Happy Halloween!

We had a great time at our Halloween Party on Saturday! Kids got to decorate trick-or-treating bags and make vampire, witch, or monster bags which were then filled with candy. There was a Halloween Trail for them to follow with prizes at the end! We played Spider Ring Toss and Pin the Nose on the Pumpkin.

All of the families also had a chance to have a picture taken with a backdrop and the pictures all turned out great.

Thanks to all who came - we hope you had as much fun as we did!

You can see pictures from our party here.

Families as "Little Congregations"

In one of my classes at Wesley Theological Seminary, we are reading a book called "The Godbearing Life" by Kenda Creasy Dean and Ron Foster. One chapter talks about families as little congregations where Christian formation occurs for children.

According to Creasy Dean and Foster, research shows that children are more likely to grow up and be active church participants if they are exposed to positive Christian experiences inside the home, as well as attending church and Sunday School.

According to Robert Wuthnow, quoted in the book, "It is religious training in the home that appears to [best predict adult church attendance]: family devotions as a child are the best predictor of adult attendance, followed by seeing one's parents read the Bible at home, and after that, by parents having read the Bible to the child." (p. 77)

How are you setting this example for your children?