Anyone else tweak every event after each time? Anyone else just can’t do the same thing even if you repeat an event? Just a few weeks ago, we spent 3-5pm with 3rd-5th graders teaching them how use THEIR Bibles at an event we call American Ninja Warrior: Bible Edition. Cut strips of white, twin, flat sheet became our name tags so students tied them on their foreheads ninja-style and we got started.

The most important areas we wished to address were: Genesis 1:1 & John 1:1, Creation, Torah, 10 Commandments, Gospels, Disciples, Greatest Commandment, Paul & Timothy (letters), Lord’s Prayer/23 Psalm, Parables, Revelation, Shema.  Check it out!

Using a Rainbow Bookmark – As followers of Jesus, we are people of THE BOOK…the Bible. 2 sections, 66 books. Testament – covenant – promise. Asking the question: What is the Bible? We pre-made 1/4 inch ribbon bookmarks knotted at the top to be placed in different places in their bibles as a large group:

• black=Table of Contents;
• red=Genesis, the first book in the Old Testament;
• orange=Joshua, the first history book in the Old Testament;
• yellow=Psalms, the 2nd poetry book in our Bible;
• green=Isaiah, the first prophet book in our Bible;
• blue=Matthew, the first Gospel book in our Bible;
• purple=to mark Romans, the first letter book in our Bible.

1. Quintuple Steps

SAY – “How did the Bible come to be?”

PLAY – the Telephone Game = an example of the ‘oral tradition’

“The Bible is divided into 2 sections:  the Old and New Testaments.  It was written over a period of over 1600 years.  The word “Bible” comes from the Greek word biblia, which means “little books.” In all there are sixty-six “little books” in the Bible, 39 in the Old Testament (old promise/covenant) and 27 in the New Testament (new promise/covenant).”

• Have one student look up Genesis 1:1 and read it aloud.
• In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
• Ask another student to look up John 1:1 and read it aloud.
• In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

“We are SO fortunate to have the Bible and the words written down for us.  The early people had to memorize it.  Those who were young, memorized the Torah, the first five books of the Bible (show them).  Once they got to High School, they memorized up through the Psalms and if they were going to be a Spiritual leader or Rabbi, they had to memorize the entire Old Testament!”

Activity:

Have the students jump from one platform to the other, saying the Scriptures. Each student should go through twice so that they can recite each verse.  (It is probably best if the whole group says it together as each student goes through.  That way, they will memorize both verses.  Help be loud and lead the way, especially for the first few times.)

2. Agility Ladder– Creation – Have students find and mark Genesis 1:1

This verse tells us who the Bible is about.

We serve a God of order & systems. (solar system, patterns in pine cones, spring/summer/fall/winter, day/night/day/night, birth/getting old, etc.) Ask kids “what else?”

Make a creation trail mix to save for later for snack and used an agility ladder to run through the 7 days of creation in order.

Day1         God created the light and the dark (oreo cereal)

Day 2        God separated the water on the top from the water on the bottom. The top was sky, and the bottom was ground (Frosted Mini-Wheats cereal for the clouds and the ground)

Day 3        God made the green grass, the trees, and the flowers (stick pretzels). God also made the fruit and berries (raisins.) “God made food before he made animals that would need the food. Our God is SO WISE.”

Day 4        God created the sun and the moon and the stars (yellow M&M candies; Cheerios)

Day 5        God made the birds and the fish (Goldfish)

Day 6        God made man and woman and all the animals that walk on the ground (animal cookies)

Day 7        God rested on the seventh day (marshmallow pillows)

Joke: Where does the Bible talk about baseball? Genesis 1:1 “In the big-inning.” Then back to the bible study tables.

3. Flip the Tires:

The first five books of the Old Testament are called the Penteteuch. “Pente” means “five” and “teuch” means “books”.  The first five books of the Old Testament are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy.  This is also call THE TORAH.

Was originally written on scrolls (rolled up paper) that were found in jars.

Activity:

Have half of the students on one side and half on the other. Have them flip each of the five tires, while saying the first five books of the Old Testament.

4. Stepping Stones

“The Ten Commandments are found in both Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5. Today, we are going to learn the Ten Commandments as we jump from stone to stone on one foot. Say the commandment as you go.  Remember that you have 10 fingers so you can transfer this to everyday life by looking down at your hands and reciting the Ten Commandments later.”

#1       God first

#2       Don’t bow down to idols

#3       Don’t use the Lord’s name in vain (misuse the Lord’s name)

#4       Remember the Sabbath & keep it holy

#5       Honor your Father & Mother

#6       Don’t murder/kill

#7       Don’t commit adultery (keep your marriage promises)

#8       Don’t steal (don’t take what is not yours)

#9       Don’t bear false witness (don’t speak ugly about others)

#10     Don’t covet (don’t want what is not meant for you)

5. TIps: Share the Good News

The Gospels are the first 4 books of the New Testament: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Gospel = good news

Ask, “What is the good news?” That Jesus came from heaven to save us and reconcile (make us right) with God.

Get in pairs and throw a ball back and forth. Do this four times, saying the Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

6. Hula Hoops:

Have a student find & read: Matthew 10:2-4 (NIV)

^“ These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; ³ Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; ⁴ Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.”

