United News Weekly
This week's newsletter features service, fellowship and educational opportunities for the whole Church.
5 Societal Threats That Are Robbing Your Kids of Their Childhood
Kids need to experience a “normal” childhood in order to grow up to become optimally functioning adults. Yet today, many talk about the “disappearance of childhood,” observing that children are increasingly being exposed to the adult world before they’re ready. Here are five modern societal threats to childhood, along with suggestions for how to preserve this essential developmental period.
Five Modern Threats to Childhood
Childhood is a crucial developmental period in a person’s life. It’s during childhood—the period of time starting with one’s birth to age 18—that kids build habits (good or bad) that they will have with them the rest of their lives—like how to interact and communicate with others, resolve conflict, manage emotions, handle stress and meet challenges.
What kids experience during their youth largely determines whether they will grow up to become well-adjusted, optimally functioning adults. Kids need a healthy and “normal” childhood so they’re not shortchanged when it comes to developing vital life skills.
From a biblical standpoint, it’s clear that children (and by extension, childhood) are important to God. Psalm 127:3 (New Living Translation) states, “Children are a gift from the LORD.” A well-known verse, Proverbs 22:6 adds, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” These verses and other biblical passages underscore the value and blessing of children, encouraging parents to nurture and protect the precious offspring God has given them.
But the truth is, it’s not always easy to ensure your youngster has a “normal” childhood in which to be nurtured and taught, particularly in this day and age. Today, many educators talk about the “disappearance of childhood,” warning that society is compressing childhood more and more to where children are not “allowed” to live like children for very long.
Specifically, where kids were once were protected from adult knowledge and responsibilities, the trend now is for them to be exposed to the adult world far sooner than they’re ready. The carefree, innocence of childhood is becoming a thing of the past. Kids are under tremendous pressure to “grow up” and tackle adult-level challenges and concerns, when they haven’t had the chance to develop the maturity needed to do so.
The consequences are concerning. Numerous studies have been conducted in recent years, documenting that the incidence of mental illness (depression, anxiety, antisocial behavior, etc.) among kids is increasing in Western nations. It’s not a big leap to conclude that the diminishing of childhood (both in terms of duration and quality) is likely to be one of the root causes.
Exactly how is our modern society robbing kids of their childhood? It really comes down to five trends. Read this article to discover what these are and how you can avoid letting them slip into your family.
From the Editor
Thank you for subscribing! United News Weekly is designed to share the latest news from the home office, relevant resources for members, and details about upcoming events. Along with our print publication, UN Weekly helps connect UCG members around the world.
If you’d like to share an announcement or comment on an article that was meaningful to you, please email: un@ucg.org.
Heidi Braun, Editor, United News
New Faces at the Home Office
Rebekah Williams—Executive Assistant
Born in British Columbia, Canada, I grew up in Dubuque, Iowa next to my grandparents’ dairy farm. I was raised in Church of God, third generation, by parents who graduated from Ambassador College. After college I resided in Charlotte, North Carolina for seven years before meeting and marrying my husband, Zach (Cincinnati native) and have lived in Cincinnati for 1.5 years.
In 2017, I earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music Education from Clarke University with a major in voice and piano. In 2018 I completed my Associates in Theology degree from Living University. After school I worked as Assistant to the Director for Living Education and on Music Faculty for the same program (taught music and theology classes). Since college, I own and manage my own business teaching private lessons for singing and piano.
I have a passion for teaching and mentoring (especially teens and young adults). Growing up, I loved going to church camp and have attended many camps over the years (served as staff and counselor over 10 years). I have great interest in the outdoors, history and traveling. Some of my favorite hobbies include backpacking, downhill skiing, drawing, painting, reading, writing, doing jigsaw puzzles, training my dog, composing music.
At UCG, my main role is to provide administrative support to the President with tasks such as scheduling, travel planning, communications, etc. I also am available to assist the operation managers with various initiatives as needed.
I am looking forward to getting better acquainted with everyone at the home office. I’m grateful to God for this unique opportunity and I look forward to growing in my role to better serve those who I support.
Service Opportunities
Potential Asian Good Works Opportunity
Would you like to let your light shine, build your resume, prepare for potential future Church leadership roles, serve the youth of Thailand, and have an in-depth, five-month cultural experience? Then this opportunity is for you. We are looking for two United Church of God young adults who are energetic, positive, adaptive, hard-working, enthusiastic, and love to let their light shine!
Specifics
You will teach English at Chulalongkorn University Demonstration School in Bangkok, Thailand for five months. You will be co-teaching 15-17 hours of classes per week to 7th-12th grade students. Experience teaching not required, but preferred. The English staff you will work with are all well-educated, yet none have a natural accent. So, you will be teaching reading, pronunciation, public speaking, phonetics and similar subjects where your natural accent can be heard.
Why Should You Consider?
- Great experience for your resume even if you don’t want a teaching career.
- Great opportunity to lead your life as a witness to others.
