A Goodbye...

A major change has again come to myself and my family. We are leaving our church and moving into the adventure of church planting. Leaving isn't easy since we will miss so many people. However, when God says "go" you either step to or you step out of God's will. I want to stay in God's will.

Here's the announcement as read on Sunday morning.

After much prayer and consideration Kim and I feel that God has instructed us to resign from Assembly of God Christian Center. We did not come to this decision easily, but we are sure that it is the course that God has for us. We understand that the timing of our resignation is difficult. However, in discussing the matter with Pastor Art, we both felt that this is the will of God for this time.

For the past several months God has been redirecting my heart from Children's ministry towards church planting. Initially I believed this call was for the future, but God has impressed in me by the Holy Spirit and through other factors that now is the time. Kim and I will be going to McKinney, TX to assist a pastor there in planting new churches in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Many doors have already opened and more are opening for us every day.

Next Sunday will be our last Sunday with you. We realize this is an abrupt change, however, due to circumstances beyond our control and the leading of the Spirit we see that now is the time. Please do not think that our abrupt departure in any way reflects on our love for this church or on how our belief that God has a great plan for Assembly of God Christian Center. Our love for this church and it's people has grown deep in the past 22 months. We will miss all of you.

Kim and I are now looking to the future. I ask all of you to do the same. Assembly of God Christian Center is not built on any one person, it is built on the foundation of Christ Jesus. I know God will take care of this church and provide everything you need to accomplish the mission God has given you. The leadership of this church already has things in hand, but they will need your support, your prayers, and your time in the coming weeks.

We love you. We know that God has a great plan for you and this church.

Thank you.

A. Crapper Legacy

I'm not being crude. Really!

A. Crapper left us a legacy. He was the first man to successfully mass produce and sell toilets. While he didn't invent anything particularly new concerning the porcelain throne, but he played a big role in getting it mainstreamed.

This gives the phrase "I'm going to sit on the Crapper" a whole new meaning! The phrase didn't start out as an uncouth way to refer to using the restroom, it was a statement of fact. It's as innocent as saying you are going to take a ride in your new Honda (car), buy a Mac (computer), or listen to your iPod (mp3 player).

Ok... it WAS that innocent. Now it's a bit rude.

That leads us to an interesting point. No matter how well something starts out, it might end wrong. We as children's pastors have to orient how we minister to children so that it will create a legacy of faith and personal responsibility. It is possible to teach kids about Jesus, but leave no lasting impression. I know how easy it is to fall into the "let's just get through this Sunday" mentality. However, there is so much more at stake. Kids need a lasting foundation, not flurid prose and spiritual fluff.

Here is my challenge: every week as you prepare ask yourself this question, "does my plan just fill the time, or will it build a Godly legacy for the kids I teach?"

10 Ways to Grow A Children's Ministry

Here are 10 ways to grow your kids ministry.

1. With 3 year olds
2. With 4 year olds
3. With 5 year olds
4. With 6 year olds
5. With 7 year olds
6. With 8 year olds
7. With 9 year olds
8. With 10 year olds
9. With 11 year olds
10. Never have a to-do list that does not have "prayer" as a line item.
    

Evil Video Games?

Yep, they are bad for kids. Well... they are bad in large doses. A small amount of gaming isn't going to send a kid into a crime spree or relegate them to a life of nerdy seclusion. However, the tendency for young boys to get wrapped up in video games remains an issue children's ministers have to deal with.

I'm not a professional therapist nor a gifted researcher, but I do have an observation on why young boys like video games so much. It's because they get a maximum of adventure and a sense of accomplishment with a minimum of effort. Think about this:

• They can be a sports star even if they stink at sports in real life.
• They can drive a race car 10 years before they are eligible for a driver's licence.
• They can become a super hero.
• They can explore an imaginary world with mythical creatures.

Here's the kicker... they can do things they could never do in real life, and they can do them well. Only about one out of five kids are good at sports. It's about the same for musical instruments, school work, and people skills. All of these skills can be developed, but it takes HARD WORK. Video games don't, they are much easier.

However, these little facts give us as children's ministers a few useful insights into the minds of kids.

1. Kids want to succeed.
2. Kids want adventure.
3. Kids find meaning in accomplishment as much as adults, they just find it in different places.

As children's ministers we can take this fact and tailor our programs to fit. Give them specific and attainable goals with well defined rewards. Give them a clear path to excellence. Give them another chance when they fail. Spark their imaginations. Don't forget to let them know before hand that they don't need to be perfect, they just need to keep trying.

So when you develop your programs make sure they have specific goals for you AND the kids. Make sure they have a clearly laid out path for success. Make sure that kids know about and can understand the developmental path you are taking them on. Plan for some kids to fail and make sure they are able to get back on track quickly. Most of all, make sure they get a tangible reward for their work.

While this requires more planning and more forethought, I think you'll find your kids more engaged and better able to grow spiritually.