Set up four hoola hoops and ask each student hula hoop to hula hoop while saying as many names as possible.

Ask: What did Jesus do before He called/decided on these guys? (He prayed)

Simon Peter

Andrew

James

John

Philip

Bartholomew

Thomas, the twin

Matthew

James, the lesser

Judas Iscariot

Thaddaeus

Simon, the zealot

Matthias (replaced Judas Iscariot)

7. Cornhole: The Great Commandment

Have the students look up:  Mathew 22:36-40

“You shall love the Lord with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might. YOU shall love the Lord with all your mind and your neighbor as yourself, UMPH!” (We chant it like a cheer).

8. Pass the Torch: Paul and Timothy

Have the students look up and read aloud: 2 Timothy 3:16-17

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NIV)

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so ^so that the servant of God^[a]may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Create two lines and have a relay, carrying a pool noodle with a plastic cup taped to top of pool noodle filled with marshmallows.  If they spill it, they must pick up the marshmallows and start over from the starting line.

9. Balance Beams – Walk the Plank

Look up Luke 11:1-4  The Lord’s Prayer

Look up Psalm 23  A Prayer of David

Discuss the many aspects of prayer (music, journaling, WITH, breath prayers, hand prayers, and silence.)

Activity: Walk the Plank in silence….everyone is silent…silent prayer walk.

Examples of how to pray…

WITH = What makes you want to tell God, “WOW!”

What do you wish to tell God, “I’m sorry.”

What do you want to THANK God for?

What do you need HELP with?

In between each one, repeat, “Thank you, Lord, that you are with me.”

Take a deep breath before each one.

Breath Prayer = Jesus, Be My Rock

Jesus (breathe in), Be my rock (breathe out)

Hand Prayers for Intercession (prayer for people)

Thumb – Those closest to me

Index  finger – those who teach me

Middle finger – those who are “over’ me (in authority)

Ring finger – those who are sick (weakest finger that can’t stay up on it’s own.)

Pinkie – yourself

10. Drag a Tire – Parables

Parables=stories that did not really happen, but that best tell a point Jesus wants us to know.

Have students look up Luke 10:25-37: Parable of the Good Samaritan

Discussion:   Who is your neighbor?

God wants us to help others, even if it’s a heavy load.

Pull the heavy tires across a long space.

11. Stack the tires – How does it end? With a new beginning!

Have the students look up Revelation 22:1-5

Say, “Jesus is coming back.”

Ask, “What would Jesus find you doing?” “Where would Jesus find you?”

Discuss: We are supposed to be growing in our knowledge of God and more and more like Jesus, though in this world. Once we learn one thing, we learn the next, and the next. Our growing in wisdom and knowledge of God stacks like these tires.

Ask, “How do we do we grow in the knowledge of god and more like Jesus?”

Stack the remaining tires one on top of another.

12. Medals: The Shema and Spiritual Discipline of taking 5 minutes each day to read the Bible and 5 minutes in prayer every day (even Sundays!) TAKE 5

Have everyone find and read:

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 (NIV)

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.^[a] 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.  These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.  Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.  Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

Ask: How will you plan to Take 5 every day? 5 minutes reading the Bible and 5 minutes in silent prayer.

The first event looked like this. Each time, we tweak to make the experience better for the students and better for the leaders. And each time we offer this event I remember why I LOVE it!

“All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16

What do we do after handing out a slew of new Bibles to 3rd-5th graders? We schedule a late night (6:30-9:30pm) on the following Friday for 3rd-5th graders to learn to use this new gift. Using the hugely popular tv show American Ninja Warrior as our theme, we set up bible and physical challenges that go together. Brainstorming for this event with another kidmin champion made for an awesome night.  The plan was to have it outside, but a rainstorm called for plan B – our gym.

Students were instructed to wear red, white, and blue, bring a towel (to lay on during the silence time), bring a bible (that’s why we’re here, but have some student bibles handy just in case someone forgets), bring a water bottle (the kids got thirsty quick), and use free Event Bright registration for signups (this made for quick notification emails of the change in venue and intake location).

Arrival activity: let students write names on headbands with a sharpie or a name tag for those who wore their own headbands, and lots of jump ropes.

Introduce the gathering attention chant with a leader saying, “The B-I-B-L-E” and the students respond “that’s the book for me.”

Using a Rainbow Bookmark – As followers of Jesus, we are people of THE BOOK…the Bible. 2 sections, 66 books. Testament – covenant – promise. Asking the question: What is the Bible? We pre-made 1/4 inch ribbon bookmarks knotted at the top to be placed in different places in their bibles as a large group:

• black=Table of Contents;
• red=Genesis, the first book in the Old Testament;
• orange=Joshua, the first history book in the Old Testament;
• yellow=Psalms, the 2nd poetry book in our Bible;
• green=Isaiah, the first prophet book in our Bible;
• blue=Matthew, the first Gospel book in our Bible;
• purple=to mark Romans, the first letter book in our Bible.

Quintuple Steps – Discussion and overview of the Bible. How did the Bible come to be? Play the telephone game (oral tradition).  The story of the Bible is about God and how God acted in people’s lives then and now.   Run the Quintuple side steps without touching the ground.

