Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. –Mark 12:30
The Parent Guide: We realize that you, as parents, are the primary faith influencers in a young person’s life. The best disciple making takes place when a student’s parents take the lead. That’s why we’ve created this helpful guide for you to use at home with your child. It is designed to give you some basic information about what your child is going to learn at their Discipleship Now event, along with some helpful questions to help you reinforce this learning at home.
Main Topics and Scriptures Covered:
1) RENEW Your Heart: Romans 6:15-18
Our students and even we, ourselves, might be involved in ministry, serving others and going to Bible studies. But as tasks, service projects, and events add up, we need to consider why we do these things? Even the right thing done for the wrong reason can be harmful. It all starts with the heart.
2) RENEW Your Mind: Ephesians 4:17-24
It’s easy to say one thing and think another, and while the person listening to us might not know the difference, God does. Loving God with our mind goes beyond a feeling or an attitude; it involves our focus, creativity, imaginations, and commitment to truth.
3) RENEW Your Strength: 2 Corinthians 12:9-10
Our strength is all of our efforts and our actions. It’s our service, our dedication, and our tenacity. Usually our efforts fall into two categories: what we’re good at, and what we’re not. In this session we’re going to take a look at how we can love God not only when we’re good at something or when it’s easy, but how we can love God when it’s hard or seems beyond our ability.
4) RENEW Your Soul: Mark 8:34-37
We are going to look at our priorities and the things keeping us from giving all of ourselves to Christ. To love God with our soul means to be all-in and love him with all your life. It means we don’t fall for distractions or get sidetracked by seeing things from a shortsighted position. Instead we change our focus from the temporary treasures of this world to our eternal life with God.
Questions You Can Ask Your Child:
1) When are the hardest times to line up your heart (or your motivations) with what you are doing and saying? When are the easiest times?
2) What is one belief or thought pattern that holds you back from fully following Jesus?
3) How can you love Jesus with something you are great at doing? How can you love him with something you struggle with?
4) What is one thing holding you back from loving God with all of yourself? How can you start letting that thing go?