The EPiC Retreat is a weekend winter retreat hosted by Ligonier Camp and Conference Center. Middle and high school students from throughout the EPC’s Presbytery of the Alleghenies will gather for a weekend of fun, rest, and spiritual development. Students who attend EPiC retreat will participate in a variety of engaging activities from dance parties to Mario Kart to sledding! They will also attend worship, speaker sessions, and discussion times with their small groups.

The Scripture memory program has been created as a tool to help parents disciple their children into spiritually strong and fruitful Christians. “How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word.” (Psalm 119:9). Memory work is an essential part of learning God’s word, and of the overall spiritual vitality of our children.

While it is ideal to learn longer passages of Scripture keeping verses within their intended context, a child’s ability to memorize increases to a certain point as they grow. For these reasons, this program lays out a gradual process of learning. The pace of memorization accelerates through the elementary years, when a child’s mind is built for soaking up lots of information. When children reach the middle school and high school years, they begin memorizing longer passages that are built on verses memorized earlier. For instance, students begin their sequential learning of Romans 8 in third grade. By eighth grade, they will be able to recite the chapter in its entirety!

The Essentials of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church and the Apostles’ Creed have also been included in the program. While these words are not the words of Scripture, and therefore should not be held equal to Scripture, they provide a succinct understanding of basic fundamentals of the Christian church. Our hope in including them, is that they will allow our children as young adults to test and approve churches claiming to be Bible-following congregations.

At a child’s baptism, parents commit to raising their child in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. But the way to do that is not always clear, and in an ever-changing world, the challenges shift, and we don’t always know how to respond. Our children need a firm foundation on the absolute truths of Scripture because, “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” (Isaiah 40:8) It is our prayer that this book will help you nurture your child so that they, like our Savior Jesus, may be filled with wisdom and that the grace of God may be upon them. (Luke 2:40)

To participate in the Scripture Memory Work Program and obtain a booklet, contact Michaela Walker: youth@hickoryunitedepc.org