Filled with stories from one ministry professional to another, Family Ministry for a New Generation includes practical ways to equip parents to partner with the church in faith formation, inspiration and ideas for incorporating remembrance and celebration, creative ways to motivate children and teenagers to step out of their comfort zones and rely on the Holy Spirit, and insight into how God uses each person’s life as part of a unique story that is told throughout the generations.
Dreaming of More for the Next Generation
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About the Author
Dr. Michelle Anthony has over twenty-five years experience in church ministry and is the author of over a dozen resources for Christian education. A mother of two, Dr. Anthony is the Ambassador of Family Ministries at Rock Harbor Church in Costa Mesa, California and the Family Ministry Architect for David C Cook.
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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I am days behind my deadline on reviewing this book and it is completely the fault of Michelle Anthony. Yes I have been given the privilege of reading this book titled: "Dreaming of More for the Next Generation: Lifetime Faith Ignited by Family Ministry", published by David C. Cook and thought I would be able to give it my usual 1-2 day read. WRONG!
In this book Michelle talks to those of us in ministry leadership roles about how we can be a facilitator of true life & truth faith transformation in kids AND Parents! I said facilitators not teachers, not instructors! If there is a significant theme that Michelle makes clear in this book it's this:
The Holy Spirit is TEACHER
Parents are PRIMARY.
This was just the start of how Michelle was going to stir my world and thoughts as I proceeded through reading this book. It ended up being a book that was highly highlighted by me. I will share just a few of those highlights:
"The moment we are seduced by the things of old, the new wine is not ours to taste."
"Our job is simply to create environments where He can work, to come alongside what God's Spirit is already doing...our job is to hoist up the sail as wide as we can, so that God's wind is blowing a child's life, we get to come alongside that."
"We need to resist getting distracted by doing things about Him and instead create an environment where children encounter Him."
This book takes a well planned out dive into what Spiritual formation really is, the role of the Holy Spirit, parents and us as leaders. Michelle gives rich insight into how to equip our parents, and things to consider when we look at the programs and plans we have for our ministry to children and families!
This book is a must read if you work with children and want their families to have faith that lasts more than a generation!
For more information on this book go to [...]
About the Author: Dr. Michelle Anthony is the Family Ministry Architect at David C Cook and Family Ministry Ambassador for ROCKHARBOR church. She is the author of The Big God Story and the Spiritual Parenting: An Awakening for Today's Families book and Spiritual Parenting DVD Kit and the co-editor of A Theology of Family Ministry with her husband, Dr. Michael Anthony. Michelle earned her doctorate in Educational Leadership from Southern Seminary and has over twenty-five years of church family ministry experience.
In this book Michelle talks to those of us in ministry leadership roles about how we can be a facilitator of true life & truth faith transformation in kids AND Parents! I said facilitators not teachers, not instructors! If there is a significant theme that Michelle makes clear in this book it's this:
The Holy Spirit is TEACHER
Parents are PRIMARY.
This was just the start of how Michelle was going to stir my world and thoughts as I proceeded through reading this book. It ended up being a book that was highly highlighted by me. I will share just a few of those highlights:
"The moment we are seduced by the things of old, the new wine is not ours to taste."
"Our job is simply to create environments where He can work, to come alongside what God's Spirit is already doing...our job is to hoist up the sail as wide as we can, so that God's wind is blowing a child's life, we get to come alongside that."
"We need to resist getting distracted by doing things about Him and instead create an environment where children encounter Him."
This book takes a well planned out dive into what Spiritual formation really is, the role of the Holy Spirit, parents and us as leaders. Michelle gives rich insight into how to equip our parents, and things to consider when we look at the programs and plans we have for our ministry to children and families!
This book is a must read if you work with children and want their families to have faith that lasts more than a generation!
For more information on this book go to [...]
About the Author: Dr. Michelle Anthony is the Family Ministry Architect at David C Cook and Family Ministry Ambassador for ROCKHARBOR church. She is the author of The Big God Story and the Spiritual Parenting: An Awakening for Today's Families book and Spiritual Parenting DVD Kit and the co-editor of A Theology of Family Ministry with her husband, Dr. Michael Anthony. Michelle earned her doctorate in Educational Leadership from Southern Seminary and has over twenty-five years of church family ministry experience.
By amshorty
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Excellent service, everything ran smoothly, arrived earlier than expected, packaged well, cheaper than i expected to pay, appreciated the emails and tracking to keep me up to date
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
If faith is simply about good teaching and proper behaviour, then the church is a sufficient place for children to learn that, but if faith is that plus more--if it is understanding how to live out what we believe in real time, by the power of God's Spirit over a lifetime, then the family (with spiritually minded parents), would be the best place for that, according to Michelle Anthony in this book.
In many churches, large numbers of children seem to be graduating from church children's ministry without a firm faith, and many fall away from attending church entirely, notwithstanding engaging, exciting programs and apparently sound Biblical teaching. The missing element, according to the author, is the failure to recognise that the role of parents, and not children's ministry teachers, should be primary in the spiritual nurture of children.
The author provides seven core ideas which are foundational for family ministries within the local church:
* Family is primary (parents are the primary nurturers of their children's faith)
* Spiritual formation is our goal (not just information)
* The Holy Spirit is the teacher (children need to learn to rely on him, not on human teachers)
* Scripture is our authority
* The big God story (children need to hear the redemptive storyline of the whole Bible)
* God is central (the aim of all teaching is to cultivate an actual relationship with God)
* Ministry support (a unified staff and teams of volunteers with a common goal)
Many parents do not know how to talk to their children about matters of faith or how to model a vibrant spirituality. Churches clearly need to do better in supporting parents in this area. However, it seems to me that the author's ministry model assumes that a children's ministry is essentially directed towards children of at least nominally Christian parents who bring their children with them to church on Sundays. Although the author gives some examples of non-Christian parents and talks about how other adults in the church community can assume the role of spiritual parents, I am not fully convinced that the model would work for a children's ministry involving a significant proportion of children from non-Christian families.
Notwithstanding this reservation, I think that the book makes a significant contribution to a topic which is of critical importance for the future of the church, and I commend it to anyone involved in Children's or families ministry.
In many churches, large numbers of children seem to be graduating from church children's ministry without a firm faith, and many fall away from attending church entirely, notwithstanding engaging, exciting programs and apparently sound Biblical teaching. The missing element, according to the author, is the failure to recognise that the role of parents, and not children's ministry teachers, should be primary in the spiritual nurture of children.
The author provides seven core ideas which are foundational for family ministries within the local church:
* Family is primary (parents are the primary nurturers of their children's faith)
* Spiritual formation is our goal (not just information)
* The Holy Spirit is the teacher (children need to learn to rely on him, not on human teachers)
* Scripture is our authority
* The big God story (children need to hear the redemptive storyline of the whole Bible)
* God is central (the aim of all teaching is to cultivate an actual relationship with God)
* Ministry support (a unified staff and teams of volunteers with a common goal)
Many parents do not know how to talk to their children about matters of faith or how to model a vibrant spirituality. Churches clearly need to do better in supporting parents in this area. However, it seems to me that the author's ministry model assumes that a children's ministry is essentially directed towards children of at least nominally Christian parents who bring their children with them to church on Sundays. Although the author gives some examples of non-Christian parents and talks about how other adults in the church community can assume the role of spiritual parents, I am not fully convinced that the model would work for a children's ministry involving a significant proportion of children from non-Christian families.
Notwithstanding this reservation, I think that the book makes a significant contribution to a topic which is of critical importance for the future of the church, and I commend it to anyone involved in Children's or families ministry.
