Posts Tagged ‘Children’s Ministry’
Helping Kids Fall In Love With Jesus September 29th, 2009
When 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, 2009
I’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, 2009
I’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, 2009
My 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, 2009
Now 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)
Out of the “Church” Box April 8th, 2009
One of the volunteers in our children’s ministry is the CEO of a large company. I had the opportunity to meet with him yesterday to talk about the children’s ministry at our church. I thought I was meeting with him to help him understand what we’re trying to do in children’s ministry…
That’s not exactly how it went down.
Instead he spent an hour and a half telling me why our children’s ministry wasn’t as effective as it could be. Now, You have to know this guy to appreciate him. He’s not a jerk. Most guys who try to tell you what your doing wrong are just complaining or trying to grab power. But this guy loves God, loves our church, loves our pastor and I know he wants what’s best for us.
Even though I knew all this I was still a little defensive. Yeah, this guy knows a lot, but he doesn’t know anything about leading a children’s ministry. I tried to do what I know I’m supposed to do in this situation and just listen and have an open mind. But I have to admit I’m not very good at that, so instead I went with the “healthy debate” approach.
At one point as we were “discussing” small group environments I mentioned something about Northpoint church. The response I got from this guy was interesting,
“Who the h— Is Northpoint?”
The thing is, he wasn’t being argumentative, he really didn’t know. At that’s when I realized something, most of my volunteers don’t know who Northpoint is either, and they don’t care to. I think it’s easy for us to get caught in the church box. If you’re in ministry it’s where you spend most of your time. We go to church conferences, read ministry blogs, buy “church leadership” books. We become experts in field that doesn’t always relate to the people we’re leading. Just because I know what I’m doing it doesn’t mean my volunteers know what I’m doing. I think it’s possible that we become blind to this because when we start spouting off all our “church knowledge” to our volunteers they just assume we’re right and back off.
Fortunately, the guy I was talking to isn’t the type to “back off.” He didn’t have all the answers. Some of his ideas we’re way off. But he did have a very different perspective and he asked some questions in a way that I hadn’t thought of before. At the end of the day talking to this guy who knew nothing about ministry helped me learn a lot about how to do ministry.
I’ll wrap this up with a few of questions for you. How do get out of the “church box?” Who are you talking to that challenges your ideas and perceptions? Who has a completely different outlook on life that could challenge your status quo? If you don’t have someone like that I’d encourage you to seek them out.
Also let me hear from you. What are some of the ways you’ve found to get an outside view of church and ministry?
Tags: Brookwood Church, Brookwood Kids, Children's Ministry, Leadership, ministry, Volunteer Minisrty, Volunteers
Posted in Children's Ministry, Leadership | Comments (3)
Lead the Leader – Pt 1 April 6th, 2009
Last week I introduced a series of posts based on lessons I learned in a workshop I attended years ago. (apparently it was MANY years ago if you listen to some of those who commented on the post ☺) The workshop was called “Growing the Children’s Ministry You’ve Always Wanted” and it was presented by Gordon and Becky West. The principles I learned there have had a huge impact on my ministry and I wanted to pass them on in hopes that you will find them equally valuable.
First, an illustration. Take your best guess…
How much is an eight-foot piece of rebar worth. You know, plain old steel plugged into a mold and formed into a bar. Of course prices could vary, but usually it costs around $5. What if I took that same amount of steel and refined it a little more and formed it into horseshoes? Now it’s worth around $10.50. Ok, let’s take this a little further. Suppose I take the same amount of steel and form it into needles. If I did that it, it would be worth nearly $5000. Let’s take one final step. What if I took the same amount of steel contained in a $5 piece of rebar and formed it into fine Swiss watch mainsprings. In this case the steel would be worth nearly $250,000. That’s not an exaggeration!
Here’s the principle:
It’s not the material; it’s how the material is used that creates value.
Now a question:
How are you using your volunteers?
Are you investing in your people and doing everything you can to help them reach their full potential, or are you “plugging holes” with your volunteers? In the first five minutes of that workshop I realized why my children’s ministry was failing. It was because I thought I was a children’s minister. I mean, that was my title, right? However, the reality of children’s ministry is that if you want to grow the children’s ministry you’ve always wanted, you can’t be a children’s minister. You must be a volunteer minister.
