Introducing Family Nights – Part 1
August 9th, 2010I’m getting ready to introduce a new resource for families to help parents teach the Bible to their kids. The plan is that individual lessons will start being released on August 25. As I’ve said before, there is nothing new or groundbreaking here, it’s all been done before. But God has placed this burden on my heart and I can’t let it go. All the material will be posted here for free. I’m producing this material not to gain anything, but because I want to use it with my family, and I thought a few other families might find it helpful. Before I actually start releasing the material, I want to share the “why” and “how” behind Family Nights.
Several years ago I took a group of upper elementary kids from my church to camp. These kids had grown up in church. Most of them had been in Sunday school since they were babies. They had attended camps and VBS programs. If you added it all up they had probably been taught what must be hundreds of Bible lessons. During that camp I realized something, they didn’t know much about the Bible. They knew some Bible stories and few characters, but they had no idea how it all went together or why it was important. To sum it up, they knew some Bible stories, but they didn’t know THE story of the Bible.
I was blessed to have my Dad as my Jr. Church teacher. Aside from being a wonderful storyteller and really making the Bible come alive, he taught the Bible in a way that was systematic and chronological. As a kid I never realized this. I just knew I loved Jr. Church. Week after week through games, stories, and songs I was building a foundation of Biblical understanding. I wasn’t just learning stories. I learned how they connected, how each Bible character had a place in Gods bigger story. I learned that God had a plan that was progressing. Because of the way my Dad taught, I never saw the Bible as “a bunch of stories,” but as one story with one message. Ultimately I learned that the entire Bible points to Jesus and how he restored our broken relationship with God.
All along I had assumed that the kids in my church had the same foundation and understanding that I did… but I was wrong. As their children’s pastor this realization rocked me to the core. I realized we couldn’t just keep on doing more of the same. So, I stopped a lot of what I was doing and started writing material that I could use help those kids see the message of the Bible. What resulted was a year-long Bible curriculum focusing on “The Big Picture.” I’ll talk more about that later and how it shifted to from a church-based to a family-based material. But for now I’ll leave you with a sneak-peek of “The Big Picture” that this material is based on.
Posted in Blog, Children's Ministry, Family Resources | Comments (1)
Something’s coming…
July 30th, 2010I haven’t written much on the blog lately, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been hard at work. Next week I’m planning to release something I’m really excited about. I finished up the draft last week, and we’re working on the final edits now. By the end of next week it should be ready. Don’t get too excited, it’s not groundbreaking or terribly original, but it is something I’m looking forward to for my family, and something I hope a few others families might find useful as well. Check back next week for more…
Posted in Children's Ministry, Family Resources | Comments (0)
Halfway There
May 22nd, 2010One of the biggest things happening in my life right now is that I’m getting smaller. I’ve been well over a reasonable weight for about 15 years now. Recently, my wife Jessica and I have decided to make some changes and lose weight. I figured out what my weight should be and found that I needed to lose 100 pounds. It seemed an almost impossible task. But today, I hit the half way mark. That’s right… I’ve lost 50 pounds.
So the natural question most people ask is, “How?” So, here it is.
1) Diet. Specifically, the South Beach Diet. And for those who confuse that with the Atkins no-carb diet, it’s actually very different. I won’t go into all the details, but basically the only thing you cut out is sugar and white flour which basically breaks down into sugar in your blood. Beyond that it’s a lot of lean meats, fruits, vegetables, and complex carbs. (like whole grain breads and brown rice)
2) Eating less. It’s not easy. Truth is, this is the hardest part. It takes about 10 to 12 days of real effort but after that you just don’t need as much food. A few small snacks in the day help too because you’re not so hungry at meal times.
3) Exercise. I’ve tried the treadmill and have had some success, but it’s hard to maintain. For me, it’s been Disc Golf. I know that sounds corny, but it’s quicker and a lot cheaper than golf. Anyway, it’s a hobby and a sport, so it keeps my interest more than the treadmill.
That’s it, diet, eat less, and exercise. I know that’s a ground breaking and radical plan… but it’s working. Halfway there and 50 to go. I know the second half is harder than the first but I’m going to keep at it.
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Simplicity
May 18th, 2010I’m going to try to get back into blogging again. I’ve decided my main problem in the past, is that blogging was just too complicated. Posts took too long to write, (mostly because they were too long) then I needed to find a picture, add a summary and so on. I’m going to give this another go and try to make it a little simpler. God’s doing some great things in my life right now, and He’s been teaching me a lot. So I’ve loaded my scaled down wordpress theme and I’m looking forward to telling you about all that’s going on.