- Great opportunity to serve and build relationships with teachers and students.
- You will have an influence on the future leaders of Thailand.
- Being in a school setting, you will gain a deep understanding history and culture of Thailand and Southeast Asia.
- You are the next generation of Church leadership. Your in-depth cultural experience will help influence and guide God’s work in Asia.
- You will learn about teaching—something we are all called to do in the future.
Background
Satit Chula is a K-12 grade school on the campus of Chulalongkorn University, which is the oldest and largest University in Thailand, located in the center of Bangkok. The school is under the Faculty of Education. Satit Chula maintains a full-time teaching staff for approximately 2,200 students. The Foreign Language department has around 25-30 teachers teaching something like eight languages. The school is highly sought after by leaders in business, government, military, education and others to send their children.
When: Second semester (November 2026 to March 2027).
Provided: Housing near campus, food allowance, help with visas and other.
Requirements: Young, baptized members of the Church with a four-year degree required. ABC graduate desired. A bachelor’s degree in education, TESOL, ELT, Linguistics or related field desired, but not required. Spiritually strong and grounded in God’s truth. Must love working hard, learning, helping others and be willing to live God’s way as an example.
More information: If interested please send an email to Lena VanAusdle: lena_vanausdle@UCG.org.
Microsoft Teams Call: You are invited to one of two informational Teams calls. All are welcome—candidates now or for the future, ministers, families or whoever may have interest.
Sunday, April 19 at 1 p.m. ET: Thailand Informational Meeting | Meeting-Join | Microsoft Teams - Sunday April 19
Monday, April 20 at 8:30 p.m. ET: Thailand Informational Meeting | Meeting-Join | Microsoft Teams - Monday April 20
Feast of Tabernacles
Service Opportunity: Feast in Zambia
Would you like to serve at the Feast? UCG Zambia is seeking individuals and families willing to travel to one of the four Feast sites being held this year. A beautiful country, rich with natural resources, Zambia is a peaceful environment, safe for keeping the Feast with brethren.
UCG members in Zambia are spread across 21 congregations, with over 200 baptized members. Most speak English. The messages at the Feast will be in English, with translation into local languages for those members who do not speak fluent English. The brethren are very loving and happy to welcome visitors to their country.
Although most local members camp onsite at the Feast location, there are also nearby accommodations. Visitors can choose to stay at a nearby bed and breakfast, allowing a comfortable alternative to tents.
Service opportunities will vary by site. We are especially looking for qualified speakers, but have several other areas of service for which we are seeking willing volunteers. When you contact the Kubiks to register, you will have an opportunity to discuss areas of service that are still needed and indicate areas of interest.
Travel requirements are easy to meet: you will need a valid passport that is good for six months past your entry date. No visa is needed for stays up to 30 days, and no vaccinations are required at this time. Antimalarial medication is recommended.
If you’ve been waiting for an opportunity to serve the brethren, wait no more! Register today to share the Feast of Tabernacles with members in Zambia.
Registration: Contact Victor and Beverly Kubik at victor_kubik@ucg.org.
One App. One Place. All the Content.
The Beyond Today app is your all-in-one destination for Bible-based video content, created to strengthen your faith and deepen your understanding of God’s Word. Inside the app, you’ll find a growing collection of United Church of God videos, including:
- Messages from United Church of God congregations (including LIVE webcasts)
- Magnified: educational videos exploring biblical concepts
- Ambassador Bible College classes
- UCG short films and music videos
- Jelly: Bible-based content just for kids
- Past Feast of Tabernacles and United Youth Camp videos
- Seminars
The Beyond Today app is available on a wide range of devices—including Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, iPhone, Android devices and more—making it easy to watch wherever you are. For more information and step-by-step instructions for various devices, please visit: ucg.org/beyond-today-app.
Upcoming Events
Brown County Pentecost Weekend
Registration is open for the 2026 Pentecost Weekend in beautiful Brown County Indiana, including the traditional Saturday evening concert. The weekend includes a Bible study, Sabbath and Holy Day services onsite and more.
Accommodation
UCG discount rates for the Abe Martin Lodge and the Brown County state park cabins are available and open for reservations. To receive the low rates for accommodations, the Brown County staff asks that members call the central reservation service (877-563-4371) and make reservations through a DNR reservation agent with the UCG group code (if you try to use the online booking option you may not be able to use the discount code 0522UG). Look for the “Book My Stay” section on the website for instructions. If you are using a cell phone, you can call directly from the Pentecost weekend website.
Registration
A dedicated UCG Pentecost weekend website is available that includes reservation information, schedules, sign-up capacity for the Concert for God, and more! Sign up as soon as possible if you plan to take part in performing music and other volunteer roles during this special weekend. You can also sign up directly for the Holy Day luncheon. The website also includes information about the traditional Sabbath afternoon potluck and times for services.
The site will be updated several times as we get closer to the weekend, so check back for updated schedules and opportunities. Questions? Contact Jamie Snyder at jamie@themekgroup.com.
