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Priority Parents

Oct 16
Love0

Hebrews 12:2 came to life for some South Florida students

By Student Leaders, Faculty Sponsors, Priority Parents

On Wednesday September 27th, First Priority clubs all over South Florida joined in a global movement of student prayer! Some schools had over 80 students, parents and teachers. Some only had 2 students. But all were making a bold choice to join hands and ask the Lord onto their campus.  unnamed(4)

The theme of this year’s See You at the Pole was Hebrews 12:2, “fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

For the students at Murray Middle school, this verse really came to life. Their flagpole is right where buses get dropped off in the morning and they were there praying just before school. As their classmates got off the buses, they began harassing the students praying. Although being cursed at and insulted, the First Priority students continued to pray, tears steaming down their faces, that the Lord would bring revival to their campus! After the prayer was over, the resolve was a greater passion to reach their broken and lost classmates!

Today, we praise God for the student leaders who keep their eyes fixed on Jesus, even when it is tough.

Chris Lane
FP Director South Florida

Oct 12
Love0

How we can turn Hopelessness into Hope for our Students

By Priority Parents, Church Leaders

Anxiety and hopelessness crawl across our school campuses in America like a stalking predator. In certain urban environments, students spend their nights with other homeless teens under bridges and then attend school the next day. Why now, more than ever, are young people committing suicide and running away? Hopelessness.

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Life can feel out of control. Every day, we hear of hate groups rising to power, wars and the threat of war, and natural disasters leaving wreckage in their wake. Add to these the timeless yet ever-present threats of joblessness, debt, illness, and other personal circumstances, and it’s no wonder anxiety is on the rise. With the absence of responsible parenting and access to everything under the sun, students need Jesus now. Often, when teens feel anxious about something, their initial reaction is to cry out to God, asking Him to fix their situation. But they ask, “What if He doesn’t? What if God doesn’t listen?”

First Priority is an answer for troubled teens that have a gap in their upbringing and connection to anything about Jesus the Messiah. Without First Priority, many students will drift into oblivion to a tragic ending. This powerful Gospel-sharing solution for our nation’s teens, First Priority, needs help. We need concerned parents and pastors to serve with us in this cause. We need funding. In these times, any sacrificial gift you can make to the national budget, can help a teen have the hope of the Gospel at school.

Nancy and I are honored to serve with you,

Rick Forbus, PhD
President and CEO
First Priority of America
rick@fpofamerica.com

May 29
Love0

Greater Shaols Implementing A Strategy That Simply Works

By Priority Parents

Casey Hagle of Greater Shoals writes.” We have seen almost 100 students receive the hope of Christ through salvation. Most of these students are unchurched and were disconnected from the local church. This has been made possible because the strategy of First Priority effectively unites the body of Christ on the campuses of our schools. I never thought student pastors all over the area would buy into the strategy like they have, but many of them have commented about the access it gives them to the campuses that so often seem closed off. Not only have we seen the obvious eternal impact, but it continues to unite youth leaders and pastors over three different counties for the mission of reaching the 12k + students in our area. First Priority is the most effective strategy to share the hope of Christ with every student! ”

This plan is working! And it’s our desire to see every community in the United States have First Priority. Pray for us as we work with cities and communities across the country.

Apr 04
Love0

A Plan of Action

By Priority Parents
 We had an amazing meeting! We brought in a worship band to the chorus room and had a mini concert to kick-off our club, with amps, drum machines, piano, electric guitar and more. After the concert Jeff gave a gospel message and 14 students responded to the call. Awesome day, but we need more pizza  – we ran out!
This is awesome… and this is happening on 150 other campuses in South Florida.

Encouraging reports like this one remind us of the “why” behind every fundraising effort we undertake.

The development focus I’d like to share with you is our upcoming events. Events are a great way to introduce people to the ministry. We have two great events in May.