Posted in Blog, Random, Uncategorized | Comments (1)
Helping Kids Fall In Love With Jesus
September 29th, 2009When I was a kid I loved the Chronicles of Narnia written by C.S. Lewis. I still love the books, but when I was young they completely captivated me. Long before I could read on my own, my mom used to read to me. Whenever we would go on long car trips she would choose books to read to my brother, sister and me. (these were the days before in car DVD players) She read all types of books but the Chronicles of Narnia were always my favorite.
In fourth grade my teacher, Mrs. Vincent, read us the book “The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe.” As she read, I recognized a lot of the names and characters. After a few days I realized that this was one of the books that my mom had read to me when I was little. Better yet, I figured out that this was the first of seven books in a series. The next time our class went to the library I checked out the second book in the series. I read the entire book that same day. The next day I got to school early so I could check out the third book. It wasn’t long before Mrs. Vincent noticed my interest in the books, and because I was “a little less than well-behaved” in fourth grade, (sorry Mrs. Vincent) she eventually made a deal with me. If I would finish all my work for the day I could read for whatever time I had left. Most days I had finished all my work before lunch because I couldn’t wait to get back to reading. It wasn’t long before I had read the entire series. Then I read them again–and again–and again.
There was so much that I loved about The Chronicles of Narnia. There was action, adventure, sword fights and talking animals. But above everything else there was one character that stood out. Aslan. Aslan was the great lion, the son of the emperor beyond the sea. He was the central character in every story and things always got better when Aslan arrived. The way C.S. Lewis wrote about and described Aslan made him come alive. As I read the books over and over I fell in love with the character of Aslan. He was so amazing, strong and gentle, wild and kind, powerful yet humble. One of my favorite quotes in the Chronicles of Narnia comes when someone asks about Aslan, “Is he quite safe?” The answer, “Of course he’s not safe, but he’s good.” As I read the books I actually got excited every time Aslan was about to show up in the story. I was so enthralled with the character that I began collecting lions. (not real lions… mostly stuffed and ceramic) There was just something about Aslan that I wanted to be closer to.
As I grew older, I learned something about C.S. Lewis that you probably already know. Not only was C.S. Lewis a great writer, he was a great theologian. Most of his books were for adults but somewhere along the line he decided to write a series for children and I’m so glad he did. What I began to see over time is that the character of Aslan was based on Jesus. Everything I had grown to love about the fictional character of Aslan was true of the very real Jesus. What I didn’t realize when I was young, is that through the writings of C.S. Lewis I wasn’t falling in love with Aslan, I was falling in love with Jesus. Over the years my love for Jesus has only grown deeper but it began because C.S. Lewis wrote about Jesus in way that went past my intellect and penetrated my heart.
I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. How do we do this for the kids we lead? I think sometimes we’re pretty good at teaching kids about Jesus, but how do we help them fall in love with Jesus? What are we doing for kids that helps them see Jesus in a way that is so compelling that all they want to do is be closer to Him. How do we penetrate their hearts so they get excited at just the thought of who Jesus is and what he’s done for them? I obviously don’t have all the answers to these questions. Maybe you’ve got some ideas. I’d love to hear from you. What I do know is, I’m not content to just tell kids about Jesus. I want to introduce kids to Jesus in a way that helps them fall in love with Jesus the way C.S. Lewis did for me.
Tags: C.S. Lewis, children's books, Children's Ministry, christian living, christianity, creative, journey, life, me, Resources
Posted in Blog, Children's Ministry, Thinking Out Loud | Comments (0)
How’s your vision?
September 24th, 2009I’m continuing a series of post on what I’ve been learning about recruiting volunteers for children’s ministry. You can check out the earlier posts below.
“Help we need more volunteers!”
“How not to recruit”
A couple of weeks ago Rick Warren posted a tweet that went something like this,
“You don’t have a giving problem, you have a vision problem. People don’t give to need they give to vision.”
I’m not sure you could say that any better and with the situation many churches are facing in the current economy, his advice is even more relevant. As I was thinking about this tweet it occurred to me, the same thing is true with volunteers.
“You don’t have a volunteer problem you have a vision problem.”
If you want people to volunteer for children’s ministry you have got to lead with vision. Vision – not a mission statement. A mission statement is a goal, and it’s good to have a goal, but it’s your goal or your ministry’s goal. It’s relevant to you and your current volunteers because it provides direction, but vision is different.
Vision is your ability to see the future. To look beyond what’s happening right now in your ministry and see what could be. Before anyone else can see this future you have to see it so clearly that you can almost touch it and taste it. This type of vision will capture people’s attention and inspire them to action.
We talk a lot in children’s ministry circles about how parents are willing to get so involved in sports or school but not in church. Why is that? Vision! Every time my daughter get’s into her little ballet outfit or dances in a recital, I can vividly see her all grown up and flying across a stage in front of hundreds of people. Every time she puts on her backpack and steps out of the car for school, I imagine her successful future. Because of this, I’m willing to give my time and talent (and money) to help her succeed in these areas.
