7 Checkpoints Curriculum Strategy for Students is an intentional, systematic approach to discipleship focused on the content of discipleship. These seven student-specific principles are the irreducible minimum. The authors are convinced that these seven basic principles every student should understand, commit to memory and embrace before they leave the safety of their homes and youth ministries. These are the must know, can’t be without principles. They are not all that is important. But they are what are most important for students. They are as follows:

• Check point #1 – Authentic Faith

Principle – Can God be trusted that he will do what He has promised to do.
Critical question: Are our students trusting God with the critical areas of their lives?
Key passage – Proverbs 3:5-6

• Checkpoint #2 – Spiritual Discipline

Principle – When you see as God sees, you will do as God says.
Critical question – Are our students developing a consistent devotional prayer life.
Key passage – Romans 12:2

• Checkpoint #3 – Moral Boundaries

Principle – Purity paves the way to intimacy
Critical question – Are our students established and maintaining Godly moral boundaries?
Key passage – I Thessalonians 4:3-8

• Checkpoint #4 – Healthy Friendships

Principle – Your friends will determine the direction and quality of your life.
Critical question–Are our students establishing healthy friendships and avoiding unhealthy ones?
Key passage – Proverbs 13:20

• Checkpoint #5 – Wise Choices

Principle – Walk wisely
Critical question – Are our students making wise choices in every area of their lives?
Key passage – Ephesians 5:15-17

• Checkpoint #6 – Ultimate Authority

Principle – Maximum freedom is found under God’s authority.
Critical question – Are our students submitting to the authorities God has placed over them?
Key passage – Romans 13:1-2

• Checkpoint #7 – Others First

Principle – Consider others before yourself
Critical question – Are our students putting the needs of others ahead of their own?
Key passage – Philippians 2:3-11

Consider the Source

His was a positive influence. And as the world morns the loss of Stephen Covey we have highlighted his Seven Habits in the hope that you will make them your own. We highly recommend buying his book and digging a bit deeper into the qualities that have changed the lives of so many who value personal growth.
1) Be Proactive
As human beings, we are responsible for our own lives. We have the independent will to make our own choices and decisions, and the responsibility (“the ability to respond”) to make the right choices. You have the freedom to choose your own fate and path, so having the independent will, imagination and self-awareness to make the right move makes you a proactive, and not a reactive, person.
2) Begin With The End In Mind
Mental visualization is extremely important. Covey says that all things are created twice: first, the mental conceptualization and visualization and a second physical, actual creation. Becoming your own creator means to plan and visualize what you’re going to do and what you’re setting out to accomplish and then go out and creating it. Identifying your personal statement and your principles will help.
3) Put First Things First
With your power of independent will, you can create the ending you want to have. Part of that comes with effective time management, starting with matters of importance. Then tasks should be completed based on urgency after you deal with all the important matters. If you deal with crises, pressing problems and deadline-driven projects first, your life will be a lot easier.
4) Think Win/Win
If you believe in a better way to accomplish goals that’s mutually beneficial to all sides, that’s a win/win situation. “All parties feel good about the decision and feel committed to the action plan,” Covey wrote. “One person’s success is not achieved at the expense or exclusion of the success of others.” If you have integrity and maturity, there’s no reason win/win situations can’t happen all the time.
5) Seek First To Understand, Then To Be Understood
If you’re a good listener and you take the time to understand a concept, it will help you convey your opinions, plans and goals to others. It starts with communication and strong listening skills, followed by diagnosing the situation and then communicating your solution to others.
6) Synergize
Synergistic communication, according to Covey, is “opening your mind and heart to new possibilities, new alternatives, new options.” This applies to the classroom, the business world and wherever you could apply openness and communication. It’s all about building cooperation and trust.
7) Sharpen The Saw
Sometimes you’re working so hard on the other six habits that you forget about re-energizing and renewing yourself to sharpen yourself for the tasks in front of you. Some sharpening techniques include exercise and nutrition, reading, planning and writing, service and empathy and commitment, study and meditation.

For those considering an in depth exploration of Positive Qualities, we also recommend the work of Jim Downs. His Positive Qualities Chart and the companion book are essential references. The Positive Qualities Company website gives an overview of the attributes embraced by Covey and others making the most of this life.
Consider the Source

To false religion, humor remains one of the most dreaded adversaries. Humor punctures the pomposities of theological arrogance with an efficacy wondrous to behold. — Vern Bennom Grimsley (1964)

A great many of the educated youth of [the United States and Canada] … find it difficult to understand how a Church founded by Christ can show such feeble loyalty to the principles of truth, the way of life and the spirit of love to which His life was dedicated. Their very loyalty to the Christ of the Gospels often makes it difficult for them to be enthusiastically loyal to the Church which bears His name. —Rufus M. Jones (1932)

It has been said that modern civilization could not have been built upon any such foundation as the words of Jesus. That may be true. Quite imaginably it is also true that what could be built upon his words would be a better thing than modern civilization is. —W. R. Bowie (1928)

A belief becomes a faith when it shapes the way of one’s living, when it determines what one shall live for. It is not a faith merely when it is accepted as true. A proposition accepted as true is a mere belief. The conviction or certainty is not what makes it faith. It is the way it controls the living of the believer.  —Henry Nelson Wieman (1935)

A right act strikes a chord that extends through the whole universe, touches all moral intelligence, visits every world, vibrates along its whole extent, and conveys its vibrations to the very bosom of God! —Thomas Binney (1798-1874)

Man has worshipped everything on earth, including himself, stones, hills, flowers, trees, streams, wells, ocean, and animals. He has worshipped everything he could think of beneath the earth, metals, caves, serpents, and under-world ghosts. Finally, he has worshipped everything between earth and heaven and everything in the heavens above, mist, wind, cloud, rainbow, stars, moon, sun, the sky itself, though only in part has he worshipped the spirits of all these objects. —E. W. Hopkins (1923)

Heaven Abides Personally