May 3 – Golf Tournament @ Coral Ridge Country Club
www.golfforthegospel.com

May 10 – Clay Shoot @ Quail Creek Plantation
www.sportingclaysforthegospel.com

Here are some options for you to consider:

1. Participate in the events. (Golf, Clay Shoot or both)

2. Who do you know that you could invite to participate?

3. Do you know anyone that would like to be a corporate sponsor? There are various levels of participation.

4. A tee sign or shoot sign is an easy way for someone to give $250 and give their company exposure.

5. Use your influence to spread the word… social media, small groups, your church, etc.

6. Pray for these events!

Go ahead and click on the web sites and make yourself familiar with each event.

Let’s get fired up!

Chris Lane
Executive Director First Priority of South Florida

Development is happening in First Priority South Florida. Just like Chris said the salvations are the Why in development of ministry. We hope that this will be encouragement to you in your development to make ministry happen in your community.

Feb 08
Love0

Our Number Is Now 808

By Priority Parents
“Our number is now 809!”
 
That’s the message I received one night last week from a First Priority Student Leader at Unicoi County High School.
Several weeks before, I had visited the school and sat down with him and 3 other Student Leaders to discuss how they could reach their campus for Christ. We all agreed that the first thing that must happen, before they began sharing the gospel with their peers, was that they must develop a burden for the students at their school who do not know Christ as their Savior.
Together, they came up with a number. That number was 810. 810 is 90% of the estimated 900 students that attend their school. 810 was the estimated number of students at their school that did not know Christ as their Savior. (90% is a conservative percentage. Most studies say that the percentage is closer to 95%).They began writing the number 810 wherever they could, starting with the upper left hand corner of the white board in the room they meet in each week. They began writing 810 in such places as their notebooks, Facebook pages, and bathroom mirrors.

When I received the message “Our number is now 809!” I knew what it meant. Excitedly, I asked him to explain.

That week, he had begun a discussion with a classmate in gym class. His classmate claimed to be an agnostic. Each day throughout the week, he told his friend of the Personal, Transcendent God who had revealed Himself through the Bible, and had even come to earth to interact with His Creation. Then he shared the story of how this All-Powerful, Personal God is going about the task of restoring Creation and redeeming us from our sins through His Son, Jesus.

That weekend, the student contacted him and told him that he had come to the conclusion that there is a God and that Jesus died for his sins. He had just asked Jesus to be his Lord and Savior.

The number for their school had just gone from 810 to 809. Guess what number they are now writing everywhere?

One student began asking God to burden his heart for 810 of his schoolmates. He identified one and built a relationship with him. He prayed for him, ministered to him and spoke Truth into his life. God did the rest, and now he not only has a deeper friendship at school, he has an eternal friendship in God’s Kingdom!

Now the number is 809!
 
Jan 10
Love0

New Year Same Goal

By Priority Parents

This past year 9680 students put their hope in Christ. God has granted us 2013 to give hope to many other students. As the new year comes so does the coming of new goals and resolutions. Many will start new fitness programs, and plans on how to change their goals in the new year. Will you make First Priority your strategy and tool to equip the local church to reach to influence the school with the gospel ?

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHT
First Priority of Greater Decatur is teaming up with Moms In Prayer this month. The event is designed  to “train mothers in a way they can become prayer leaders around the schools in prayer. ” Check out this article about a training happening in Decatur, AL in a couple of weeks. We share this with you not that you need to attend, but to get the wheels turning for what is possible for your community as well.

The local Moms in prayer ministry covers about 10% of the schools in First Priority Greater Decatur’s area. First Priority of Greater Decatur knowing that they cover 90% of the schools wanted to help in seeing more mothers praying around the schools. To build prayer parent networks by partnering with Moms in touch can help them do this. The event on Jan. 31 will have two options a lunch and a coffee and dessert option that day. Campus coaches have invited mothers and retired ladies from all over the community. At the event a Moms in Touch cordinator will lead a training in how a Moms in Prayer meeting happens. The meeting will give information to mothers and others on how to become a part of or becoming a leader in the prayer ministry.