I think the truth is, sports, schools, dance – the reason they get parents attention – is because they’re telling a better story than we are. They present a brighter more tangible, more visible future.
If you want people to volunteer in children’s ministry, or any ministry, you can’t lead with the need, you can’t lead with your goals or even the “opportunity.” If you want people to join you in ministry you’ve got to tell a compelling, tactile, visible story that presents a future that people desperately want to see become reality.
I hear children’s pastor say from time to time, “I’m trying to discover God’s vision,” or “I don’t know what the vision is.” Of course you do! It’s what inspires you to do ministry week after week. It’s God’s call to ministry in you life. Think about it, children’s ministry is hard. It’s rewarding but there are many elements of children’s ministry that just stink (like diapers) but you do it – and continue to do it – and love it, despite all the hardship that goes along with the job. Why, because God has given you a desire and a vision of the future that compels you to keep moving. What you have to do is to dig into the picture, the vision, that God has given you and find a way to tell that story to others.
When you understand this your vision and your story becomes the heart of your recruiting. Tell your story over and over again to those around you and anyone else who will listen to you or even slows down near you. Keep telling your story until you’re sick of hearing it. Over time something amazing will start to happen. The people closest to you will start to see the picture and they’ll start telling the story… and it will spread. When this happens people will begin to show up, not in droves, but little by little. The difference in these people is that they are coming because they can see the same future you see and they want to see that future become a reality. Even better, people who respond to vision will be more committed to realizing the vision than the person who is just responding to a need or a goal.
So, what keeps you in ministry week after week? What’s your story? What’s your vision and how can you begin to share that with others so they can begin to see what God has already allowed you see.
Tags: Children, Children's Ministry, enlistment, Leadership, ministry, Recruiting, team, Volunteer Minisrty, Volunteers
Posted in Volunteers | Comments (1)
How not to recruit
September 21st, 2009I’m continuing a series of post on what I’ve been learning about recruiting volunteers for children’s ministry. You can check out the first post below.
“Help we need more volunteers!”
So, what are we doing to recruit volunteers? I’m glad you asked… but let me start with what we haven’t done.
We haven’t publicized our need. We haven’t asked for help from the pulpit or in the bulletin. We haven’t held any enlistment campaigns. We haven’t sent letters of flyers home to parents (we did do this once a couple of years ago but we probably won’t again). We haven’t made “cold calls” to people not serving. We haven’t required people to serve… ok, enough of that. I think you get the picture.
Is there anything wrong with these approaches? No, they’re fine and sometimes necessary, but there are a couple of dangers that accompany these types of widespread approaches.
1. You look desperate.
“But, I am desperate” Yeah, I know… me too, but we can’t appear that way. Who wants to climb aboard a sinking ship or get involved with a ministry that appears needy? People want to be a part of a winning team and if they think you’re floundering they’ll avoid you like the plague. If you want to publicize something don’t start with the need, start with your wins. Tell people what’s going great. Then let them know that they could be a part of it… if they want to.
2. People respond out of guilt.
Most of the time the people who respond to public appeals for volunteers respond out of guilt. This might seem fine at first, but trust me, you don’t want these people. Not that they’re not good people, but if they only signed on to your ministry because they felt obligated, then they’re probably not going to be happy or satisfied in their service. People who don’t enjoy what they doing in ministry are like time bombs. They are going to blow up and walk out. The only question is when and how many people are they going to take out with them.
To make sure we have people that aren’t responding out of guilt we give people lots of “outs” in our application process. We’re constantly telling volunteers that our goal is not to fill the holes but to help them find a place in ministry that they love. If that happens to be outside of children’s ministry, all the better. A lot of times people ask us, “Where is your greatest need?” We refuse to answer that question, because our need is not the key factor. What’s important is what are they good at and what will they enjoy doing. If they don’t know what that is, we’ll help them discover it, but our goal is that every volunteer loves their ministry and is equipped to do it well. We never want anyone who is guilted into serving
These are some of the things we’ve found that don’t work. But what is working… that’s still to come.
Tags: Children, Children's Ministry, enlistment, Leadership, ministry, Recruiting, team, Volunteer Minisrty, Volunteers
Posted in Leadership, Volunteers | Comments (1)
What if churches were football teams
September 16th, 2009My wife and I were talking after dinner and got into a funny conversation. We started by discussing how to explain who certain prominent children’s pastors were to her nursing colleagues. You know like Jim Wideman might be Bret Farve. (not that he has trouble making up his mind but he’s been around a long time and has had a lot of success) Reggie Joiner might be Peyton Manning (very cerebral). It kind of broke down after that maybe you have some better comparisons.
