One of the biggest joys in my life is the privilege of being on teams.  Working alongside people that I love to build the Kingdom of Christ is one of the best parts of my life!  Last Thursday, our Fuse Junior High Team completed our June Days Planning together.  At the end of each ministry season (usually in June) we get together a couple of times for 3 purposes:  to look back; to take a critical look at our mission, vision and strategy; and to plan the next calendar year.  It’s a good thing.  Last Thursday, we spent the day together and then had dinner together with our spouses and/or “significant others.”  Looking around that dinner table is so fun for me.  We have some great people working with the kids of Central!

As parents and people that love Central, know that it truly is a “team effort” to build great student ministry. Next time you see a staff person or your kids’ Fuse Group leader – tell them how great they are.  Pray for our team!

Tony Schwartz / Fuse Team

It’s been a little while since I last blogged on this site.  Not a long while . . . just a short while.  But it’s funny how much has gone on in the short while that it has been.  So much in my life, and I’m sure all of your lives has happened in the past two months that it’s hard to believe it’s only been TWO MONTHS.

What gets me the most is how much has happened with my kid.  He went from a little bump on a log that lays around and is happy all day to a crawling, screaming, hilarious chunk of a boy!  In two months he learned to crawl at speeds I’m not even sure I could maintain . . . and he knows when to put those jets to the max (when I’m chasing him).

These two precious months with my child I will never get back.  He will never go back to laying on the ground and being peaceful.  Those are moments that have slipped away.  My wife and I have made it a point to talk about these moments as often as possible so that we don’t miss them.  We don’t want to look back at our son’s life and wish we would have appreciated those moments more.

Don’t let those moments fall through the cracks.  There are so many things going on in our worlds that can easily distract us from what is most important.  Our kids need us to be present in those moments, to be IN the moment so that we won’t look BACK at the moment and wonder how we missed it.

Josh Bollen

High School Worship Leader

Being a parent of two college students, from my perspective, has matured over the years commensurate with the age of our sons. This week we are blessed to have them both around the house quite a bit during spring break. Matt is 23 and attends UNLV, he is graduating this spring with his MBA, he moved out on his own just about a month ago. Nate is 21 and attends Azusa Pacific University in southern California, he is graduating this spring with his undergraduate degree in Accounting.

Last night the three of us spent some quality time together in the Jacuzzi after seeing Fast and Furious at Green Valley Ranch. We planned to go to the movies the previous day while we were watching the NCAA basketball championship game together with some of their friends. Tonight I have plans with each of them to work on their tax returns, which of course are due next week. Brenda (my wife and their mother) is cooking dinner every night this week for the four of us. Tonight over dinner we are planning to share the significance and events of each day of Holy Week lead up to Easter this Sunday.

Why the details, just to give examples of how intentional we are about spending time together. As our sons aged we realized that if we weren’t intentional about spending time together with each of them that it just was not going to happen. We plan dinners, we plan going to church together, we plan golf, we plan, plan, plan! Some of our friends think that we are a bit nuts because of our obsessive planning. However, it is all very intentional. We are so very blessed that they still include us in their plans and we pray that never changes. Proverbs 14:22 reads “those who plan what is good show love and faithfulness.”

Geoff Sage,

Chief Financial Officer – Central Christian Church

My wife, Laura, and I are the parents of three amazing kids…all three of them have experienced life change as a result of their involvement in Central’s Family Ministries.  We moved to Las Vegas in 2000 to join the staff at Central. It was an exciting, but challenging transition for our family.

Our oldest daughter, Brittany, was a Senior in high school and was nervously optimistic about the new adventure of living in Las Vegas and helping advance the cause of Christ at Central. She had left a life, friends and a strong student ministry, so the transition for her was definitely bittersweet. The Student Ministry Team at Central embraced Brittany, welcomed her into the family and allowed her to begin to serve using her passion – leading worship and leading a group of younger girls. Her spiritual journey was enhanced by her experiences and the relationships developed…God used the Student Ministry Team to mark her spritual life in a powerful way. She went on to graduate from UNLV with a degree in Communications, married Central’s Director of Content Production, Chris Sattel, and now serves the Central family as a Communications specialist.

Our son, Calvin, is 12 years old and heavily involved in Family Ministries. He volunteers  in Adventure Island as a Small Group Leader, in Fun Factory and Gear Zone on the Tech Team, and is connected in a Junior High Small Group, which is making a huge difference in his spritual life as well as building relationships with other junior highers. The Junior High leadership is marking his life in a powerful way…ways that we see evidenced in his attitudes, spirit and heart for God.

Our youngest daughter, Brooke, is 11 years old and is also heavily involved in Family Ministries. She serves as a Small Group Leader, worship leader and actor in Adventure Island. She loves being a part of all that happens in Gear Zone each weekend….including the experience and her own Small Group. Brooke is passionate about serving other kids and is product of all that Central’s Family Ministry offers and pours into kids.

Well, as you can see, we’re committed to Central’s vision, strategy and mission…so much so that both Laura and I have given our lives to it…our kids are committed to it and are products of its impact and effectiveness! I encourage you to get your kids involved….let them participate and serve. I know you’ll experience what we’ve experienced…life change in the lives of our kids and seeing them develop authentic hearts for God and a love for people.

