How to Encourage Parents to Fear Not When You Are Not a Parent Yourself— Being a Children’s Ministry Director can be very rewarding. It can also be challenging. No surprises there, right? But add to that another layer, such as being single, not having children of your own, or being younger than [...]
The Fruit of Certification— This year we celebrated 5 years of our Children’s Ministry Certification program! 5 years equals 160 men and women who have spent 12 months evaluating and growing children’s ministry in their churches. Children’s Ministry at CDM comes alongside churches by helping them pave the way for intergenerational connections [...]
Finding Rest in Ministry Rhythms— I love an old-fashioned paper calendar. I spend time marking it up with all kinds of colors based on the occasion. Later this month, there is a week outlined bright orange and blue with BEACH written in big letters. Beach Week happens towards the end of every [...]
Long Term Planning with the End in Mind— Long-term planning has always excited me. Seeing the big picture, setting goals to get there, and visualizing the end-product is one of my favorite things to do. I sit down with my paper planner, pens in a rainbow of colors, a cup of coffee, [...]
Ready or Not, Let Go! Short-Term Planning in a Church Planting Context - One Thursday evening, my senior pastor texted me the news. Our permit for Sunday worship in the local high school that week had been canceled. Not again! My head immediately began to go through a mental checklist of next [...]
Hop Off the Hamster Wheel: Getting Ahead of the Coming Sunday— Is nursery covered? Did I remember to make copies of the lesson for Children’s Church? Who texted me last night to tell me they weren’t going to be here on Sunday? Do I have enough volunteers? Which teacher asked me for [...]
Inviting Children Into Prayer Prayer. One word that encompasses many opportunities for those who are in Christ. It’s an action, a command, our part in a relationship with our Savior, and a calling we, both as parents and as adults within the covenant family, are responsible to bring our children into. Where [...]
Praying With Children — Praying with children in our homes and in our churches is a special gift. It can be joyful and even funny at times. About a year ago, a mom told me about her and her husband’s experience praying with their children. This particular family is from Brazil and [...]
Ages and Stages: The Tween Years— I was really proud of the Kids Ministry our congregation poured into when I was on staff as the Children’s Ministry Director. We had a robust volunteer list and always found help when we needed it. (Shocking, I know!) However, there was one hole that I [...]
The Elementary Years: Energetic and Enthusiastic!— You just can’t beat the hand-waving pride and enthusiasm of a 2nd grader who knows the answer and wants to be called on! Or the wide-eyed wonder of a 3rd grader when a new idea dawns on her for the first time. One morning we were [...]