"Never in our country's history has there been a greater number of

single parents," says Brenda Armstrong, director of the single parent

ministry at Christian Financial Concepts, and coauthor of "Making

Ends Meet."

As a result of this growing trend, an increasing number of churches are

seeking ways to address the unique needs of single parents, both moms

and dads, within their congregations.

Saturday, Sept. 30, Armstrong will conduct a seminar at Fayetteville First

Baptist Church for area church members who want to effectively minister

to their single-parent families.

In single parent ministry training, participants will be taught how to

recognize the unique needs of single-parent families, to understand biblical

precepts relating to money and caring for the needs of others, what other

ministries are already doing successfully, to explore the financial struggles

facing single parents and finally, steps toward building a vital parent

ministry.

Armstrong knows of what she speaks. She became a single parent with two

young children in 1982 through divorce, and for years faced the same struggles

she now lectures about.

After a trying period of low-paying jobs, layoffs and welfare, Armstrong

returned to school and started her career in Christian broadcasting in

Ohio. Her success in radio and her development of single parenting ministries,

led to her eventual association with Christian Financial Concepts, founded

in 1976 by Larry Burkett. She now lives in Buford, Ga.

One of the first things Armstrong emphasizes in her seminar is that "God

owns everything," making it necessary for individuals to learn to

manage what God has given them. This ultimately leads to an innate trust

in God and his ways, she explained.

According to Armstrong, there are currently 10 million single parent moms,

and three million single parent dads raising children in this country.

"There's often not enough money to meet basic needs," she said.

This can lead to guilt on the part of the parent and his or her rhetorically

asking, "Why am I failing? Why am I not succeeding?

"Our ministry was developed to help single parents with both the

emotional and practical aspects of raising their kids by themselves,"

she added.

To register for the seminar, phone Melanie Dobson with Christian Financial

Concepts at (970) 626-2500. Information about CFC can be found on their

web site cfc ministry.org.