Welcome to

The Legacy of 3 Pastors Who Encouraged Discipleship of Children— I have loved reading and hearing stories about the impact of three influential men who died recently. I know there are many more faithful pastors who have blessed the children, but losing these three in the same week has encouraged all of us to think about the legacies of Steve Smallman, Harry Reeder, and Tim Keller. I’m struck by the stories that include the impact on the children in their churches. Stephen Smallman’s communicant’s workbook has been used by over 400 children in my own church. I’ve seen pictures [...]

Caring about Child Protection— I remember the very first training I attended that focused on the safety and protection of children. Two churches in our city partnered together to create a weekend training that was done really well. It was encouraging to see the elders and leaders from both churches modeling to everyone that this was important work. It was also heavy work. After a Friday night and a Saturday morning of learning, I came home feeling the weight of these hard topics. I went straight to my back porch to spend some time reflecting and praying. I remember [...]

Classroom Management—Who’s in charge around here, anyway?— Besides the children pushing around toy cars and building towers with blocks, three other things are always at play in our classrooms: the effects of sin, the effects of the work of grace, and the hope of supernatural power. When things are going rough, too often we only see the effects of sin and forget the other two. So before using any of the practical tips in this blog, please pray for your children, your helpers, and for yourself to be filled with grace to help us teach, respond, and react according [...]

Save the Date for LEAD Retreat— At CDM, we love connecting people to people and people to resources.  My favorite time to do this is at our annual children’s ministry retreat. One quote that was shared with a children’s ministry team member after this year’s retreat was, “It’s the one place I can come, and I don’t have to explain myself.”  I’m so thankful for this encouraging, beautiful, worshipful gathering each year. These are a few of my favorite things I saw at the retreat this year. Laughter around the fire pit First time attenders being drawn in [...]

Creative Ways to Teach the Apostles Creed— The Apostles’ Creed is a great tool to teach children about God, what we know to be true about him and the promises he makes to his people. The structure in which the Creed is written–Father, Son and Holy Spirit–also provides a helpful framework for children to understand the Trinity. But teaching the creed sounds challenging, right? The language alone might make the creed feel like too much to tackle with concrete learners like preschoolers and younger elementary students. But I really like the flexibility the Apostles’ Creed offers to bring in [...]

Honest Grief and Hopeful Joy— It’s been one week since the tragedy at Covenant School in Nashville. The grief is still fresh, and we all feel deeply for each family impacted. Worship felt a little sweeter yesterday, and Holy Week will have special meaning as we remember the six lives taken too early. We are all praying for Covenant Presbyterian in Nashville as they confidently draw near to the throne of grace that they may receive mercy and find grace to help in their time of need (Hebrews 4:16). This picture of my mom and niece was taken during [...]

The Importance of Summer Ministry— If you’ve yet to watch my short 3-minute video on the importance of summer ministry, click here to watch it and get a quick overview of what I’d like to share with you here. First, in the midst of our very busy schedules, why in the world should we do summer ministry? Isn’t summer a time to recoup from the past year’s hectic programs? Isn’t summer a time to spend with family and friends, enjoying the relationships He has given us, and getting our “tanks” filled back up by enjoying each other’s company, laughing, [...]