Agility Ladder – Creation – Genesis 1…We serve a God of order & systems. We made a creation trail mix to save for later for snack and used an agility ladder to run through the 7 days of creation in order. Joke: Where does the Bible talk about baseball? Genesis 1:1 “In the big-inning.” Then back to the bible study tables.

Flip the Tire – The Torah is the first 5 books of the Bible. Was originally written on scrolls (rolled up paper). Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. Flip the tire 5 times and say the books that make up the Torah.

Over Under PVC Hurdles – God gave His people the 10 Commandments to live well with one another. Look up in Exodus 20 & Deuteronomy 5. Run under the pvc hurdles for the ‘do’ commandments and over the pvc hurdles for the ‘don’t’ commandments. Then speak loudly reading the commandments from a 10 commandment poster taped to the wall.

King of the Mountain – Look up the 4 gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. Step from stump to stump without falling off.

Hula Hoops – Look up Matthew 10:2-4 and discover the 12 disciples. 4 stations of hula hoops. Jump through each hoop 3 times each saying the disciples/apostle’s names.

Bean Bag Toss – Look up Matthew 22:36-40 to discover The Greatest Commandment. Toss a bean bag into a Rubbermaid bin saying, “YOU shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,with all your soul, and with all your might. YOU shall love the Lord with all your mind and your neighbor as yourself, UMPH!”

Pass the Torch – Gotta have some water, right? Look up 2 Timothy 3:16-17 and discover the relationship between Paul and Timothy. Pass or carry a halved pool noodle with a cup taped to the end filled with water to another bucket. (We were not able to do this being inside, but the plan was there.)

Walking the Plank – Look up  Luke 11:1-4 The Lord’s Prayer. We’ll discuss the many aspects of prayer using a gift from Mark Burrows, the Children’s Ministry Lead at FUMC of Ft Worth, WITH (Wow, God….I’m sorry, God….Thank you, God…Help me/another, God), then a 10 minute period of silence. Walking raised lengths of wood for balance beams.

Silence – At some point on the course have a rest time for a period of silence (10-15 minutes, depending on time) to eat the trail mix and a cold Powerade on their towels spread throughout the space.

Drag A Tire – Look up the Parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37 and discuss who is my neighbor. Drag a tire with a rim by rope across a long space.

Perform Sword Drills for a whole host of things. (We did not have time for this, but we were ready just in case we did.)

Closed out the evening with awards of “Take 5” candy bars on 1/4 inch ribbons as we discuss taking 5 minutes each day to read the bible and pray.

My kidmin brainstorming partner’s husband came to pick up at night’s end. They have scheduled their American Ninja Warrior: Bible Edition late night at her local church in two weeks. With the help of parents and some gracious 5th grade boys, we had everything except the largest quad step packed in the van and ready to go within 20 minutes.  Most everything will be returned for next year’s event, because this turned out even better than I imagined. When parents arrived for pickup, they were able to watch their students ‘run the course.’

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” Hebrews 12:1

We offer faith milestones for littles with a big-who-loves-them to make for a sticky faith memory with some accountability as a platform to teach the holy habits of growing our faith in Jesus. Most are 45 minutes long. Most include a teaching, a practicable interactive element, takeaways, a certificate, and a class photo. Most, especially the Communion and Baptism milestones, will include a collaborating clergy. If offered as a workshop, we begin by lighting an LED pillar candle and repeating, “We light this candle….as a symbol…of God’s presence with us…and around us.”

The schedule looks like this:

K5 – I Can Go To Sunday School (August) … A meet and greet with tour into McEachern Kids (K5-5th grade) the Sunday prior to Promotion Sunday especially for rising kindergartners led by the Ambassadors

K5 & 1st – I Can Receive Communion: Bread & Juice Class (Sept) …. Holy Communion 

1st & 2nd – I Can Pray (February) … Prayer stations with takeaway tools to use at home

2nd & 3rd – I Can Love My Church (Nov) … Group treasure hunt to locations throughout campus and learning vocabulary like narthex, pew, along with local church history

3rd-5th – I Can Serve (August) … Acolyte training

3rd-5th – I Can Follow Jesus: Baptism (March) NEW

4th & 5th – I Can Lead: Ambassadors (August) … Leadership Training 5-7pm w/dinner

4th & 5th – Road Trip Retreat (March) … Fri-Sun shared event with other local churches retreat at local state park (alternate Ambassadors Road Trip and Disciples Road Trip)

5th grade – Moving On Up to Middle School (March) … begin transition to youth group

5th & 6th – Wonderfully Made: Loved By God (January) … Human Sexuality & Jesus w/parents; 3 days

K5-5th – I Can Worship With My Family – various worship services with intentional teaching of worship elements specific to our denomination and honoring of our local church

K5-5th – I Can Go On A Mission Trip: Family Mission Trip (July) NEW

I started these years ago to make special for families a time/place for intentional teaching and practice what I considered the most important practices of our faith in Jesus. I chose these elements since they were practices of Jesus. Each year we edit to excellence with shared language and interactive elements. I started with three in the first year.

