We will honor and celebrate our family ministry volunteers during the month of January. I ask you to thank the special family ministry servants in your child and/or student’s life. We have created a calendar for the month of January to celebrate each family ministry volunteer. If you did not receive a copy of the calendar in the mail, email me at heidi@rockspringschurch.com for a copy.

On each day of the month of January, we ask you to pray for the volunteers listed. Then, if your individual children are impacted by these special people, please take time to write them a note, send them an email or give them a small gift of appreciation on the day you are remembering them in prayer. You could even leave a comment on this blog for them.

Also, if you are a family ministry volunteer, be sure to plan to attend the appreciation breakfast on Sunday, January 25th. More information will be announced.

Thank you for being faithful to God and the Rock Springs Church kids & students. Without you, we could not do the ministry that happens each week.

One of Santa's helpers visited the children's ministry areas on Sunday to remind the kids of the "true" meaning of Christmas - the birth of our Savior, Jesus. Santa's helper read the nativity story to the kids, watched them enjoy milk & cookies and then took time to pose for a photo with each child. The kids (and parents too) enjoyed it much! Special thanks for Chris & Angela Elkins for providing everything needed to make this special event happen.

Today's focus is on the virtue of friendship. Our pastor often says that "people aren't looking for a friendly church, they are looking for friends." Isn't that the truth? Many times in our life, we seek others to share with. We want to feel accepted by someone other than our family. Ultimately, Jesus is our forever friend. He provides friends for us for accountability, godly counsel, prayer and friendship. People will always let us down but Jesus NEVER will. Grab hold of Him today and thank Him for the friends He's provided for you here on earth. Here are some ideas for practicing "friendship" today:





-- Write down prayer concerns of your close friends in your new prayer journal and commit to praying for them daily.





-- Offer to do an unexpected favor for a close friend.





-- Think of one or two people who you would like to grow closer to and commit to nurturing those friendships this year.





-- Ask Jesus to be your forever friend today and let Him take control of your life!

Today's virtue is worship. When you hear the worship, everyone automatically thinks that it must involve praise music. Of course, that is one of the many ways to worship God in your daily life. Explore some of those other ways today and start making them an active part of your relationship with Christ.

Here are some ideas:

-- Get on your knees today. I mean, really get down on your knees and bow before God. We often don't do this enough.

-- Start a prayer journal and document all of your prayer requests this year. As prayers are answered, highlight them. Then, next year at this time you'll be able to look back and see how God has been so very active in your life.

-- Write God a love letter telling Him how much He means to you.

-- Attend a church service and listen intently to every word.

-- Share Christ with the waiter or waitress who serves you at lunch today.

Today, we're playing catch-up with Day 7 - KINDNESS. There is definitely not enough of this in this world so here's your chance to pass it on!

Here are some ideas for promoting kindness:

-- pay for the person's order behind you as you drive through at a restaurant today

-- hold the door for someone as you walk in to a public place and say "Merry Christmas"

-- Call an elderly neighbor or friend and make sure they are ok today (especially since its so c0ld) and offer to run errands for them

-- Come up with your own way of promoting kindness and let us know about it!

Today's challenge virtue is to exhibit "generosity." I have to admit that its not always easy to be generous with our time or even our resources. I challenge you to find a way to give something away today. Here are some ideas:

--Decide right now to give up 2 gourmet coffees per month and support mothers in Africa. Go to www.mochaclub.org to sign up. The Ignite youth group just signed up to be active in this ministry.

--Go through your closets/toy chests/linens and give away anything that hasn't been touched in 3 months. Give it to a non-profit organization like the Nashville Rescue Mission.

--Search for all your spare change in the house, car, etc. Empty it into a container and give it to your home church, the local food bank or some other non-profit organization.

--Go to www.holtinternational.org and commit $30 per month to sponsor a child until him or her is placed with a family through their adoption services.

Today's virtue is JOY! Yeah!

A few weeks ago I watched a young boy that I know be truly joyful over inviting Jesus to be his Savior. You could just see it written on his face. It was one of the most touching things I've ever experienced.

We should have that kind of joy all the time. But, we forget it sometimes, don't we? Today's our chance to show the world the joy we have in our heart because of what Jesus has done for each one of us. Let's share that joy!

Here's some challenge ideas:

- Go to your favorite store, coffee shop, restaurant, etc. and hand out candy canes, exuberantly wishing everyone a "Merry Christmas."

- Put something wacky (like a small, blown up balloon) in your child's (or spouse's) lunch box. Can you imagine what they will think when they open it?

- Go to http://www.makeachildsmile.org/ and click on "featured kids." Gather your family together and make cards to send to these children. This organization gathers information on children suffering from life-threatening illnesses and encourages people to cheer them up by sending cards. Be sure to read the guidelines on making/sending cards. Wouldn't you love to see the faces of these precious kids when they open your families' card? Be sure to add these kids and their families to your prayer list.

