Teen Shenanigans
Teen Shenanigans is a companion event to the Family Fun Day that takes parents and teens on a journey to strengthen their relationship through playing and sharing their faith.
Teen Shenanigans is a very special, integral part, of the Family Fun Day experience. As we all know, our teens are a big help in our families as they grow up, they can do practically as much as us adults, so Teen Shenanigans is a chance for us to reward our teens with a special night out with one or both parents. A time to eat some food, play cards, dice or board games, and share our faith.
Why should I attend a Teen Shenanigan Event?
Over the past couple of years, we have found ourselves interacting with our teen children
through family games. When their friends come over, they invite us to play games with them and guess what, everyone has a great time. There is something about playing games that fosters strong relationships between people. In the scriptures, we get a glimpse of the life of Christ and his friends. He often shares a meal with them, we also see one instance of his attendance at a wedding, where there was sure to be dancing and food. While there is no mention of playing any games, it would not surprise me at all if Jesus used the games of the day to foster better relationships with his closest friends.
While there is a significant age difference between most parents and their teens, a lot of fun can still be had by all, and there are few better ways to get to know your teen than to play games with them. Â Playing games puts everyone on a level playing field, each person has an equal chance to win the game, the winner only needs to be good at the game, not necessarily the one who is oldest or has a college degree or a driver’s license. Â There is also an interesting phenomenon we have witnessed while playing with our teens, they talk about what is going on in their lives without us asking. Â We learn about them, and they learn about us, as people. Â For an evening, we become peers, and we share some food and have some fun.
Too many parents don’t have healthy relationships with their teens, and we can all agree that this is not what anyone would desire. Â Teen Shenanigans is one way to build a bridge, and start to develop those bonds that God intended for parents and their children to have. Â Family members are called to be a communion of persons, that doesn’t mean that everyone is happy all the time or that there are never any disagreements or difficulties, it means that we love each other and have a relationship that can weather the storm. Â But as with all relationships, those bonds need to be nurtured, it is not enough to be related, we must interact with each other and show that love that we feel in our hearts. Â When we take time out of our busy schedules and choose to spend it with our teens, we are saying with our actions that we love them and desire to be with them.