As a great number of new families are moving into our state and into our community, offering these faith milestones help us…
1. Find common language with those new to the faith and new to our part of the country/world with shared experiences with new friends-in-the-Lord. Moving from other parts of the country/world, these experiences practice our commonalities and give space for sacred conversations.
2. Give the littles and their bigs access to the spiritual leaders in our church Teaching for a little and a big-who-loves-them, the big learns alongside their little, removing the anxiety which could be part of joining a new faith community. Young parents today are looking for integrity and truth in their spiritual leaders. Faith milestones give space to begin and grow those relationships.
3. Remove the expectation that a robust faith in Jesus will be ‘caught’. Faith milestones give intentional space for developmentally appropriate faith formation family experiences. This generation of bigs of our littles want to learn alongside their children. Faith milestones sets the table for bigs to be the spiritual heroes in their little’s lives.

Want to take it a step further? Blessing of a driver’s license, Confirmation, Bible Ninja Warrior, first job, biblical finance, etc. You get the idea. I’m responsible for K5-5th grades, but so much more could be accomplished if shared throughout for 0-26yo.

How could you set a table for faith milestones in your church family?

“My feet have closely followed his steps; I have kept to his way without turning aside.” Job 23:11

Christian educators are everywhere and it thrills me to spend time face-to-face and across the table with folks from other parts of the country. I was invited to Minnesota to share ideas to get some creative conversations to take place. Totally in my element and among friends, I walked through our discipleship plan for K5-5th graders of Meat, Milestones, Mountaintop, and Marvelous Moments. Each of these four Ms are laced with Bible reading, generosity, and serving elements. Why? Because of all the spiritual disciplines we practice as followers of Jesus, research tells us that these are the three that cause us to make strides in spiritual maturity. (Ken Willard, “STRIDE”) I want to be about making strides and moving beyond baby steps in building the faith of little people. Oh we include other spiritual disciplines in our teachings, but these three take priority in our filter for what makes a true partnership with families.

Partnering with families means we only offer what is excellent, not filling up the calendar, offering low-hanging fruit and easy wins for parents in the eyes of their kids, and Jesus in everything we do.

Meat elements – That which happens on Sundays. It’s our bread and butter. It’s what we’re known for. Sunday school, Childrens’ Church, CLUB345, Ambassadors, Parenting with a Purpose, and I’m currently working on Grandparenting with a Purpose. The average age of a new grandparent in the USA is 47 years old. This is a whole area and season of ministry that I’m deep-diving into right now.

Milestones – Those intentional teaching moments that are developmentally appropriate for specific ages/grades which are foundational to building a relationship with Jesus in the local church and at home. Holy Communion (Bread and Juice), Prayer (I Can Pray), Church language (I Love My Church), Wonderfully Made (faith and sexuality education), Moving On Up to Middle School, transitioning from nursery to children’s ministry.

Mountaintop – These are those full-on-sharing-the-gospel-experiences like VBS, retreats, and Ambassadors.

Marvelous Moments – These are the one-offs, the once-a-year or once-every-two-years specials which are invitational for next steps in discipleship including shared events like Faith Field Trips, Winter Ball Invitational, Splish Splash, Messy Church, Bible Ninja Warrior, etc.

Each local church has a culture and sustains a community, so how do you choose what might be a successful marvelous moment? (1) Dashboard research, and (2) lots of personal conversations.

Dashboard research requires a drive around the community at different hours of the day to find out what businesses are plentiful, what are the traffic patterns, how far will people drive to remain in the community, and find out what other ministries are already available by checking out online the closest churches to your church.

Engage in personal conversations asking questions of the connector folks in your church, but also the locals: grocery story clerk, the deli clerk, the coffee shop barista, the UPS store, the dry cleaners, librarian. Ask questions about what evening nothing is happening (when), when do the school buses run (start time), when do your kids have to go to bed on a school night (end time), what tv shows do you like (themes), where do you go out to eat (favorite foods), where do they go to church (tell me about your church), extracurricular activities (over scheduling is not partnering with parents, but rather burdening families), where does the local school need volunteers (outside service), and the possibility of fee-based ministry outside of Sundays and Wednesdays (recreation, fine arts, music, tutoring, relationship-building).

With the knowledge that people are always interested in new things and meeting new people, shoot some bullets before you shoot cannonballs. (Jim Collins from “Good to Great”) Try something based on your dashboard research AND your personal conversations with a specific goal in mind and JUST DO IT! Give yourself lots of grace and an understanding that you are in it for the long haul. Gather a partner or two to share in the labor because as we labor and serve together, there’s a lot of laughter. And we all need more laughter in ministry.

I woke on presentation day in Minnesota with the temperature of -11 degrees. Yeah…11 degrees below zero! But inside the home of my hostess and the church where I met these amazing Christian Educators, was the warmth of the Holy Spirit on fire for sharing Jesus with little people. Thank you Minnesota CEF for the lovely invite and your amazing hospitality.

“Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still; teach the righteous and they will add to their learning.” Proverbs 9:9

Reading Rethink Communication: A Playbook to Clarify and Communicate Everything In Your Church, author Phil Bowdle shares the following:

“The basic foundation of most churches has not changed dramatically. The average church is built around worship services, children’s ministry, student ministry, Sunday school or small groups, and ministry events. So what’s changed? It’s the people.”

