I hope this report finds you well and blessed in Him!
 
I want to challenge you to join us in Impact Youth Ministry for a “21-Day Fast.”  We began this Fast a couple days ago (Monday, January 12th) and it will end on Super Bowl Sunday (February 1st.) I encourage you to join us on this exciting spiritual walk.  We are praying for the needs of your teenager; for the Ministry; and, of course, for the personal needs in our lives.  I believe God is looking for hungry people that will do whatever it takes to see Him move in their greatest needs! Whatever need you have, He is big enough to move in it.
 
I want you to know that I’m hungry, but not for food; I’m hungry for Him to breathe on me because without Him I’m nothing.  Please join us in some form or fashion. Maybe you can’t do all 21 days, but maybe you can fast lunch for a week or a meal for the 21 days?  Let God direct you and you will find Him so real.  Fasting takes our eyes off of ourselves and puts them back on Him. I promise you that God’s voice will become so clear to you and your needs.
 
Check out this article on Fasting: http://www.christ-church.org.za/files/hungry.pdf
 
In His service for your Teenager,
P. Mike

A study that links teen pregnancy to sexy TV shows exposure to some forms of entertainment is a corrupting influence on children, leading teens who watch sexy programs into early pregnancies and children who play violent video games to adopt aggressive behavior, researchers said on Monday. Researchers at the RAND research organization said their three-year study was the first to link viewing of racy television programing with risky sexual behavior by teens. "Our findings suggest that television may play a significant role in the high rates of teenage pregnancy in the United States ," said Anita Chandra, a behavioral scientist who led the research at RAND , a nonprofit research organization. "We're not saying we're establishing causation, but we are saying this is one factor that we were able to prospectively link to the teen pregnancy outcome," Chandra said in a phone interview. The researchers recruited adolescents aged 12 to 17 and surveyed them three times between 2001 and 2004, asking about television viewing habits, sexual behavior and pregnancy. In findings that covered 718 teenagers, there were 91 pregnancies. The top 10th of adolescents who watched the most sexy programing were at double the risk of becoming pregnant or causing a pregnancy compared to the 10th who watched the fewest such programs, according to the study published in the journal Pediatrics. The study focused on 23 free and cable television programs popular among teenagers including situation comedies, dramas, reality programs and animated shows. Comedies had the most sexual content and reality programs the least. "The television content we see very rarely highlights the negative aspects of sex or the risks and responsibilities," Chandra said. "So if teens are getting any information about sex they're rarely getting information about pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases." TEEN PREGNANCY ON DECLINE Teen pregnancy rates in the United States have declined sharply since 1991 but remain high compared to other industrialized nations. Nearly 1 million girls aged 15 to 19 years old become pregnant yearly, or about 20 percent of sexually active females in that age group. Most of the pregnancies were unplanned, the report said. Young mothers are more likely to quit school , require public assistance and live in poverty, it said. "Television is just one part of a teenager's media diet that helps to influence their behavior. We should also look at the roles that magazines, the Internet and music play in teens' reproductive health," Chandra said, acknowledging still other factors can influence teen sex habits. Living in a two-parent family reduced the chances of a teen getting pregnant or causing a pregnancy. Black teenagers, and those with discipline problems, had higher risks. The report suggested broadcasters provide more realistic portrayals of the consequences of sex and that parents limit their children's access to sexually explicit programing. A second study in the journal added to existing evidence that youths who play violent video games -- a worldwide trend with American children averaging 13 hours of video gaming a week -- led to increased physically aggressive behavior. Researchers from the United States and Japan evaluated more than 1,200 Japanese youths and 364 Americans between 9 and 18 years old and found a "significant risk factor for later physically aggressive behavior ... across very different cultures." Aggressiveness in children is also associated with violence later on, according to the study by researchers from Iowa State University in Ames , the National Institute on Media and the Family in Minneapolis and Ochanomizu University and Keio University in Tokyo .  

Response from one of our parents at Impact…

" I can see how sexy programming could lead to teen pregnancy. However, I truly believe that it mostly is parenting responsibility. If the parents are allowing their teens to watch raunchy stuff, they're most likely letting them wear risky clothes, letting them date earlier than they are emotionally ready for, and otherwise not restricting their behavior in accordance to their age."
 
"I also believe that parents these days, and yes, even Christian parents, let society raise their children.  They let society pick out their clothes.  They let society tell their kids when it's acceptable to date, what to do on dates, and when they should have sex.  That's WHEN they should (and by the way, HOW and with WHO), not IF they should.  We have our kids, and when the cuteness stage wears off, we walk away from them and let the world take over.  We become too busy to invest in our kids BEFORE situations arise.  We become too busy to discipline the right way to instill values that will last forever.  We become too busy to let them see our relationship with GOD, and how important it is for life.  We become too busy to show them that there are other people in this world besides them.  Because, you know, in today's world, the only person that exists is ME and what I want."
 
"We have become a generation of REACTIVE parents instead of PROACTIVE parents.  We deal with situations with our kids "after they happen", instead of "before" they happen.  We give them our reactions to events, instead of our expectations for them before those events take place.  We let them "do it" because everyone else's parents are letting them "do it."
Okay - off my soapbox for now.  That's how I feel about this article - thank you for asking."

Traci Storm, Gettysburg, PA.

A CHALLENGE FROM PASTOR MIKE AND ANGELA

If you are the parent or grandparent of a teenager we encourage you to take time to read this life changing message:

I have a houseful of children and a youth ministry full of students. What I have noticed over the years of ministry is that each child and teenager is one of a kind.  They have their own personalities, thoughts and ideas - which is awesome!

We want them to discover who they are and their purpose in life. I want my children and the students that I pastor to grow up and be effective leaders in our world. I know that this is the cry of every parent and grandparent. The only way this can happen is if we purpose in our hearts to be the best parents as possible.

The “Center for Parent/Youth Understanding” states that “Tonight, 40% of the kids in America will go to bed in a home without a father.” Josh McDowell says, “The average dad in America spends about 30 seconds in meaningful conversation with his child.”  We live in a society that has put down the role of fathers in the home. They are seen in movies and television as bumbling idiots. The truth is, a child needs their dad. They don’t need more stuff - your  children want you!

Many dads are guilty of saying, “They know I love them!” Your children don’t know unless you tell them and they spell love, t-i-m-e. I had a student tell me one time, “I can’t remember the last time my dad hugged me.” What a tragedy if we raise our kids with a lot of gadgets, but they never learn what real love is all about

There was a survey done by Amway that asked 5,000 kids, “What is the American dream?” The answer was astounding! Ninety-five percent said that they wanted a happy home life.

The cry of this generation is “Please love me - don’t just tell me, but show me!”  Their desire is to grow up with parents that love them for who they are, not what we want them to be. Maybe your children don’t live under your roof because of circumstances. That is why you need to work hard at letting them know you care.

The Barna Group did a survey on parenting earlier this year on the subject of, “What makes a parent successful?” They found that having patience and demonstrating love are at the top of the list. The second thing was enforcing discipline and being understanding. This generation is crying out for strong moms and dads that will love them unconditionally. Parent your children with a strong love! Let us resolve that we will show them the love that they so desperately desire and need! Let’s work together!