wfn.org | Summer camp boosts parenting skills besides training, entertaining kids

["Taiwan Church News" <enews@pctpress.org>]

>      Taiwan Church News

>3046 Edition

>July 12~July 18, 2010

Summer camp boosts parenting skills besides training, entertaining  kids

>Reported by Chen Yi-hsuan

>Written by Lydia Ma

Training kids in the way they should go can be much more effective  if churches

also reach out to parents and change the latter’s  perspectives as well. Aware 
of

this concept, Hsing-Tsun Presbyterian Church in Chiayi and Chinese  Campus

Crusade for Christ co-hosted a summer camp for children this year,  but also

added a “Parents’ Class” as an important extension.

The camp took place July 5~9, 2010, and welcomed children and  parents from

nearby communities to attend. The theme of the camp was  “Focus and

Obedience”. Campus Crusade recruited college students to  teach children songs,

group games, arts and crafts, etc. while parents went to their own  classes. An

evening gala was held on July 10, which provided a wonderful  opportunity to do

>community outreach.

According to Hsu Mei-chin, wife of the church’s pastor, when  one woman began

applying what she’d learned from church in her own home, she  discovered to her

amazement that her husband began to help out with house chores.  The woman

wasn’t a Christian yet, but the class she took at church was  beginning to 
change her family.

Hsu went on to say that once parents change the way they live,  their

transformation will have a spillover effect on children and  inspire sons and

daughters to respond and change as well. In other words, when  parents are

changed inside out, children will reap many benefits and  blessings.

On the other hand, if children sense great disparity between what  is taught at

church and what they see happening at home, all efforts by local  churches to

impact children may be futile. Parents simply cannot expect  churches to do all 
the

parenting for them, but must do their part in loving, raising, and  becoming 
role

>models for their children.

“Your children are YOUR children; the church isn’t a  charitable organization,” 
said

Hsu, emphasizing that churches are more than willing to partner  with parents in

loving their children, but parents cannot simply “dump”  their children on 
churches

>and shirk their responsibilities as parents.

Hsu also announced there would be more activities in the future to  increase

interaction between churches and parents, including concerts,  musicals, market

excursions, tours to police stations, and other camps.

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