He then quotes Dave Adamson, “Church attendance is not decreasing, it’s decentralizing.” BECAUSE, according to http://www.socialmediatoday.com, “The average person who attends your church may only physically attend eight to ten times a year. The average person your church is trying to engage with is on social media 116 minutes a day.” 

Breathe. Really. Just breathe.

Phil Bowdle was interviewed on the MyCom Church Marketing Podcast of March 12. He shared his dad was a United Methodist pastor, his mom served as a leader in Children’s Ministry. He didn’t just grow up in the church. His parents had keys! Phil serves today as the Creative Arts Pastor at West Ridge Church in Northwest Atlanta. I ordered the book before the podcast ended.

Jesus’ Great Commission to us as His followers is to ‘make disciples of Jesus Christ’ or in other translations, ‘go and teach’. We can only do that through engaging people in discipleship as they live their lives every day of the week. We MUST prepare and plan to engage people as they are inside the house AND outside the house.

So where do we start? Phil writes that many churches exist in the ‘chaos cycle.’ Two of the many symptoms of the ‘chaos cycle’ would be ‘reactive workflow instead of proactive planning’ and ‘everything comes together at the last minute.’ To break out of the ‘chaos cycle’ Phil suggests and outlines six plays to effectively communicate our message. Play #1: Clarify your message.

In clarifying your message, we ask ourselves three great questions:
1. Who is your target audience?
2. What’s the win for your message?
3. What are the barriers to your message?

I’ve spent the last week contemplating and talking about and to my target audience as we prepare to plan and promote a new monthly ministry to students in 3rd-5th grade next fall. I surveyed our 2nd-5th graders on Palm Sunday as they were waiting their class’ turn to move through the Easter Story Stone Stations after the traditional palm processional. Why? I no longer have a 2nd-5th grader living their everyday in my home and I don’t want to make assumptions.

The information gathered was surprisingly delightful, and so helpful. The questions we asked are below:
1. Top 2 shows you like to watch
2. Top 2 outside-of-school activities do you like to play
3. Top 2 sports you like to watch
4. Top 2 people in your life
5. Top 2 people you’d like to hang out with (past or present people)
6. Top 2 restaurants where you like to eat
7. Top 2 family traditions
8. Top 2 favorite colors
9. Top 2 things you like about church
10. Top 2 things you like about school
11. Top 2 things you like about Jesus
12. Top 2 things you like about your family
13. Top 2 people you like to talk to when you have a problem
14. Top 2 friends you have at church
15. Top 2 church leaders you know
16. Top 2 times when you like to pray
17. Top 2 times when you read your Bible
18. Top 2 songs you like to sing
19. What do you or have you participated in at church since you’ve been at McEachern? (circle all that apply)
Sunday School / Vacation Bible School / Ambassadors / Messy Family Lent / Messy Family Christmas / Acolytes / Winter Ball / Gaga Ball Pit / Christmas Caroling / Trip to Bethlehem / Ultimate Camp / Princess Class / Knights Class / Splish Splash / Tour of Nativities / Day Away at Ms. DeDe’s / Bible Ninja Warrior / Summer Special Sundays / Camp Glisson / Wonderfully Made / Faith Field Trips–Paddle Board, Puppets, Hiking, Movies / Recreation-Soccer, Basketball, etc. / McEachern Preschool

Next, I will work with our team to determine the win. Then, we address the barriers. This book is a practical playbook on communicating your message. Do I dare prepare a ‘next steps’ plan of discipleship for each age level based on this information? You bet I do!

“And again, ‘I will put my trust in him.’ And again he says, ‘Here am I, and the children God has given me.” Hebrews 2:13

Faith Milestones are those moments in time when we can stop to say, “This skill is important for me to learn and understand to continue to grow in my faith in Jesus Christ.” Celebrating these specific faith milestones helps bring an awareness of God’s presence into our homes and highlights the rituals of daily faith formation experiences shared by the family of faith. Just as learning to tie shoe laces, learning to pump your legs on the swing, riding a bike without training wheels, and learning to drive, milestones give us the confidence to say, “This is important and I can do this!”

For 2018, this is the schedule:

January – I Can Pray (1st grade) 1/17 5-6:30pm
Engaging children and families to grow in relationship with Jesus through various prayer practices. Establishing prayer as a normal part of a family’s daily routine and tradition for passing on and experiencing the Christian faith.

February – 5th Grade Rock Solid Retreat (5th grade) 2/3-4
Outdoor ministry is a memorable, formative, and vital part of a child’s faith journey. The experience of going away to camp can renew and enhance spiritual growth.

February – I Love My Church (2nd grade) 2/28 5-6:30pm
Families are invited to come for this special event where they tour the church, learn more about things like baptismal fonts, Bibles, Sunday School rooms, and choir. Memories are created reminding your child of this special place where they hear God’s promises and learn to live and love like Jesus.

March – Bible Ninja Warrior (3rd-5th grade) 3/18 3-5pm
Learn how to use your Bible with the skills of a Ninja, both physically and mentally. At each station resembling the TV show American Ninja Warrior, students will learn the basics of studying the Bible as part of every day, thus building their spiritual muscles as a follower of Jesus.

