Archive for February, 2009
Swamp Stomp is coming February 26th, 2009
It’s almost that time. Registration for Adventure Week starts this Sunday. Here’s a look at our second promo trailer.
Our creative team had a lot fun making these promos. One of the great things about children’s ministry is that it’s seldom boring. One day your working on a volunteer assimilation process. The next day your dressed as a redneck (not a big stretch for me) standing knee deep in mud in 20 degree weather. If you look closely you can see the chunks of ice in the “swamp.” We actually had to break though a layer of ice to get the shot of Bubba and Cletus standing in the mud. Gotta love it. 
Tags: Adventure Week, Brookwood Church, Brookwood Kids, Children, Children's Ministry, Crocodile Dock, Swamp Stomp, VBS
Posted in Adventure Week, Children's Ministry | Comments (0)
Help, I need somebody… February 25th, 2009
Do your kids have somebody? A while back, God really brought something to my attention. I started looking at our children’s ministry and realized that it was possible and sometimes probable that a kid could come to our church, check-in, go to small group, go to large group, check-out and leave and nobody ever got to know that kid. I mean the large group program was great, the small groups all had their curriculum, we had enough volunteers, but in some places kids were just drifting in and out. They were not getting connected. They were not known.
For us this realization caused a fundamental shift in our vision for ministry. Our mission became not only to help kids know Jesus—but to help kids know Jesus and be known personally.
As I started talking to our volunteers about this I asked this question, “How many of you came to know Jesus because of a program, a bible study or a curriculum?” A few had, but for most the answer was no. Then I asked, “How many of you came to know Jesus because of somebody?” And guess what, nearly everybody answered yes to that question. I’ve asked these questions dozens of time to hundreds of people and it always comes out the same way. Think about it, no one says, “You know that (insert your curriculum name here) curriculum, third grade, second quarter, fourth lesson… it really changed my life.” But most can say that Mrs. Becky, Mr. John, a parent, a friend, a neighbor—it could be anybody but it is almost always somebody who really made a difference in my life. For me there were several somebodys, but one that stands out is my junior high band director Rodger McClendon. We called him Mr. Mac, and he saw something valuable in me when there wasn’t much to see. Most of my teachers (at school and at church) had written me off, but Mr. Mac invested in me and it changed the course of my life.
Our goal cannot be to have the best most amazing programs. Great programs and solid curriculum and teaching are important. However, our primary goal must be to connect our kids to the best most amazing somebodys.
Here’s the good news. As we’ve started sharing this vision with our volunteers, they get it. They’re beginning to understand that success is building a relationship and being a Godly example even if you never get to the lesson plan. They’re beginning to realize that connection requires a commitment and most of our volunteers who used to serve once every six weeks are starting to serve every week. Even better, this resonates with the people we’re recruiting for ministry. Not many people are interested in volunteering for a program but they are very interested in joining us to make sure that every child is known personally.
So here’s a question for you. What are you doing in your church or organization to help connect your kids with great people who can invest in their lives and make a lasting difference? I’d love to here from you.
Tags: Brookwood Church, Brookwood Kids, Children, Children's Ministry, Recruiting, Volunteer Minisrty, Volunteers
Posted in Children's Ministry, Leadership, Volunteers | Comments (1)
Swamp Stomp Trailer February 21st, 2009
Hard to believe we’re already well into planning our summer Adventure Week. This year our theme is Swamp Stomp. JC and I will go from the German (or Jamican when our accents slipped) scientists Hanz and Franz to Bubba and Cletus who are, shall we say, a little less refined. This is going to be one incredible week. Here’s a teaser trailer to set the mood. Enjoy!
Tags: Adventure Week, Brookwood Church, Brookwood Kids, Children's Ministry, Crocodile Dock, VBS
Posted in Adventure Week, Children's Ministry | Comments (0)
Praise or Blame? February 21st, 2009
After observing from the sidelines for a while I’ve decided to enter the blogging world. I hope in the coming days that this blog will be helpful or at least interesting to you. If it is, there are a couple of guys you should thank.
The first is Pudge Huckaby. Pudge is the CM Pastor at Newspring’s Greenville campus I’ve been reading his blog for a while. He’s got some great insight, but what I really love is his desire to help people in children’s ministry connect. Second is JC Thompson. JC is an amazing young man who serves as our Kid’s Production Director at Brookwood Church. (He’s also single handedly responsible for making me old) JC has wonderful passion and insight and I’m always excited to read what he’s thinking about on his blog.
So, if what you find here is helpful to you then you should thank these guys for inspiring me to jump into the blog world. If on the other hand, you think this blog stinks, you know who to blame.
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