Michael James Murphy,
Executive Pastor of Worship & Creative Ministries

This time of the school year is hard.  Parents, you might remember back to when you were in school.  January all the way until Spring Break is packed with stuff.  The weather isn’t that perfect.  There aren’t a ton of days off of school.  Sports seem to kick up a notch.  These months are all crunch time.  You probably feel it also in your family life, work, church, etc.  As you care for you kid in these months – take “stress” into consideration as you plan.  Keep pushing them to do their best – just remember to be alert for signs of stress.  Help them decompress with some fun breaks – movie nights, one on one’s with you, unstructured time to just hang-out and lot’s of verbal encouragement.  In junior high and high school, students need us to help them shoulder the load.  This can happen in a real way if we’re alert to the opportunities to help our kids decompress.

Tony Schwartz

Element Team

5 Christmas Eve services already completed.  1 left to go.  I am sitting in my office, for a quick 15 minute break, just long enough to share with you several thoughts from my heart.  There is a great website that Kim (my wife) stumbled upon several years ago.  This website actually (wink wink) tracks Santa’s flight path across the world.  It has been something fun our family to look at throughout the day on Christmas Eve.  Check it out: www.noradsanta.com.  Even though tracking Santa is fun, the story behind it is quite amazing.  Take 5 minutes and read this.

Why We Track Santa

For more than 50 years, NORAD and its predecessor, the Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) have tracked Santa’s Christmas Eve flight.

The tradition began in 1955 after a Colorado Springs-based Sears Roebuck & Co. advertisement for children to call Santa misprinted the telephone number. Instead of reaching Santa, the phone number put kids through to the CONAD Commander-in-Chief’s operations “hotline.” The Director of Operations at the time, Colonel Harry Shoup, had his staff check radar for indications of Santa making his way south from the North Pole. Children who called were given updates on his location, and a tradition was born. To listen to Colonel Shoup talk about the experience, click here.

In 1958, the governments of Canada and the United States created a bi-national air defense command for North America called the North American Aerospace Defense Command, also known as NORAD. NORAD inherited the tradition of tracking Santa.

Since that time, NORAD men, women, family and friends have selflessly volunteered their time to personally respond to Christmas Eve phone calls and emails from children. In addition, we now track Santa using the internet. Last year, millions of people who wanted to know Santa’s whereabouts visited the NORAD Tracks Santa website.

Finally, media from all over the world rely on NORAD as a trusted source to provide Christmas Eve updates on Santa’s journey.

One huge mistake, turned into an amazing opportunity.  Your kids make mistakes every day.  You . . .make mistakes everyday.  As parents, we need to mine for learning opportunities with our kids.  One mistake, could make such a significant impact in their lives.

The Superbowl is the biggest sporting event in the world! It attracts more people then any other sporting event. The 2008 Superbowl had almost 100 million people watching it. A simple TV commercial cost, on average, $2.4 million. 30 seconds . .. $2.4 million. AMAZING!! The build up! The Hype! The millions of people gathering together to watch this event.

Camp . . .for Family Ministries is our Suberbowl. There is not another event the has the potential spiritual impact like camp. Kids and students choosing to experience a week where distractions are set aside and where God has an uninhibited opportunity to move in the lives of all involved.

Personally . . .camp changed my life. It was the summer between my Sophomore and Junior year of High school and I was at a camp experience. During that week I made a commitment to God to serve Him in full time ministry. I had know idea what they exactly would look like or what I would do. What I did know, I was giving God my life. Almost 20 years later . . . that one decision is still guiding my life!

This summer over 700 students and 150 adults will experience camp. I would like to challenge you with a couple thoughts.

1. Encourage your child – teenager to go! Camp can be a “scary” experience. Understandable! But, I have never had a student who was scared to go to camp – who went – who wasn’t glad that he/she went after! NEVER!

2. Give a Scholarship: We have many kids and teenagers who want to go, but their family can not afford to send them.

3. Pray: Pray for kids, teenagers and adult leaders that God would work in their hearts!

If you have any questions, please feel free to drop me an email. chris.trethewey@centralchristian.com

Chris Trethewey

Well, it’s here.  Over the past year the CFM team has been thinking about ways to connect with you – the parent. One of our guiding values is to provide tools and resources to help you in your parenting journey.

For Kim and I the journey has been amazing. Parenting has brought with it the greatest moments filled with laughter and memories that will last a life time.  Parenting, also has pushed us to edge . . .not sure if we were were loosing our minds.  Know what I mean?

The Central Parents website and blog is about linking arms with you to help you in the parenting journey.  We will have words of encouragement, creative ideas, tools and resources, and all the information you need about Centrals Family Ministries.

Check out what your child learned this past weekend under INSIDE WEEKEND. You can download the parent talk sheet, watch the Central Kidz video lesson and listen to the student message.  Plus, so much more.

If you have any ideas for the Central Parent’s website, please let us know.  Drop us an email at cfm@centralchristian.com.

Chris Trethewey
Executive Pastor of Family Ministries

Hello and welcome to our website created just for you, the parents! Here you will find more info on what’s happening in Family Ministries at Central. Check back often to see what is new.