Princesses of the King 3rd-5th grade Friday 3/23 7-9:30pm Secret Keeper Girl Mother & Daughter Conference @ FBC Woodstock

May – I Can Serve (graduating 5th graders & middle school youth) 5/16 5-6:30pm
Graduating 5th graders, as well as middle school youth) can serve as co-leaders in VBS after learning how to lead and serve our smallest disciples. Students will learn Safe Sanctuary guidelines and appropriate child care-giver systems.

July – Day of Service Retreat With Ms. DeDe (rising 5th & 6th) 7/17 10am-5pm Ambassadors will prepare spaces and supplies for fall children’s ministry programming and last week of summer kid’s camp happening the following week along with fun, fellowship, and learning what the Bible says about being a true blue friend.

July – I Can Go To Sunday School (K4) 7/29 12:15pm-1pm
A special time to welcome preschoolers and their families to Sunday school. This meet and greet event includes hearing a Bible story in The TreeHouse, singing songs, and meeting Sunday school teachers.

August – Blessing of the Backpacks (all K5-5th grade)
Wear your backpack to the Children’s Message at any of the worship services and receive a special blessing as the new school year begins.

September – Fall Camp Glisson Retreat (3rd-5th grade)
Outdoor ministry is a memorable, formative, and vital part of a child’s faith journey. The experience of going away to camp can renew and enhance spiritual growth. Students will attend overnight camp from Friday pm through Sunday midday with other students from North Georgia Conference local churches.

October – Bread & Juice Class (K5 & 1st grade) 10/10 5-6:30pm
Learn the how and why we say, “Yes!” to Jesus as He invites us to the table as his friends for Holy Communion.

November – Ambassadors (4th-5th grade) 11/7 5-6:30pm
Students are offered an opportunity to take on various leadership roles in the year to come. Expectations and learning to serve using their gifts and graces in their home church and in the world.

What else would you add?

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2

Catching up at a wedding with a fellow preschool teacher from way back, she let me know that she has retired. When I asked her when she knew it was time, she responded, “I knew it was time to retire when I didn’t want to learn anything new.”

Alrighty, then! If that’s the benchmark, I am SO not anywhere near there.

I learned so much in 2018 from a whole host of platforms. Let me share with you my Top 3 of 2018 from 3 go-to platforms that has changed who I started as in January into who I am at the end of 2018. They each essentially rocked my world!

Podcasts

The Sustainable Ministry Show presented by Ministry Architects – all about processes for everyone serving on staff in a local church from budgeting to major event notebooks to pruning ministry and more. This is for ANY ministry!

MyCom Church Marketing Podcast presented by United Methodist Communications – all about marking your ministry inside and outside your local church; ideas for ‘throwing seed’ to reach communities. Be intentional about working smarter, not harder. And short!

Set Apart Girl podcast by Leslie Ludy – this Jesus gal needs the words of wisdom from missionaries, saints of the faith, and the scriptures. I was introduced to Leslie Ludy as an author when my now-adult daughter was in high school and she is the real deal.

Books

Sustainable Children’s Ministry – for this ‘people and process’ girl, Annette Safstrom and Mark DeVries lay out in one place how to set up sustainable systems beneath the unforgettable moments of children’s ministry.

Irresistible – Andy Stanley presents a history of the Bible and how we got it for the sole purpose of reclaiming the ‘new’ in the New Testament. The people of God serve a ‘mobile, inhabiting, Spirit God’…think tabernacle, not temple…and that’s just the beginning! Still chewing on this one.

Messy Church – Lucy Moore puts forth a goal of building a fresh expression of community rather than accomplishing tasks in discipleship for the little people and families in the ministry I lead.  McEachern Kid’s Messy Family Christmas is the direct result of how that would look in the local church I serve. More to come on this one especially on 2019’s upcoming fifth Sundays.

People

McEachern Kids Servant-Leader Team –The joy of the Lord has a gravity all its own. The team of Jesus Guys & Gals who invite me into their lives to do the work of ministry with joy and wonder make my eyes tear up and my chin quiver. These are prayerful, hard-working, hilarious, sold-out disciples of Jesus! Jesus never sent out His disciples to ‘do the work’ one at a time, but two, three, and up to 70. And OH, the stories! A year under my belt at McEachern and I am as excited for what God has in store for us together as I was when I answered the call into professional ministry more than 20 years ago.

Staff-Parish Relations & My Senior Pastor – The epitome of folks buying into the vision you bring to the table is to offer assistance in ramping it up. Beginning in January, McEachern Kids will be blessed with the Marvelous Ms. Misty for 15-20 hours each week. Praying for ‘more’, then letting the Lord decide what ‘more’ looks like for the last 8 months. The support of a senior pastor and the staff-parish relations team can make or break your spirit of, “Yes!”. I pray for them. They pray for me. We don’t serve for ‘atta-girls’, but to be heard, encouraged, and equipped by the SP & SPR can give strength when you’re weary and courage when you’re…well, not courageous.

