I don’t think there’s anyone that doesn’t think that reaching parents is important in order to have an impact upon kids. Sometimes in youth ministry, it can be really discouraging to see kids give their lives to Christ and begin to have breakthrough, only to return home where they are torn down.  I can’t even tell you how many times we have had the conversation: “If only the parents were being reached in some way…” 

For the past 3 years, I’ve been working with kids in Hilltop of all ages: teens through Sozo and Late Night, and elementary kids through Sozo Kids. With many of the teens that I’ve invested hundreds of hours in, my interaction with the parents has been minimal.  In fact, for some reason, we generally have very little interaction with the parents of our teens. 

Sozo Kids has been our unexpected gateway into the lives of the parents and families. It’s remarkable how many parents, grandmas, and aunties that we know through Sozo Kids. Through Sozo Kids we’ve met the parent or guardian of more than 90% of the families, and have begun developing relationships with many of them. As we’ve been ministering to many of these kids for 3 years now…that also means we’ve been talking with their parents every week for 3 years. What started as simple “Hellos” has developed into Kari and Dequan sharing about their unemployment, Nicky sharing  about her chronic sickness, and Jaci asking for help and prayer for her son’s rage at home and at school. I think of Jose, Virginia’s dad, who is also the step-dad of Kevin. Kevin was one of our original kids at Sozo who was already deep in the gangs and is now locked away in prison for many years. Because of Sozo Kids, we have developed trust and a great relationship with Virginia and Kevin’s parents, and Jose regularly shares his struggles and knows that this is a safe place for both he and his daughter.

 Last week an organization called Families Unlimited Network invited 9 of our families to attend a special Christmas Celebration/Giveaway. Because of our relationships with the kids and families, we were able to know which families needed this opportunity the most. One of the single moms of 7 kids (who has chronic sickness) was crying on the phone because she was so thankful –not because of the gifts, but because we were thinking of her and her children and loved them. Multiple families called me this week to thank me and tell me how much they were blessed. And through this opportunity, our trust and relationship with the families has only grown. 

Consistency in relationships has created so many opportunities to see the real people behind the hard exterior that many of the parents portray. After 1 hour at a Sozo Kids Family BBQ last summer (and a game of Pop Culture Trivia), our relationship with Esther, the grandmother guardian of two girls, forever changed. She used to seem so hard and intimidating, but the Family BBQ completely tore down all the walls and all of the leaders have been astonished how friendly and open she is now. Tonight she told us that she never lets her grandkids do things like our Zoo Lights field trips, but she now completely trusts us. 

At Sozo we used to always say two things, “I wish we could reach the family” and “I wish we could reach them younger.”  And then God gave us Sozo Kids.