Entry into Confirmation (Stone 6)
(Surviving Adolescence)
The Objective of this Stone:
To give parents and teens survival skills for the adolescent years; to teach the arts of theological reflection and intercessory prayer to all families; to recruit, train, and motivate parents as team members in your confirmation program; to call both parents and teens to recommit to making their nightly FAITH5 home huddle a family priority during the adolescent years.
What Is It?
A three-session course for teens (6-7th grade age) and parents in the church and community titled “Surviving Adolescence” (Or Entering Confirmation if you are doing confirmation in your congregation).
What’s the Purpose?
To add a deeper theological reflection and intercessory prayer to the nightly ritual of highs and lows, confession and absolution, a Scripture verse, talk, prayer, blessing; to help parents and teens begin the adolescence years with healthy listening skills and a survival plan; to recruit, train, and motivate a parent team as partners in your confirmation and/or ministry.
Who Owns It?
A Theme Team of people who love God, like teens, and are willing to set up and lead a three-session course.
How Long Does It Last?
Three 1 1/2 hour sessions.
When Does It End?
The sessions conclude in worship with a Surviving Adolescence/Entering Confirmation Blessing Liturgy. (It continues every night in every home with parents and youth sharing at a deeper level and praying for one another.)
PRINTABLE FACT SHEET
Download a detailed printable PDF description of “Entry into Confirmation (Surviving Adolescence) (Stone 6)”.
Detailed Description:
Surviving Adolescence is a three-week course designed for parents and teens to experience together at the beginning of the adolescent years. The fact is, being a teenager today is a lot different than when parents were teenagers (just like it was different compared to their parents). American society is not necessarily conducive to building and maintaining strong family connections. Today’s family has multiple schedules that are all crammed with soccer, band, work, chores, TV, internet etc. and leave little time for quality family time. As teens grow, the support systems they have been able to rely on become weaker and fewer every year. Stepping Stone 6 helps families set up a plan for the adolescent years to help through the tough time.
Session 1: Haystack Theory
Session 1 starts with a serious look at the pressures teenagers face today and the support systems available to help them. Remember back to the days when farmers would set a big pile of hay out in the field for cattle to eat from? As the winter would continue, the cattle would eat away at the sides while snow and rain would build up on top. Eventually, the haystack topples over (hopefully not on a cow). The analogy we draw on has the support systems like family, church, and friends holding up the haystack while pressures like sex, drugs, and media pile up. In Session 1 parents and teens talk openly about the pressures teenagers today are facing while looking at how it was different for the parents. The Presentation then asks parents and teens to describe an impact adult in their lives: what are the positive assets that person has? What influence have they had? We then describe how this church wants to help make the parents the impact adult in their teen’s life.
Session 2: Working on the Dream
The second session focuses on parents’ hopes and dreams for their children. We are going to begin with the end in mind as we discuss adolescence. We will ask both parents and teens to list what they want their relationship to look like on graduation day. Reality will be emphasized pertaining to the realistic expectations about what will be working against the family to prevent the dream from being fulfilled. The reality is, with a plan in hand, the family is much more likely to succeed in reaching their dream than going into adolescence blind.
Session 3: The Secret Formula
The third session outlines a formula for nightly communication, respectful discussion, and bonding throughout these years. The equation looks like this: Take highs and lows + Scripture + Theological Reflection; Divide that by Confession/Absolution + Prayer + Blessing; multiply all that by seven days per week and you get your “Dream Relationship”! Sound complicated? It isn’t: simply encourage families to set aside ten minutes a night where the family can talk about their day and invite the Holy Spirit through prayer and amazing things can happen. Session 3 is focused on developing this simple ten minute nightly ritual to bind the family together even in the toughest (adolescent) times. Your church is prepped to strengthen every family into a church every night in their home.
Returning to the faith practice of highs and lows taught in earlier Faith Stepping Stones, this Stone leads families to combine the verse of the night with their highs and lows to gain God’s wisdom. The “Art of Theological Reflection” becomes a gift teens and parents can use for the rest of their lives, together and apart.
For churches using this Stone as their “Entrance into Confirmation” event, this Stone provides a sixth opportunity for parents to return and reaffirm their baptismal/dedication promises. It also serves as a recruiting tool for small group leaders, theme hosts, musicians, and other helpers needed to run a team-based confirmation program. (See www.faithink.com for Faith Inkubators’ Head to the Heart resources.)
Some of these parents may be commissioned in official support roles for confirmation at this service, but all will be commissioned as faith mentors for their own teens. Parents return to the promise to continue FAITH5 (share, read, talk, pray, bless).
Graduation Quilt
Time to enlist the help of your quilters again! Handprints of their small group Guide and youth members are added to the back of the Graduation Quilt. Another idea would be to have each family pick key symbols that represents their “Dream Relationship.” These symbols can be placed strategically around the house to remind family members that they are on the same team during adolescence!