Dear Parents of Prospective Confirmation Students,

Over the past three years, one of my favorite times with students has been focused around the opportunities I have had to walk with them through Journey – Grace’s Mentor Based Confirmation Class. I look forward to the next Journey experience with great anticipation. I believe and pray that it will be a profound point along a student’s journey of faith in Jesus Christ.
Your students matter to us and we are working to create, design, and implement the best confirmation experience possible. It is for this reason that we have made some very thoughtful and considerate changes to increase the influence, impact, and experience of confirmation.

With that said, Journey 2010 will be moved to begin in the fall of 2010. For the past three years, students have participated in Journey during the spring of their 8th grade year and prior to that they were involved in a year long process first in 6th grade and then for a few years in 8th grade. Over the past three years, we have found that a semester is the ideal lengthen of time, but we also have come to the conclusion that students would be better prepared and more developed to address topics of belief as freshmen.

Before I share some of the reason for the changes, let me reassure you that students will continue to have an experience that includes:

• A Mentor
• Strong Biblical teaching
• A focus on specific topics of faith
• Memory work
• An opportunity to write a personal statement of faith
• Celebration and recognition of students in worship services

Here are five chief reasons we are moving Journey to the fall of freshmen year:

• Greater impact on the development of their beliefs
• Focus on a student’s sense of belonging
• Strengthen the transition from middle school to high school
• Boost the impact of our middle school ministry to 8th graders
• Consider the developmental changes in students

Please know if you have any questions feel free to contact me at 713-267-5039 or cfrench@gpch.org.

Sincerely,

Chris French
Associate Pastor