Is your faith in a cast?

I've enjoyed posts from this blogger/Early Childhood Educator and so here is one of her recent posts on Faith in a Cast.

You can get lots of other great posts here  on accidents, Alzheimer's, lepers and more - and always with good faith connections. Thanks Kim!

Sobering thoughts...

Some sobering thoughts post Thanksgiving. From Sightings and Martin Marty's regular email comes this short article - a quick window into how some young lives are shattered.
"I thought about “want” the other day in the lockup at the courthouse where I work.  I am a public defender in Chicago, and I start each workday in the place behind the courtroom where prisoners are held. On this morning, the small, stuffy cell was crammed with people."

Wheat Ridge has given grants to congregations focused on at-risk young people in a variety of places... perhaps there is an opportunity for ministry in your area?

WRP

Here is a great devotion on the Wheat Ridge web site... part of their weekly devotions.

Check it out. Are you a WRP? I hope so!

Persistence or raw intelligence?

I've posted about this before but here is another shot. Some very helpful information from Search Institute on persistence and intelligence and how each of those affect success in children.  Check out this short post on the topic and then join them for a free webinar on the subject on Tuesday, Nov 19/13.

Search Institute was a recipient of a Wheat Ridge grant back in their early years. Good stuff continues to happen! Take a Wheat Ridge minitour! (smartphone friendly)

Screen time... Help!!

I just received an email from Dr David Walsh at Mind Positive Parenting and he has posted about what Pediatricians are saying these days about screen time for kids.

Very helpful info.  And while the info is helpful, putting it into practice is not so easy.  The stats indicate most families are way past the suggested limits.

First step - do parents know about the suggested limits? And this info comes from people who know something about the affects of media on kid's brains.

Second step - most parents need help to 'move the needle' in a healthy direction.  If 'everyone is doing it' making a change is much harder. 

So perhaps the church can step up to 1) educate and 2) encourage... provide the info and provide a way for parents to help each other take healthy steps in media use. Get creative and if financial help is needed, check out Wheat Ridge grants as an option. And see what others are up to with their grants as well.

The article above give good reasons for making strong efforts on this.  There are some definite negatives that happen with overuse - AND some great things that happen with appropriate use.

Momentum...

I was introduced to the PBS Frontline presentation "League of Denial" about concussions in the NFL.  The subtitle - "The NFL's Concussion Crisis" tells you where they are headed with the coverage.  If you are invested in the NFL (you  make lots of money off it, or you really enjoy it as a fan) then this is hard to hear - and for many, easy to dismiss. If you are not invested in the NFL you probably wonder how anyone can miss the implications, and continue to support the NFL on its current direction (and lots of other sports that damage the fragile brain - I recently talked with a tearful mother about her daughter's concussion from soccer and the damage it has done still two years later).

Momentum.  The bigger the organization or the more you are invested, the harder it is to make a change.

How important is health?  What are we willing to give up to keep it? How high does the incidence of brain damage have to be in a sport to warrant a change?  How can we help people work against the momentum, when the momentum is on an unhealthy path?

Healthy children...

I saw a great post from Tim Elmore on raising healthy, well rounded kids who are ready to be strong contributors.  Check out a post on 'soft skills' that are critical to healthy, whole person living and giving God our best.

Wheat Ridge supports many creative projects that focus on supporting young people. Here's one in Chicagoland.