The Annoying of the Lord

Please don't think me sacrilegious, but God can be annoying at times. Take the story of Gideon's call for example. When the angel shows up to tell Gideon he's he chosen instrument of God to deliver Israel from Middian, Gideon asks "why me". You'd expect the God of all that can be measured (plus some) to answer the question... if for no other reason than to say, "BECAUSE I SAID SO!"

He said nothing.

So what's the deal God? "Why me" question's don't deserve an answer? Isn't the question of competency a valid one? Should we not cover my resume before I get hired? Maybe you could even ask if I want the job?

Nothing... an annoying lack of any response.

But on some reflection I see the brilliant leadership tactic God used. He stayed positive, on track, and mission focused.

1. Mission Focused: God (being the author of all knowledge) knew that Gideon didn't need to look at his credentials, he needed to keep his eye on the prize. Gideon was the last person Gideon needed to think about. The mission needed the focus.
2. On Track: The LAST thing any good meeting needs is a rabbit trail. God kept to the subject at hand. While it's not always the case, the question of credentials was irrelevant here.
3. Positive: Last of all, God did not let the mission get bogged down by covering all the reasons it wouldn't work. I can't tell you how many great ideas I've seen crushed when the difficulties of a project become the center of discussion. If it's something that MUST be done, then talking about why it can't be done is just stupid.

Gideon went on to win one of the most strategic victories in the Bible. He may never have started if God had let things get off track and negative. So as irritating as the silence was, it was some of the wisest nothing Gideon never heard.

So when you pray and ask God how you are going to get it done and God seems silent, think of how it turned out for Gideon.

Two Steps Past Admitting It...

I just read a though provoking post by Jonathan Martin. Check it out here.

The post covers the difference between being aware of your faults vs. acknowledging them as sin and working with God to overcome them. I've spent a lot of time in the "self-aware" zone. I've found it fruitless in the long run. My goal is to go two steps beyond self awareness into repentance and then personal change with the help of the Holy Spirit.

I invite you to join me in taking some time to take the next two steps past self awareness. It may be painful, but it'll be worth it in the end.

Three All Important Planning Factors

I recently had to make up a plan for our new children's space. I've discovered three great planning truths as a result. Here they are.

1. NEVER plan alone. Make sure you gather creative people around you. The ideas will be more robust and better thought out.
   
2. NEVER rush the planning process. It makes the whole project go faster when the plan is well laid out.
3. ALWAYS keep the plan under review. The plan serves to accomplish the project. The project doesn't exist to follow the plan. If you DO need to change the plan mid project just make sure that the change serves the end goal and isn't just a cheep short cut.

If you have any more insights on making a plan feel free to share.

Samson Video Makes it Big(er)

Apparently this video has gotten around the internet just a bit. The internet's a funny place. It's just a dorky little diddly do we did on Samson to introduce the kids to the story. All hail legomation!

Well... so we've not made it to the big time with this one. But it's always nice to see you're stuff show up on a search engine.

NEW ROOM!

This week our children's ministry was authorized to renovate a room for our own! This is a big step forward for us as we've been sharing a room with the youth ministry. It will solve all sorts of staging and logistics problems for us. Not to mention we get a room that looks COOL!

Now we just have to figure out what to do with this. The options are unlimited... funds are not. Such is life.

Limitations aside, I think that I've got a great team of creative people who will be able to take any budget and turn it into a top notch design. I'm looking forward to it.

If you have any pictures or ideas, please share them with me. Send pictures to mills.joe@gmail.com

Marketing Morality

Church leaders today have widely varying thoughts about how church marketing effects the integrity of the Gospel. Many see using solid marketing as contrary to Jesus intentions. While I'm sure I can't provide all the answers to the debate, I feel I've arrived at a place of balance for myself that I'd like to share with you.

First, in my view marketing and preaching are similar in definition. Marketing can be viewed as a "sub-dialect" of whatever language you are speaking. The words marketers use are intended to evoke feelings and thoughts within the target audience who will then act accordingly. By that raw definition marketing is not at all dissimilar to preaching or teaching. We use language to cause a change of thought and behavior in people. The only true differences are content and format.

Second, western culture is now used to being "marketed" into doing things. In many ways, consumers feel if the marketing isn't good, the product isn't good either. In essence, the package speaks to the quality of the product. I've found this to be true of attracting people to events and to church in general. If things are not "packaged" in a way that they feel comfortable with, they won't come. While this may be a cultural flaw, it is one we can't get away from and will have to address. I choose to embrace it rather than fight it.

Third, good marketing requires you to think out your course, be intentional about how you present yourself, and be clear in how you present ideas. There have been all sorts of great ideas that have gone nowhere because the presentation of those ideas suffered from poor planning and bad execution. Marketing adds a step between idea and execution requiring consideration of the human element of the endeavor. Since everything in church life depends almost solely on the human element, good marketing can only serve to help achieve overall success.