If you have more than 10 kids in your ministry you’ve already got more kids than you can effectively minister to by yourself. Think about, Jesus chose to disciple only twelve men and He’s God. It would be pretty arrogant of me to think I could effectively disciple twenty, right? This means, if your children’s ministry is going to be effective, you’re going to have to invest most your your time not in working with kids but in developing volunteers.
There’s much more to come so stay tuned. For now, I’ll leave you with this. What are you doing to develop “watch spring” volunteers in your ministry?
Tags: Brookwood Church, Brookwood Kids, Children, Children's Ministry, Conferences, Gordon and Becky West, Leadership, ministry, Ministry 101, Volunteer Minisrty, Volunteers
Posted in Children's Ministry, Leadership, Volunteers | Comments (2)
More Than “Just” A Volunteer March 20th, 2009
I just got back form the hospital. I was there to visit Sarah. Sarah is a beautiful little three-year-old girl who has cancer. I’m not sure there’s much on the planet that makes less sense to me than that. Never the less, I went by to spend some time with Sarah and her Mom and try to offer some comfort. I’m not sure how much comfort I offered, I could barely hold it together. Please pray for Sarah and her family, they’ve got a long road ahead and they need our prayers.
In the midst of this sad situation there was something beautiful going on. You see, I wasn’t the only visitor there. When I got there one of our children’s ministry volunteers was already there. Her name is Donna. She told me, “I had the afternoon off so I decided to come by.” That sounds pretty unassuming, right, but think it through. After a week of work Donna decided to take her afternoon off and spend it in the hospital caring for Sarah and her family. That’s amazing!!! What’s more amazing is that I bet Donna doesn’t think it’s amazing. It’s just what she does.
On my way home from the hospital a couple of things occurred to me.
First, I think this is the real role of a children’s ministry volunteer. Our kids need volunteers like Donna. As leader’s we’ve got to stop apologizing for asking people to give an hour a week and give them a vision for ministry that is so much bigger. Sunday should be just the tip of the iceberg. Our kid’s need leaders who are involved in their lives. Yes, they need to be there in the hospital, but they also need to be at the soccer game or the dance recital. They need to know what’s happening in kid’s lives and give them a call to say happy birthday or good luck on that big test.
The other thing that occurred to me is how over-rated being a pastor is. Even with all my “pastor” training and “pastor” experience I was the least important and least effective minister in that hospital room today. Donna was the one making the real impact. I really believe it’s our volunteers who have the greatest potential for ministry not us “professionals.” I think that’s why in Ephesians 4:11-12 church leaders are charged to equip the body for works of service. The best I can do is to create an environment where volunteers like Donna can thrive, then cheer them on as they do the real work of ministry and extend Jesus’ love to others.
I wonder if our volunteers realize how critically important they are, or do the think they are “just a volunteer?” How can we help them see their incredible importance and potential for ministry?
Incidentally, Donna volunteers in my daughters room at church. I’m excited my daughter gets to learn from someone like her.
Tags: Brookwood Church, Brookwood Kids, Children's Ministry, Volunteer Minisrty, Volunteers
Posted in Children's Ministry, Volunteers | Comments (0)
Child Dedications March 16th, 2009
Last week Kenny Conley wrote a series of posts about Parent/Child Dedications. You should check out what he wrote he’s got some great thoughts.
Here’s part of my response to his post.
First let me say that I have wonderful staff. Patti Jo Mackey and Jenni Bowman are the main reasons our dedications are successful. Here’s what they do. About a month before dedication we have a dedication class for parents. This class is required and I think it is the most essential ingredient in our process. At the class Patti Jo helps families understand the significance and meaning of dedication as well as helping them lay a strong spiritual foundation for their kids. Also in the class we introduce several elements that we will use in the dedication. We have parents choose a life verse and dedication sponsors for their child (just someone who is important to the family and commits to pray for the child). We also give them a template to write a letter to their child.
