God Sighting: Role of Faith Formation in Family Life
A few years ago, Sam and I spent some time with friends who had teens struggling with identity, peer pressure, and many other outside factors that we recognized our three children will be facing. At that time it was clear to us we needed to ensure they have a strong faith foundation, so when they face
temptations and trials, they will have faith and tools in their pockets to make the best decisions for their life.
Family Faith Formation at Sheridan filled that need with many opportunities that have not only been good for all of us, but fun.
The “fun” ones that they looked forward to in the younger years include the Christmas Program and VBS. As a VBS volunteer, I can tell you it’s a very fun and exciting experience, I even get excited to go and learn about God’s Word! (Evelyn is already asking how many days away VBS is!) Volunteering alongside Mollie has been a special opportunity for both of us the past couple years. As Mollie and Oliver got older, Wednesdays @ the Well has become a great fit for our family. On occasion we will eat at church, enjoying the fellowship and getting to know other members. Attending Faith Stepping Stone classes together as a family have helped us grow in faith as a family and bring it home to reiterate in our neighborhood, schools, and family.
As a small group leader for Mollie’s confirmation group, watching the young ladies grow in faith and friendship has been one of my favorite life experiences. The richness of our small group conversations following the large group and closeness of our group is special to me and I hope it is half as special for the girls. Finally, my personal favorite, as a mom, past career as a therapist for teens, and a past teen myself, is All Stars. The curriculum arms the young people in our church with tools that are so key during those vulnerable years. The fact that Sheridan invests in prevention versus reactionary interventions is remarkable. I am very grateful 2 of our 3 children have completed All Stars prior to the difficult transition to middle school. It has opened up some topics that could be very difficult conversations to have and revisiting the commitments they made is also a great ongoing conversation. For all of this, I consider the Packard family of five blessed with so many opportunities and a wonderful faith family by our side.
By Denise Packard