Join Odyssey Adventure Club for a Summer Challenge

 

Summer . . . a time that kids pine for during the school year and parents may anticipate with something akin to dread. Fearing refrains of “I’m bored” or hours spent on the couch playing video games can make moms and dads nervous about the long, hot months stretching before their family. Focus on the Family’s Odyssey Adventure Club offers an answer, encouraging parents and kids to embrace faith and fun with the Take the Plunge Adventures in Odyssey Clubhouse magazine’s Summer Challenge.

Take the Plunge

The Take the Plunge challenge features:

• Master Mind Monday — commit God’s Word to memory
• Ways to Play Wednesday — spend active time with your family
• Faith Sharing Friday — share God’s love with others

The Take the Plunge challenge helps families memorize at least five verses, engage in five activities together and share their faith with five people before the school doors swing open again. Those who sign up will receive an 11-week plan with suggested verses to memorize, activity ideas (such as visiting a war memorial) and ways to witness (such as passing out popsicles at the park with an invitation to your church), making this challenge the perfect tool for parents who want summer to be a time of spiritual and social stimulation for their kids.

"Research tells us that the more senses we involve when teaching children a principle, the more likely it is to stick,” Plugged In editor and Adventures in Odyssey podcast host Bob Smithouser says. “Bible memorization by itself is great, but it becomes even more powerful when put into action. Know it. Share it. Live it.”

Families who sign up to take part in the challenge at www.whitsend.org/summer will have access to weekly verses to memorize, ideas for family fun and suggestions for service projects that allow a family to share their faith. Additionally, anyone who signs up to participate in the Take the Plunge challenge will receive a free scene from the latest Adventures in Odyssey album, as well as a free story from the book Strange Journey Back.

One Last Thing by Rebecca St. James and Nancy Rue

About the Book:

A hope-filled soon-to-be bride makes a discovery about her fiance that rocks her world and provokes a maelstrom of decisions and self-discovery.

Tara Faulkner has dreamed of her wedding and the life she and her fiance Seth will share in their hometown of Savannah . . . and by all accounts, it should be a charmed one. But when she discovers three weeks before the wedding that Seth is seriously addicted to pornography, Tara's dreams are shattered.

She must decide whether she will stand by Seth, but she also must let go of the dream she shaped for herself and discover a real vision for her life-and where it will come from. With all else falling apart, Tara encounters an unexpected-and unlikely-group of women mentors. They help her peel back the layers of shaming secrets and begin to clearly see the real issues of her generation.

In the end, she's able to make a decision based on God's vision-not her own.

My Review:

3.5 Stars

Rebecca St. James and Nancy Rue team up again to bring another powerful book packed full of real issues that affect so many in our modern society. This book is not a light read and will leave you thinking. It was an interesting read but not my favorite in the end. The topic is much needed but felt it wasn't the best story and had a hard time getting into it. For some dealing with similar situations it might be great but I had a hard time relating to the characters.

*I received this book from booklook bloggers for the purpose of this review.