Legacy Youth

09/16/2022

How can we be your “village” and support you and your family?

Asking for help doesn't make you a bad parent, it makes you a good, honest one. We are not meant to raise our kids alone, but many parents are finding "the village" that promised support is pretty much not what they were expecting. So, what do we do now? Well, we can start by cultivating our OWN sources of support instead of waiting for the typical ones to appear. We can use the circles we already dwell in—think parents who show up regularly to the park the same times you do, other classroom parents, etc.—to start crafting the support we need. We can get crafty, we can start thinking outside of the box. We can do everything we need to build a support system we can trust to have our backs.

Have you been successful in building a support system? Any advice for the newbies in our community?

08/26/2022

I’ll spare you from watching the video….

Here’s a few pics of our dance off’s 🫣:

08/18/2022

Winning the heart of your child takes a lot of Listening.

We have 2 👂 and 1 👄

As Parents, we need to Listen 2x’s (or more) as much as we talk.

I need to remind myself if this all the time!
Like everyday. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

Every day, we're tasked with fighting for the heart of our kids. Realistically speaking, sometimes that fight is messy and full of tension. It's dropping your strong opinions on things that won't matter five years from now, but seem huge right now. It's letting your kid make a mistake you already know how to save them from. But it's also lots of listening quietly without using that moment to teach them a lesson. It's being the place they feel secure and comfortable to come to when things get rough. All of those things are hard, but they are so worth enduring in the end.

08/18/2022

✝️👫 🌙

Last night was another great night!
Despite sports and activities keeping kids busy, we are still having a really nice turnout!!

5 of the kids that come on Wednesdays, are kids that do not make it on Sundays!!

How awesome is that?!

Meaning new friends….!!
New friendships….!!!!
Now that’s something to get excited about!!
😍🤩🥳🥳🥳

With budget cuts, our youth is in need of your help and support, so that we can continue breakfast Sunday morning, pizza Wednesday night and activities. 🙏

08/18/2022

1 of the missions we do here at Ironton First, is our . The items in this pic were collected by our youth.

Aren’t they awesome?!

We encourage kids to either bring item(s) for the 📦 Blessing Box (food, clothing, toiletries, baby supplies, etc) or to consider donating 🐶 🐱 $1 for the animal shelter.

08/08/2022

Our kids need to know we/parents believe in them. They need to feel like they matter. They need a safe place to talk.

Bring up all the great things they are doing. Brag on them.

Spend time with them.

Listen.

And Show Up daily, being their BIGGEST cheerleader!

Our kids will be spending large chunks of their days outside of our homes, encountering way more than they'll likely share with us. Let's make sure we go heavy on the encouragement, reminding them that no matter what, we believe they are resilient, capable humans who are able to do so much.

07/14/2022

I am LOVING the Parent Cue resource!! Remember, all kids come home with Daily Devotions (5-7 days for all our kids) + a “ .” The Parent Cue is a take-home resource that gives suggestions on how you and your child can discuss our weekly lessons.

I highly suggest parents read both the Daily Devotions and the Parent Cue at least once a day (I’d go for reading 1st thing and re-read before bed) together.
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Parents (Grandparents, anyone helping kids):

Ask yourself, “am I modeling being ?” “Am I patient? Do I ask how my child’s day is going? Do I listen? Did I cut her off while she’s talking? Do I raise my voice when I know I shouldn’t? How can I show more KINDNESS with my Words and Actions?”

What’s 1 area in your parenting where you could be Kinder, speak more positive and encouraging words? How can you model Kindness more?

According to research, showing kindness to others impacts positively the brain, the heart, general health, and has been proven to curb depression. Other research tells us people who practice kindness are 25 percent happier than those who don’t. But even more, showing kindness can potentially change the world.

A special shout out to all the parents who are tirelessly striving to raise kind humans!

07/08/2022

How do you model Confidence at home?

What I’ve learned is true Confidence comes from knowing your are God’s child and deeply loved. It’s knowing he made us with a purpose and plan.

When we follow God’s #1 rule, love Him.
No one can steal your joy, hope, peace or Confidence, because we put our trust in God, not people.

Seeking approval from God, not others, is the best thing we can do to teach ourselves and our children, in HOW to live their Best Lives!!

“For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” ~Galatians 1:10

No matter how much we may want to, we can’t perform a confidence transplant on our kids—it’s not in our power as parents.

However, it IS our job to provide our kids with the blueprints to build their own confidence, brick by brick.

What words are we saying to our kids to build their confidence? How are we coaching them to be confident in who they are and what they believe in? And maybe most important—how are we modeling confidence in our homes?

07/08/2022

📕 Devotion for TEEN parents:

—Strong and Courageous—
The culture has become increasingly secular and often discriminatory toward religion, Christianity in particular. In light of that, help your teen solidify in his mind the answers to these questions.
1. Do I believe the Bible is the absolute truth of God?
2. Do I believe Christianity is distinct from other religions?
3. Do I believe there are multiple ways to get to heaven?
4. Do I believe that all other religions are false?
5. Do I believe in the deity of Jesus?
Your teen should be able to clearly defend what he believes. You might be asking how you can do that.
We find the answer in Joshua 1. God told Joshua to follow His laws carefully. This command to “meditate on” and “be careful to do everything written in” is one requiring a focused discipline.
God wants you and your family to have a well-grounded confidence in who He is. He knows that this confidence will not take shape without hard work. My older brother, Kent, just finished running his first marathon. He is fifty years old and understood that getting from the starting line to the finish line would require strong discipline. He knew that without hard work, he would never be successful. God knew that in order for Joshua to be successful in leading the nation of Israel, he, too, would have to work hard. He would have to above all study, know, and reflect on Scripture.
The more you read and meditate on the Bible, the more you believe in God. His Word teaches us how to place confidence in who He is and who He has created us to be. Romans 1:19–20 and Psalm 19:1 teach us that we can see God’s glory, thus placing confidence in who He is, by looking at His creation. Just as our physical eyes see proof of the wonders of the earth, our spiritual eyes see proof of the wonders of who God is. Your teen counts on you to lead him into the wonders of God’s Word.
🙏 Lord, I confess that today’s culture sometimes confuses me too, even swaying me to wonder what is really truth. I want to be immersed in your Word so that I can answer these five questions well and help [teen’s name] to answer them too. Guide us into all truth. Amen.
✝️ Scripture:
““Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.””
‭‭Joshua‬ ‭1:7-9‬ ‭NIV‬‬
👩🏻 Being a parent is hard work. We too can find our strength in God. We too need to know him so that we can be their example and show them how to live successful lives.
God is our source to all Good Things. Praying as parents, we take our faith and our children’s faith as a priority.