A close-knit community of Christian friends is important for people of any age, but being involved in a group with kindred life experiences after the birth of a child may be the most critical time of all.

Houston’s First members RJ and Abby Harris cultivated great relationships with people in their Married Young Adult Life Bible Study, which generated a weekly small group meeting on Wednesday nights. Young couples in the group began having children, as did RJ and Abby. Baby Elle was born two summers ago and once she and the other babies became mobile, their small group meeting became increasingly more challenging.

“We started strategizing and testing different plans to continue making our small group serve its purpose while accommodating all of our babies, but nothing was really working out,” said Abby. “We discussed alternating weeks that parents would come — making separate small groups for husbands and wives so one parent could stay at home with the baby. We actually tried putting all of the babies in one room and starting a rotation for each couple to babysit!”

Someone in the Harrises’ group suggested they attend Milestones & MidLink Preview Night, a gathering at The Loop Campus each January and August to introduce more than 50 Milestones classes and MidLink activities for adults, students and children of all ages offered at Houston’s First each spring and fall. RJ and Abby’s small group decided to attend the preschool class on the Parent Path, various classes targeted for parents of preschool children through twelfth graders.

At each stage on the Parent Path, classes provide parents with information, tools, encouragement and the resources they will need for parenting now and in the years ahead. Childcare is provided on Wednesday nights during Milestones, so parents are free to focus on fellowship and gathering strategies for parenting godly children into adulthood.

“We really had no idea what we were missing out on,” said Abby. “The strength, encouragement and know-how we receive in the Milestones class each week allows us to pour godly precepts into our homes and beyond.”

The Harrises agree that Milestones has been both a blessing in their marriage and to their daughter as they have become more intentional in the way they parent and live out life together.

Abby says they have realized an added bonus: “We have been blessed in our friendships with the couples in our small group who are on the journey with us as we’ve grown in relationship with God and our spouses.”

Next Steps

Milestones & MidLink Preview Night takes place on Wed, Jan 20, from 6:30-8p in the Fellowship Center at The Loop Campus. After hearing from guest speaker Dwight Edwards and a time of worship led by Elevate Student Worship, you can discover the Milestones classes and MidLink activities offered this semester at a self-guided Open House. NextGen activities for preschoolers, children, and students are available that night, as well. Come early for MidLink Cafe at 4:45-6:15p.

Session 1 of the Milestones semester begins Wed, Jan 27, and runs through Wed, Mar 2. Session 2 runs from Wed, Mar 23, through Wed, Apr 27. Special classes are offered between Session 1 and Session 2, and in a “Bonus Semester” on May 4 and May 11.