We hold our dedication as a special service on Sunday afternoon where participants can invite their family and friends. We have special music, I present a brief challenge to parents then we have the families come up. Rather than just a cattle call we have families come up one at a time with their sponsors. Their sponsors read the child’s life verse then the parents read a portion of the letter they have written to the child. (If they can without crying. Some have their sponsor read the letter.) After each family has been introduced and read their letter, we close with vows from the parents and the audience, and I pray over the families. After the service we have a photographer and a nice reception.
This format is great for us. We have time to build into families. It’s personal and meaningful, mainly because families have put thought into what their doing and they come prepared. This format is also practical. We’ve had dedications with as many as 20 children and the service lasts a little less than an hour.
Here are a few things about our dedication I wanted to highlight:
Parent Class
Let me say again, the dedication class is the key to a successful Parent/Child Dedication. It’s also one of the best opportunities you’ll ever have to build into the lives of parents. Parents are highly motivated when their children are young. You’ll have a much higher percentage of parents attend a dedication class than you will most other forms of parent classes. If you want minister to parents you’ve got to bring you “A” game to the dedication class.
Dedication Letter
One of the best elements in our dedications is the parent letter. I learned this from Walter Draughon, a pastor I served with at FBC in St. Petersburg Florida. As part of his wedding services he had the couple write letters to one another and then he used those letters in the service. He brought the same concept to the Parent/Child Dedication. Walter introduced me to this idea and I’ve been using it ever since. When my daughter was dedicated my wife and I both wrote a letter for her dedication, and for us, it was the most special and personal part of the dedication. I can’t tell you how many families feel the same way. At Brookwood, it’s been a key to help make our dedications personal instead of a just being a “dog and pony” show. Nothing expresses the spirit of child dedication better than the parents’ own words. Plus, after the dedication, parents have a tangible and poignant reminder of the commitment they made that they can share with their kids for years to come.
Dedication Book
In preparation for the dedication we ask parents to: provide a picture of their child and a family picture, chose a life verse for their child, select dedication sponsors and write a letter to their child. It’s a lot to do but the parents’ preparation for the dedication is one of the most important ingredients in making the dedication significant. To help parents prepare, we created a dedication book that’s kind of like a memory book. We give parents the book during the dedication class and it walks them through dedication preparation. The book has a duel benefit. It’s a great keepsake for parents and it’s great for helping us get all the info and elements we need for the dedication in a timelier manner. Here’s a .pdf of the dedication book if you’re interested.
Hope this has been helpful for you and thanks again to Kenny for opening the dialog.
Tags: blog love, Brookwood Church, Brookwood Kids, Child Dedications, Children, Children's Ministry, creative, Family Ministry, Parent Child Dedication, Parent Ministry, Resources
Posted in Blog, Children's Ministry | Comments (9)
Start Right March 16th, 2009
So, you’re thinking about starting a blog? Do you know about: hosting, urls, domain names, plugins, permalinks, php, .htaccess, apachee, index.php, seo, site redirects, mod_rewrites, widgets, ftp, chmod or the difference between 0644 and 0777 (besides 133 ☺) Well, I do, but I’d suggest that you not. Here’s the thing I started this blog a few weeks ago on a whim. Problem is, I hadn’t taken a lot of time to learn the basics. I just bought a domain name slapped it in an old web-host and got going. Fast forward a few weeks, and I’ve spent more hours trying to fix things on the blog than I have witting.
First, I didn’t have a good web host. Then I installed my blog in a sub-domain. This led to a site redirect. So when I tried to improve my seo (search engine optimization) I realized my permalinks were “ugly” but I couldn’t change them ☹ because my .htacces file was in the sub-domain not the root and then…. Sorry about that, I’ll get to the point.
If you want to start blogging, take your time and start right. Spend a little time researching the process. There’s a lot of good information out there and if you take a couple of days to check it out you might save yourself several weeks of heaches and a lot of details you’ll wish you never knew.
BTW… Isn’t this that why children’s ministry is so important. If we can help kids get started right, with a strong spiritual foundation. We can save them from years of frustration and confusion. Then, maybe, they can spend more time living for Jesus instead of fixing problems caused by careless mistakes.
Just a thought ☺
Tags: blogging, Children's Ministry, christianity, life, web hosting
Posted in Blog | Comments (0)