Atlanta-Marietta District Children’s Ministry Networking Group – We’ve met monthly for almost 20 years. Some of the faces have changed, but they feed my soul, make me laugh my head off, talk me off my ledge of crazy, and throw seed (think parable of the Seed & the Sower) like confetti. Kate and I went to the Holy Lands in February with Jesus action figures and started Faith Field Trips last summer. We’ve already met to plan Summer 2019. Sarah is the best story-teller and we connect in mini-meetings at Annual Conference like the true extroverts we are in our little corner of the auditorium. Kelly will be leading our first Wonderfully Made faith and sexuality event for the 5^th & 6^th graders in our district which I get to host. One is a super volunteer who brings her broken heart until she heals well enough to dock at a new port. Been there. Done that. Rebecca came to networking lunch on her first day back from maternity leave, and we ALL know what her office and in-box must look like. Michelle just started on church staff three months ago.

What are you reading? Who are you listening to? Who are your people?

“You will be the same person in five years as you are today except for the people you meet and the books you read.” Charlie Tremendous Jones

Inviting 4th and 5th graders to take on leadership tasks is exciting. For them and for me. Training young people to serve and giving them regular practice opportunities builds a culture of service and education. The first Ambassador Class included an invite to all 5th graders and a few 4th graders I knew were ready for the challenge. This year I sent personal invites with follow up emails to all 4th graders and 5th graders and let them make the choice. The first class were all girls. This second class included boys who have since been showing up early on Sunday mornings to take on the setup tasks and they aren’t even scheduled. These students are ready to put their faith into action and I am thrilled to let them know their home church is putting its faith in them to begin taking on places of leadership. The following blog appeared in the fall of 2017 giving all the details. This year we added Tech Ninja training for the sound booth.  What else would you add to your Ambassador Team?

Got the small group of kids who are ready for more? Faithful to Sunday school attendance, but talk about more? Those who take on more than the bare minimums and their families are all-in…would even venture to say some of their parents might even have keys to the building? That’s why we started the Ambassadors.

My bucket of responsibility is Kindergarten through 5th grade. Preparing beautiful postcard invitations from vistaprint.com, invitations were sent to all fifth graders on the rolls. Since I observed leadership skills in some fourth graders in Sunday school, specific invites went to them, as well. 

This was the plan:

5-5:30pm Pizza & Chat Dinner (some parents have quite a commute, so we allowed for traffic time)
Visual Faith Project images: Choose an image that represents a part of your life (a representative) and discussed during Pizza & Chat

“We are Christ’s ambassadors.” 2 Corinthians 5:20

5:30-6:30pm Welcome, Prayer, Game
What is an Ambassador?
Tour of the Children’s Ministry space; tech booth & kiosk training; fill-in-the-blank worksheet; respond on a large post it note

Ambassador – one of the best positions to meet new people and have fun; grow our communication skills (helps you get your ideas heard); leadership) … ambassador…representative…an example…aka a person chosen or appointed to act or speak for another

Tour and walk through the Sunday Morning Setup – carts, check-in kiosks, water, cups, snack, supplies, all classrooms, tech booth, storage, greeting practice

A – Arrive 30 minutes early to assignments (plenty of time to be ready)
M – Mature/Can be trusted (dependable, punctual, enthusiastic without craziness, positive attitude/no complaining)
B – Bible readers (we pour out what we take in; are you reading your Bible regularly and attending weekly Sunday school?)
A – Assist those in our area in a spirit of hospitality (kindness to a stranger) (Hi!, offers hand outs at end of services)
S – Smile (let’s others know you want to be here; makes the best impression on guests and those having a hard time)
S – Set up on Sundays, Tour of the Nativities, special events, weekly guest greeters
A – Assist in the K5 & 1st grade Sunday school classrooms and special events as needed
D – Dress appropriately for the event (flip flops; awards ceremony/representatives; brush your teeth, gum chewing; sneakers; clean)
O – Open the doors…of conversation, of encouragement, and the real doors, too.
R – Respond quickly with kindness; be aware of your surroundings and others

Roles for Ambassadors 1. Partner with kid guests (weekly)
2. Tour of the Nativities (tour guide)
3. Greet & serve new guests and at special events and weekly
4. Set up on Sunday mornings (weekly rotation)
5. Assist in K5 & 1st grade Sunday school (as needed)

The students were asked to consider if they wished to take on such responsibilities at the end of the orientation. If so, they were invited to write their names on the large post-it-note on the wall. They were eager and asked good questions. “Do we have to smile the whole time? My mouth might start to hurt.” (Man! I love these kids!)

The first Sunday following the Ambassador Orientation, many of the Sunday morning tasks were taken on by the Ambassadors without my even knowing it until I saw certain things already taken care of throughout the morning. Leadership opportunities are part of what every student should be able to experience in their home/local church. Jesus believes in them and I want them to know that their church family believes in them, too.

“Building the habit of service at a young age tends to alter the attitudes and expectations of young people, resulting in a lifelong practice of helping others. The younger we instill such a mind-set and lifestyle, the more ingrained they become.” George Barna from Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions: Why Children Should Be Your Church’s #1 Priority, page 74

We get the first full week of the summer with Vacation Bible School AND the last week of the summer in our community at Ultimate Summer Camp. We are the only game in town that last week of the summer (or so we’re told) and we rock the event inhouse for 4 year olds through rising 6th graders. The directors of our Recreation Ministry and Youth Ministry take the lead for the 1st-5th graders. A fabulous Weekday Preschool teacher takes the point for the littles. We hire staff, we enlist volunteers, and we wear the kids out!