Anyway, after a couple of minutes of that we realized that if we’re making football comparisons the children’s pastor probably wouldn’t be the quarterback…
…but what would we be. Here’s what we were thinking. I don’t have anyone specific in mind here, just general stereotypes and just for fun.
Quaterback – Senior Pastor – no explanation needed here.
Wide receivers – Worship Ministry – you know out front and kind of flashy. Besides the quarterback they probably get the most attention.
Running backs – Student Ministry – All power and intensity, plus there are some exceptions, but they don’t usually last long. (sorry guys you know it’s true)
Tight Ends- Maybe Small Group/Community Ministry? – In the trenches and very important around the goal line. Also when the quarterback has a problem who does he usually drop the ball off to?
Guards and tackles - Executive Pastor – They protect the quarterback.
So where does children’s ministry fit in? My best guess is maybe the Center. We’re right in the middle of every play but does anyone know who we are? We get to start the play because we work with the youngest people in the church. We also get to hand the ball off a lot. A lot of great volunteers start in the children’s ministry, but how many times have you seen your best volunteers get drafted into “big church?”
So that’s my take. What do you think?
On a similar note, JC and I came up with an idea a while back. What if you could have “Fantasy Church Teams” like fantasy sports. I pretty much figured I’d take Andy Stanley or Craig Groschel in the first round, but how would you keep score?
Just a little Wednesday night randomness…
Have fun and leave your comments.
☺
Tags: Children's Ministry, church, football, fun, Leadership, team
Posted in Random, Thinking Out Loud | Comments (2)
Need more volunteers?
September 15th, 2009Now that I have a little more time on my hands, (You can see why here.) I’m going to try and finish a couple of blog topics I started earlier. First up… recruiting
Everyone who serves in children’s ministry has one thing in common. We need more volunteers. I’ve heard of the elusive “waiting list” to serve in children’s ministry, and I’m sure it exists somewhere, but I’ve never seen it. What I’ve seen more often is that as soon as we enlist more volunteers, God sends more kids. In truth, this is where I want to be, first because it means the kingdom is growing and second because it keeps us looking to God to provide for us.
Last year we recruited over 200 new volunteers in BrookwoodKiDs, Now, not all of them made it through the application process, but that’s how many new applications we received. We’re on pace to receive about that many applications again this year. Before you get too impressed, we are still way short on the volunteers we need. We combine groups every week and some of our ratios are not pretty. We have a long way to go and a lot to learn. That said, we’re making progress, and there are a couple of things we’ve done to that are helping us get there. So over my next few posts I want to share what we’re learning and I’d love to hear what’s working for you as well.
Tags: Children, Children's Ministry, enlistment, Leadership, ministry, Recruiting, team, Volunteer Minisrty, Volunteers
Posted in Blog, Volunteers | Comments (0)
Big News
September 14th, 2009I have big news I wanted to pass along to everybody. I’m moving on from Brookwood Church. This isn’t a good place to get into all the “what” and “whys,” but if you’re interested you can contact me and I’ll let you know more. I do want to take a minute and say a few things though.
First, I completely support Brookwood Church. Brookwood is a great church and even though they’re going through a rough patch right now, I know that God is going to continue to do incredible things in and through Brookwood.
Second, I love and respect Perry Duggar. Perry has never been anything but good to me. I cannot begin to quantify all that he has taught me, or how he has invested in my life. Perry is one of the most humble and authentic men I know. That’s one of the main things that drew me to Brookwood in the first place and one of the things I’ll miss most.
Third, I will deeply miss the children’s team at Brookwood. I believe they are the finest collection of children’s pastors anywhere. I was blessed to lead such an amazing group of people. We put in a lot of blood, sweat and tears together and I will treasure every moment with you guys for the rest of my life. I love you and I’m proud of who you’ve become. Furthermore, I believe in this team and I believe they are going to continue to raise the bar in children’s ministry for a long tome to come. Hang on Brookwood, these guys are going to do big things.
Finally, I’m going to miss our awesome volunteers. No matter what challenge we threw at you, you rose to the occasion. I am so proud of you. I always said our goal was not to give kids great programming but to connect them with great people. You are great people! I’m so glad that the kids at Brookwood have people like you to invest in their lives.
So, what’s next for me?
I don’t know.
A long time ago I submitted myself to God’s leading and to serving Him in ministry. So, I’m on His plan and His timing. Truth is, I can’t think of a better place to be.
Oh yeah, a couple more things…
I still have several blog posts that I wrote (or started) while a Brookwood. So, rather than change everything I’m going to post them as is. Hopefully that won’t confuse anybody. Also, if you know anyone looking for a children’s pastor you can send them here. There’s a link to my resume in the top right corner.
Tags: Brookwood Church, Brookwood Kids, journey, life, me, ministry, team
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