give them that solid foundation in Jesus that they need as they continue to grow.