- Share your faith with someone today.

Every November, we participate in a ministry called Operation Christmas Child. We pack shoeboxes with toys, candy, books, crayons, toothbrushes, toiletries, socks, shoes and many other things to be given to needy children all over the world through the ministry of Samaritan's Purse. Its an awesome ministry and one our own kids enjoy and get involved with. This year, the mission team set a goal of collecting 80 boxes, which we totally achieved. Way to go church! You are spreading the gospel to children and their families all over the world through these precious gifts. Merry Christmas!

Showing THANKFULNESS today isn't just about looking around the thanking God for the big things. Its looking up and realizing the little things in life that we sometimes overlook. Its being thankful even on the hardest of days for: our spouse, our kids, our families, our church, our country. Join us today in giving thanks for all the things God has blessed us with.

Here's some challenge ideas:

- Write a list of all the things you are thankful for. Keep track all day long. Tonight, thank God for all that He's given you. Ask your spouse to add to it tomorrow. Then, pray over it together on Thursday night.

- Write a thank you note to someone in your life who needs to receive one.

- Say "thank you" to everyone today and really mean it.

I just wanted to let every parent know that the Ignite Parent Link Newsletter are now uploaded to this blog. If you look to the right and down toward the bottom, you can find the links to download the newsletters. This is a great way to stay informed!

During the last few weeks in November, you, as the congregation of Rock Springs Church, gathered together canned food, diapers and other items for the Smyrna/LaVergne Food Bank. Here's what you gave. Incredible! Thank you for particpating and showing Christ to others through the spirit of giving.

Well, you've made it to Day 3 of the "Christ"mas cheer challenge. This one may be a little difficult for some of you. I can surely relate. I'll be praying that God blows your mind. Today's virtue is FORGIVENESS. Do you need to say sorry to someone? Do you need to forgive someone and move on? Now you have the chance and the challenge to do so.




Here's some challenge ideas:

• Apologize through a letter to someone that needs to hear from you.


• Call that person that you've been putting off and wish them a Merry Christmas.


• Pray for someone who has hurt you in the past.


• Ask God for his forgiveness and finally make the turn and commit your life to Him!

"In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace" Ephesians 1:7, NIV

Ohhhhh...this one's good. Today, we are going to practice the virtue of Service - showing someone you care by doing something for them.



Challenge ideas to do today:

- Serve your spouse and/or your kids dinner at the table.

- Volunteer to serve in your church's children's ministry area once per month.

- Ask an elderly neighbor if you can rake his/her leaves or put up Christmas decorations.

- Be joyful as you "serve" your family through the menial chores that you do.


That completes day 2...let us know how you are doing and if you've come up with anything creative to do on your own.

Welcome to Day 1 of the "Christ"mas Cheer challenge.

All day long today, I want you to have an attitude of gratitude. For the Zone parents, your kids just exercised this virtue during the month of November so maybe they can help you today.

Take time today to thank those around you.

Challenge ideas to do today:

• Think about someone who has really helped you this past year and write them a note telling them how they have encouraged you.


• Hold the door for someone and smile at them while you are out and about today.


• Bake a meal or a dessert for someone and leave it for them anonymously.


• Bundle up all the canned goods in the cupboard that you haven't been using and drop it off at the local food bank and thank them for their support of the community.


• Thank a solider for his/her military service aloud and in front of others.

See...its not hard. Let me know how it goes.

A few weeks ago, I woke up in the middle of the night with this idea. I'm throwing it out there because I think that it was actually God's idea and I'm just trying to be obedient. So here it is.

Introducing...Cliff & Val. I'll try to get a better picture of them but I caught them in action in this picture a few weeks ago.

They recently became the worship leaders for the Ignite youth group on Wednesday night and are also leading worship for the Zone on Sunday mornings. We (the family ministry team) have been praying for them for a very long time. We thank God for this answer to prayer!

We invite parents to check out Ignite and the Zone to see what goes on and how much your kids and students are learning.

The last several weeks Caiden, along with the other preschoolers in the Kids Klub class at our church, has been learning the story of creation and exactly what God made or did each of the 7 days. Its been an incredible journey for the kids. Each week, they made a page that coincided with the days' lesson. The pages eventually became a booklet (shown here).

Just in case you need a quick creation lesson, here's what God made or did each of those 7 days (from the preschool standpoint). Go to Genesis 1:1 to read all about it.

Day 1: God made light and dark.
Day 2: God made sky and water.
Day 3: God made land, plants and sea.
Day 4: God made the sun, moon, stars, day and night.
Day 5: God made fish and birds.
Day 6: God made animals. God also made people.
Day 7: God rested.