About Moms in Prayer

The Core Beliefs
We all adhere to the Moms in Prayer International Statement of Faith, a personal acceptance of
Jesus into one’s life as Savior and Lord, and that Jesus is God.
We believe that through prayer God releases His power on behalf of our children and schools. Our
faith is in God who hears and answers our prayers.

The Core Purpose
Mission Statement
Moms in Prayer International impacts children and schools worldwide for Christ by gathering mothers to pray.
Vision Statement
Our vision is that every school in the world would be covered with prayer.

The Core Priorities
God First
Family Second
Ministry Third

 The Core Format and Method
One Accord Praying
The Four Steps of Prayer
Praying scripturally
Praying specifically
Evangelism praying

The Guiding Principles
We are bond-servants of the Lord, completely dependent upon Him for guidance and help.
We do not trust in chariots or horses, but in the name of the LORD our God. Psalm 20:7
We are a discipleship and a multiplication ministry.
Discipleship: teach women how to pray and trust God

Multiplication: every school prayed for by a group
We have been called to serve in Moms in Prayer.
We are accountable to represent the ministry and vision with love and integrity.
We nurture, encourage and equip with a godly, gracious, uncritical spirit, setting an example of
biblical womanhood and sexual purity.
We have a message that brings encouragement and hope to mothers.
We maintain strict confidentiality – what is prayed for in the group, stays in the group.
We pray for children and schools.

We are not a lobbying group: Moms in Prayer International is not a lobbying group, regardless of how worthy the cause. Participation in outside political and social issues must be done solely on an individual basis. Under no circumstances should the Moms in Prayer International name be used in conjunction with outside issues.
We will communicate to our financial supporters with the highest professional standards of truth,
accuracy, and propriety before God.

 

Find a Moms in Prayer in your area -www.momsintouch.org/groups/find-a-group

What is a Priority Parent – Fans in the Stands: A network of parents around each school committed to modeling healthy family relationships, discipling their students, while praying, participating, promoting, & providing for the mission and vision of First Priority.

If you are your city would be interested in starting a similar partnership we would love to help you in that.

Dec 07
Love0

The Two Questions That Follow…

By Local FP Communities, Priority Parents
As we travel across the US, we experience incredible stories of parents who hear about what their children are involved with in the name of First Priority at their schools and find themselves drawn to become a part of what God is doing on their student’s school campus.

 

I learned of one great story in Shreveport, LA this past month and want to share it with you.  David is a businessman in the Shreveport area and was part of the team that helped launch First Priority locally, 3 years ago.  As he began to investigate First Priority through conversations with other members of the launch team, he came to realize that this “club” was different.  What David learned is that First Priority is NOT a club; the club is simply the outcome of what First Priority does. First Priority by definition is a local organization that unites the body of Christ to reach students on the public school secondary schools.

 

It was in his conversations with John Carruth, another part of the launch team and current director in Shreveport, that David realized he too had a role to play in uniting the body of Christ around the local schools. As a business leader, David was able to bring to the table other businesses in his network that were interested in seeing positive influence brought to this local school. As parents, he and his wife have been able to share all that First Priority as meant to their family over the past few years with many other families in their area.

 

 

David now serves as the Board president for FP ArkLaTex, which is the First Priority organization based in Shreveport. His families support of the multiple schools that are served by FP ArkLaTex is awesome.  We are so thankful for the thousands of parents like David and his wife that play an active role in uniting the body of Christ around a school, or a community to reach every student.

Two Questions tend to come out of a story like this…

 

First, what role can i play to support my student on their school campus through First Priority?  We urge parents to get involved, through the 4 P’s “Praying, Participation, Promoting, and Providing.”  Those are pretty self explanatory, however we offer a very simple guide that helps you put those ideals to action.

To order your Priority Parent guide, click here…

 

Second, how can i find the local FP organization in my community? There are over 50 organizations across the US, just below in this email you will se a FP logo in the Social Networks listing, click on that logo, and it will take you to the National FP website. There you will find in the Get Involved section a listing of organizations with contact info.
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