Each day was themed with a popular reality television show, began with free play, then to chapel with the day’s message which roped through the entire day. The week’s Bible theme: 1 Corinthians 10:31 “Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”  These are just a few of the highlights of each day:

Monday theme: Amazing Race

Chapel: Hebrews 12 – God had a race set out for Jesus; God has a race set out for each of us.

Activities: Races, scavenger hunts all over campus, Science Lady (fellow kidmin champion) came with race and motion activities, staff spoke of their many nationalities from around the globe, Gaga ball, Dodge ball.

Tuesday theme: Top Chef

Chapel: Luke 22 – Just as we take individual, ordinary items in a recipe to make something amazing, Jesus did the same with bread and juice.

Activities: Decorated ice cream sundaes (littles) and baby cakes (bigs), outdoor waterslide, made edible playdoh, taste test skills.

Wednesday theme: Fear Factor

Chapel: Matthew 14 – When we are afraid, we can pray. God hears our prayers. Immediately Jesus responds because Jesus is always with us.

Activities: Greased watermelon wrestling which led to watermelon smearing fun, race to eat and finish unknown foods, races with friends attached with jelly & marshmallows, finding gummy worms in whipped cream without hands, cup spill (100 cups filled half with nothing, half with ‘stuff’; student chooses a number and that cup gets dumped on their head).

Thursday theme: Little Big Shots

Chapel: We all have gifts, but only ONE God raised from the dead and is alive today. Only place where ‘incredible’ is noted in the scriptures is Acts 26:8.

Activities: Talent show by group, Big Screen dance off, child-directed art, shaving cream, Talent show by individuals. (The Greatest Showman was HIGHLY featured here by the students.)

Friday theme: American Ninja Warrior

Chapel: 1 Corinthians 10:31 There’s always another course and we are in training. American Ninja Warriors train in a gym. We celebrated the end of a course a few months ago, then we rested. But now we begin a new course, a new school year and we must be in training to follow Jesus all the time. As followers of Jesus, we train at church. Be sure to come to church and gather with other kids who love Jesus because there will always be challenges along the way.

Activities: Science lady returns with 15 science stations, Staff Sargent Marine came to lead conditioning drills and martial arts skills, Ninja Warrior obstacle course.

With a closed Facebook group, we ran Facebook Live videos on the last 3 days…. which gave us a huge boost in families joining the closed group…which means our kids’ stuff is now running in those families’ Facebook feeds. Winner-winner-chicken-dinner!

Followup: Families invited to Promotion Sunday’s Pop Into Sunday School by email, word of mouth, and social media with bubble wrapped hallways, tootsie pops, ring pops, and pop-rocks in the parent packets AND an afternoon old-fashioned pot-luck with a couple of water slides for kids to get wet 3-5pm after all our services are completed for the day. Bring your own chair, tent, and enough food for your family and plenty to share.

“Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise His holy name.” Psalm 103:1

I love Vacation Bible School for a whole host of reasons: training youth, sharing the gospel with little people, dancing before the Lord, and having amazing conversations with folks. You know those wonderful conversations with folks who probably don’t need new friends, but I want to be friends with.

• Conversations with those who might attend a different service.
• Conversations with those who I can’t get to know from a handshake and a ‘peace be with you’ before the Children’s Moment on Sunday mornings.
• Conversations with young people who see VBS as training and take instruction without offense.
• Conversations with little people who want access to me so I can tell each one he/she belongs here.
• Conversations with fifth graders who are invited to watch and learn everyone they meet this week so they know who’s job they want next year if they want to serve.

This is better than a survey.

From the conversations that took place this year…

• I discovered who is on the hospitality committee for the local neighborhoods.
• I discovered new families are moving in with younger and younger little people…..so we’re talking about planning a preschool club to get those relationships started.
• I discovered there will be a Cotillion offered for local 5th graders and since it’s happening in October, I can schedule accordingly.
• I discovered my 5th grade boys are already telling me what jobs they want next year in VBS leadership.
• I discovered our high school seniors were handing over the reins to their younger counterparts for a smooth baton hand-off for next year.
• I discovered our middle school girls can change the roadside sign in no time.
• I discovered our kids preferred fresh fruit for snacks.
• I discovered our kids are inviting other kids to come and see about Jesus and church.
• I discovered Friday nights are better nights for specials for elementary kiddos for when we start a new life skills series for children’s ministry outreach in 2017 called “Wesley Chapel Academy”.
• I discovered even folks who attend the traditional service want to, and do, dance before the Lord ‘in the Sanctuary.’
• I discovered who lost their jobs over the last several weeks and who got new ones.
• I discovered there are already calendars out there for 2016-2017 with dates for local organizations and I asked for copies so as not to overwhelm my families with the church calendar.
• I discovered who has been thinking about serving on the CLUB345 Team for next year.
• I discovered our theme for the Bible Late Night this year will be “American Ninja Warrior: Wesley Chapel style” in August and started talking with the graduating youth of how to pull it off…with their help.

What VBS conversations did you have this year? What are you going to do about it?

“Give praise to the Lord, proclaim His name; make known among the nations what He has done, and proclaim that His name is exalted.” Isaiah 12:4