For these reasons and others I've decided to use the "language" of marketing to help motivate people into living a more godly and Biblical lifestyle. There are many problems and pitfalls to using marketing as a ministry tool. Maybe I'll touch on those another time.

Feel free to share any marketing ideas or thoughts.

New Blogger Skin

It's not that I couldn't do it. It just takes so LONG!

I finally bit the bullet. I made the skin of Kids Ministry Abstract fit the rest of our kids' ministries site. It seems to work. I'm happy with it. Let me know if you like/hate it or if something is broken.

Anti-Pack Rat

I am the anti-pack rat. I hate keeping things for the sake of keeping them... except for technology. I'm bad about technology. I like to keep it around. I just threw out some memory so old no computer would run it.

However, most other stuff I don't keep around long. In fact, I'm a bad choice for a clean up helper for this reason. My philosophy is "if you can't think what you'd use it for in less than 5 seconds, you don't need it." Or better yet, "if you haven't used it in the last year, and won't use it in the next, bu-bye."

AWAY WITH JUNK!

I tend to offend often with this sort of mentality. I guess some folks like lots of stuff lying around. More often than not, I end up throwing away objects connected with memories. People get bent out of shape. It's not pretty.

So share a "dumpy" story with me.

Which Jesus?

A children's minister friend of mine and I were chatting online recently and we decided to make a t-shirt with this on the front...

"I don't know the poopy Jesus."

We got to that rather goofy point after talking about how some folks I was at a prayer meeting with seemed to feel that the really cool experience of knowing the unfathomable creator of all things is best displayed with a face that resembles that of a polite and proper socialite experiencing constipation.

Don't get me wrong, I'm really not trying to be critical. I know that every one of those folks loves Jesus as much as I. However, I think it is valuable to reflect on how we carry ourselves and how that effects people's perception of what God has done in us.

What Jesus do people think you know?

Amazing Faith

This week I'm preaching to adults. That means I can't crow like a chicken, throw stuff, or act like a monkey to drive a point home. This leaves me a bit short for illustrative material. However, I've come across a nice thought, so I might survive yet: if we have amazing love, amazing grace, and all that, why can't we have amazing faith?

Sure, the love and grace thing are from Jesus. Faith is our deal. But if you stop and think about it Biblically, we all get a "measure of faith" from God. So faith is a gift from God just as much as His grace and love. Just like grace and love, we can use it or leave it be. Since it's up to us to tap into the faith we've been given, why not go for broke?

So I challenge y'all to attempt to "ramp up" your faith in God's promises and see if something amazing results.

Jesus, please come back soon...

This is the world our kids will grow up in. They will be assailed with temptations from... you got it... it's not a joke (or at least it isn't meant to be)... http://www.flirtomatic.com/

Dear God help us! ;)

Respectobigle

So I'm sitting here in Starbucks with my trusty(ish) Dell laptop, and I see a few folks sitting a few tables away. It's a grandmother and a granddaughter by the looks of things. The granddaughter, stylish and trendy is texting away on her phone while the grandma, well into her seventies, tries to act like what she is saying is being heard.

It reminded me of my now departed grandparents, and how I didn't ever think they would be gone while I had them, and how I wanted them when they were gone.

So go get some coffee with your grandma... with the cell phone turned off.

New Baby

What a great thing babies are. They are just so cute. My new niece is no exception! She is just a princes waiting to happen. If you don't have a niece yet, I'd recommend getting one.

eWeb upDATE Postr

My children's ministry site has moved here. (http://kidsblastvt.org) I am going to be changing things here in the near future, so come back every once in awhile.

God bless 2.0

Creative Destruction?

Today I used some of the inherent angst my teenage helpers have to help make a point. I had one of them take a crow bar to an old computer. He messed the thing up... badly.

Why did I do this?

I needed a way to make what the prodigal son did real. Kids don't understand the value of money well. They don't place the same value on it that we as adults do. However, computers are something kids put value on. They see them as cool and desirable.

The result was tangible. They were amazed that someone would destroy a valuable thing like a computer. When I told them that the prodigal son did the same kind of thing with his father's money they got it. I was a bit worried that the message might get lost in the digital abuse, but it was a good illustration. The kids understood the concept of throwing away what is valuable for the long haul for something that is just short term fun.

So I guess creative destruction paid off... for once.

Children and Easter

Today I had the privilege of speaking to our MOPS group (Mothers of Pre-Schoolers). They asked me to speak on portraying the Easter story to pre-schoolers.

I found out that's not really as easy as it sounds.

Here's a way to tell the Easter story I came up with.

1. Jesus lived a perfect life, he never did anything wrong.
2. Jesus choose to die for us to take away our sins.
3. Three days after Jesus died God made Jesus alive again.
4. Jesus went into heaven to be with God and to prepare a place for us so that when we die we can be in heaven with Him.

This is what I came up with, and since I've got to tell this story to my three year old for the first time this year I'd love to hear some other ideas of how to tell very young children about the Easter story.