Families
Families grow in faith best by growing together. While we deeply value our church school program, we also recognize that children and parents need to explore and practice faith together. So we offer programs designed to equip parents to be the leaders in their family’s spiritual formation.
Family Ministries
Parents' Night Out - TPC offers childcare while parents gather in a members' home for good food and fellowship.
Spiritual Practices for Families - Twice a year, TPC offers a small group specifically designed for parents to explore how to engage their children and youth in faith formation.
Intergenerational Garden - click here to explore more.
Intergenerational Festivals in Advent & Lent
Family Faith Practices
We offer these resources and monthly “Family Faith Formation” practices and activities to help bring your family together spiritually, but in the convenience of your own home on your own schedule.
Kindness Can Be Taught – a great podcast for parents! Enjoy and learn.
Family Faith Dinner Cards - a great tool for parents and children to share around a meal. Simply cut out the cards and put them in a small stack next to the dinner table. Take turns choosing from the stack and offering a prayer at a meal. The prayers are simple and inclusive.
September Activity - New Beginnings (click to view).
October Activity - Compassion - Secret Helpers Week
November Activity - Gratitude
January Activity - The Examen
February Activity - Moving Prayers
March Activity - Kindness
March Faith@Home Focus:
Kindness
All families want their children to be kind to one another, but how often do we treat it as a skill to be learned, alongside any other sport or extracurricular? Take some time to exercise the
kindness muscle with your children this month.
- Do a kindness role play at dinner. Ask children to recall something that happened on the playground (whether it be something positive or negative.) Act it out around the table and
talk about opportunities to show kindness. - Reinforce the virtue of kindness by placing a reminder in a prominent location in your home. “In this home we strive to be kind,” or “Be kind to others.”
- Have a “secret kindness week” where all family members do secret acts of kindness for each other without revealing who did what. At the end of the week, debrief about how it felt to be both the giver and receiver of kindness.
- Learn gentle and kind parenting techniques. Not every parenting book advocates the type of parenting that leads to kindness and compassion towards ones children. Most of us could use a refresh in this area.
- During daily check-in time, incorporate questions about kindness alongside questions about other aspects of the day. “Did you have an opportunity to show kindness today?”
- Memory Verse: [and] be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you. Ephesians 4:32
- Faith Practice Spotlight: Kindness Meditation – Think of three people in your life (they can be neighbors, friends, or strangers) and spend 30 seconds wishing them peace and wholeness.
© Traci Smith, Author www.traci-smith.com. Used with permission.
Together We Serve Small Group || Our next service opportunity is helping with the Towson Y Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning. If you’re interested in cheering runners/walkers, being a “course marshall”, set-up, clean-up (there are many jobs), please sign up on their site https://ymaryland.volunteermatters.org/project-catalog/626 . Be sure to select the Towson Y as your location. Please contact Julie Kreif with questions: jkreif1@jhmi.edu
Lake Roland on November, 2019
….”Let the work of our hands and thoughts in our hearts help those in our world. Amen.”
Our activity is Family Dinner Prayer Cards. Thanks to Traci-Smith at www.traci-smith.com for this idea.
- Plan to do this family activity for the month of January.
- Cut out the cards and put them in a small stack next to the dinner table.
- Take turns choosing from the stack and offering a prayer at dinner – or whatever meal your family comes to the table most often.
- The prayers are simple and inclusive.
- If you’d like the cards to be sturdier, laminate or print on card stock.