The Family Table

Fall Retreat is THIS WEEK!
Our fall retreat is coming up this weekend! It’s not too late to join us for all or part of the retreat. We want you there! This is a great opportunity for your family to get away with the LEFC family and enjoy fellowship, teaching, and more. This year’s theme will focus on Hard Work and Real Rest. Registration is open! Register your family now to join us for a great weekend!

Moms and Kids Playdate
Our monthly Moms and Kids playdate is coming up this Thursday at 9:00 in the fellowship hall. Moms who are home with their children are encouraged to join us as we enjoy spending time together while kids play with provided toys and games.

New Morning Mercies for Kids
If you’ve been a long-time reader, you may remember us recommending Paul Tripp’s New Morning Mercies and New Morning Mercies for Teens. We’ve got some exciting news: Tripp just released a new addition to the suite, New Morning Mercies for Kids!  This devotional is an abridged version of his first devotional aimed at children ages 8-12. In 60 gospel-centered devotions spanning 20 weeks with three readings per week, kids will explore various themes such as prayer, obedience, and sovereignty. Included are a meditation, questions, puzzles, and activities with each devotion. Kids can engage on their own or with a parent, which we think is a great opportunity to connect with your child. Grab yours today!

This Week’s Challenge: Connection
Each child is different. They have their own personality, interests, strengths and dreams. In one home, two kids may look alike but have vastly different characteristics that set them apart from each other. These differences make each of our children unique. As parents, part of our job is to recognize these complexities, building a “profile” of sorts of each child that we store away in our minds. We may recall that information when choosing the right birthday present or deciding how to bring up a tough conversation.

One of the key files in that folder should be how we best connect with that child. We should strive to have meaningful connection points with our children, reaching their heart in a way that makes them feel loved, cared for, listened to, and cherished.

This week’s challenge is to take a moment to consider how you could connect with your child in a meaningful, one-on-one way. Do they love ice cream and bond with you over a shared favorite flavor? Take them for a treat after dinner. Do they burst in the door and tell you all about their day when they come home from school? Clear your responsibilities from your plate before they get home so you can be present, focused, and give them your attention as they talk. Maybe they love coloring and would light up if you grabbed a Dollar General coloring book and colored a page with them.

You know your child best. Whatever the means to getting there, whether dripping ice cream or honing in your art skills, we encourage you to take a moment this week to connect with your child’s heart.

“Jesus Brings Life” Kids Bible Class Devotional
You have free access to a family devotional based on the curriculum our kids are studying each week in KBC! It’s called “The Gospel Project at Home.” Today’s Bible Study is “Jesus Gave Life and Healing” (Volume 9: Unit 26: Session 2, and the devotional can be found at this link.

Visit the Family Ministries page on our website for information about how to access The Gospel Project at Home for the first time.

And for Dessert…
Our recommendation for family discipleship this week is our Fall Retreat coming up this weekend!

The past two years, several of our families in our LEFC family have gathered for a weekend in the fall to enjoy fellowship, teaching, singing, good food, and fun at our Fall Retreat at the beautiful lodge at Seven Mountains Scout Camp. Many keep coming back year after year, and for good reason: it’s a weekend well-spent!

This upcoming weekend, we’ll gather once again. We’ll learn from Pastor Matt as he teaches us about Hard Work and Real Rest, then spend time diving in deeper in breakout sessions talking through how it applies to our lives. We’ll spend time catching up with each other and getting to know others better, maybe over a delicious meal or at our campfire on Saturday evening. We’ll enjoy leisure time either through painting or an outdoor activity, and have no shortage of time for game-playing, puzzle-tackling, and laughter as we relax surrounded by the beautiful fall colors. We’ll even spend time with our Crisis Response Missionaries, Peter and Deb Bors, as we get to know them better and learn about the work they do.

If you haven’t yet gotten the nudge from us, consider this that encouragement to join us! The full retreat begins Friday evening and concludes Sunday morning after our main session. We always encourage our families to stay with us the whole weekend to get the full benefit of everything that we have to offer, but if you have other commitments, join us on Saturday or Sunday! Saturday’s activities will begin at 9:30 and conclude at our campfire after our 6:00 dinner. Sunday morning we’ll have our main session of teaching and worship at 9:00, so if you want to get a taste of the retreat at a time that you already have set aside, join us then!

So why exactly should you come? What do you stand to gain from sacrificing a weekend to be with us? We think you’ll find that you were able to connect on a deeper level with your LEFC family both through fun and fellowship and diving into our teaching together. You’ll find yourself refreshed and encouraged!

We hope that you’ll be able to partake in the activities this weekend! To register, check out our registration form. Contact Jordyn at [email protected] with your questions.

We hope your family eats it right up.

Jordyn Skacel, Director of Family Ministry
Matt Mitchell, Pastor