ATLAS Kicks Off New THR!VE Program

On Wednesday, Aug 25th , ATLAS Ministry began a new journey with middle school students. On this date we launched our new THR!VE program. 6th-8th Grade students in Greene County were invited to come to ATLAS to experience a new program, designed exclusively for them. The mission of THR!VE is to create a community of middle school leaders through Christ Jesus. Throughout the Summer of 2021, CLC Director Gerald Davis, cultivated relationships with a handful of existing ATLAS middle schoolers. These students are serving as a core student-leaders group for the THR!VE program. Those student-leaders welcomed their classmates and new friends to the event, as well as helped run the kick off event in a variety of ways including a registration team, a welcoming team, and service team. The vision is to equip students plan and execute the program each week as they grow their leadership and ministry skills.

The energy from both students and staff was electric. As we played Slip N Slide Kickball, the word “Belonging” began to take root in the minds and hearts of our young middle school students. They felt at home and safe. They were not with kids older or younger than them providing them a unique environment where the ATLAS team was able to see kids come out of their shells. They were able to lean into an environment that allowed them to forget about their troubles for that hour and just laugh. That laughter allowed them to be open to Coach Davis' message about belonging in the Kingdom of God, and learn more about the person of Christ. Parents are able to join into the conversation with their students after each THR!VE night through "The Echoing Voice" a Parenting Conversation Guide built to bring parents into the fold with key insight, key scriptures, and discussion questions created to spark meaningful conversations with their teens at home. Follow along each week at https://www.atlasministry.org/middle-school-thrive