Just like you’d mark a child’s height on the wall or doorframe as they grow in stature, you can also set spiritual growth markers. Deuteronomy 6:4-9 gives us our marching orders to be intentional in those spiritual growth markers. When Moses proclaimed, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments (reports) that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children,” he was teaching not only the belief in one God, but also how to preserve that belief.

It’s in the home where life’s most crucial curriculum is taught. Children spend 1% of their time at church, 16% in school, but much of the remaining 83% in and around their home.

Do your kids know where your bible is? Do they know which is yours? Let them see your Bible, used, written in. This is your history with God. Do they know the story of your bible? Where did it come from? When did you get it? I asked Baby Girl why she read her bible the way she does and she told me, “Because you read the cool and exciting stories to me when I was a little girl. Now I want it for myself.”

Just as simple as setting your Bible out and letting your family see you engaged in the Holy Book, let your family see you praying. Suzanna Wesley, the mother of the founder of Methodism, John Wesley, had 13 living children. She spent every morning with the LORD and her children knew it. Each morning and several times throughout the day her children would find her with her apron pulled up over her head and they knew it was her time with the LORD. What a sight!

What does your faith look like for your kids? What are the tools they see that build your faith?

I fell in love with Jesus on the flannel board in Sunday school. Praying with our pastor in our living room, I accepted Jesus as my Savior in central Florida a week before my 10th birthday and was baptized the following Sunday. I wore a light lavendar pants suit (it was 1971, you know) and was baptized in the Caloosahatchee River that ran behind the orange grove down our street. The only further instruction I received after my baptism was to “be sure to read your bible every day.” From that time until I had my first child, I was a baby Christian.

Jesus didn’t jump off my flannel board until I was 26 years old, on September 15th, in Women’s Hospital in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The moment I delivered Baby Girl, I finally got it. He gave up His child for me! At that very moment I confessed by baby-Christian-hood and begged that Jesus would become LORD of my life . . . and LORD of her life at a very young age. 20 months later, I prayed He would become LORD of our son’s life at an early age, as well. God honored those prayers and blessed our intentionality to do all that we could to make that happen.

With the humblest of heart, Baby Girl and #1 Son were more spiritually mature at 14 and 16 than I was at 25. Why? Because they had parents involved in God’s Word daily, they were connected with a body of believers through the local church, they each had regular Sunday school teachers in Children’s Ministry, and small group leaders that were invested in their lives as young adults under the direction of Titus 2 (if you want a good chuckle, read Titus Chapter 2 to see what the church is to teach young women and what the church is to teach young men), and a Mom that had committed their lives to the One she’d been raising them for. We intentionally and purposefully made the LORD the center of our home. And you can, too.

The scriptures tell us in Deuteronomy 6:4-9 that in short…Your family is your first ministry; your children your first mission field. Over the next couple of weeks I will be offering suggestions to help you be intentional and purposeful as you commit your children’s lives to the One you are raising them for.

Check out Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and begin this month with the basics: Worship in church together every Sunday for the next month and offer a prayer of thanksgiving at EVERY meal. I can’t wait to see how God will bless your efforts.

About . . .
Ministry through Mentoring
Empower through Exhorting
Encourage through Educating

A personal board of directors that include:
Five who know me and speak truth into my personal and professional life that includes someone in their 20s and someone in their 60s.
Five who I follow through their writings, their testimony, and their expression of discipleship.

A renewed sense of direction that requires clarity, few specifics, prayer, and a “Spirit of YES.”

Just some thoughts as an “encourage through educating” season begins today with 8 training events over the next 3 weeks.

“They came round about me daily like water; they compassed me about together.” Psalm 88:17

“At midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me.” Acts 26:13

If June is Kingdom-building month through Vacation Bible School, then July is meant for “Champion Hunting.”

It is my belief and experience that the LORD places within every disciple a desire to make a difference in the world around us. It is also my belief and experience that the local church is a fabulous place to try new things in making that difference. Short-term (mini-camps) or long-term (Sunday School), the local church is the perfect place to get the chance to “whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

Coming off a high (“ain’t no high like the Most High”) of VBS service, is the best time to invite folks to prayerfully consider what their “do it all for the glory of God” thing may be for the next school year or even through December:  aka “Champions” of local church ministry.

Tools for Champion Hunting:
1. Calendar with holidays, school schedules, local church traditional events (ex: Chili cookoff that follows Thanksgiving).
2. Bible with scriptures claimed for the previous season to re-read (Psalm 143:8 and 1 Corinthians 10:31) for this has been the momentum and the filter of a fruitful season
3. Prayer list of those who have stepped up and permitted the Holy Spirit to show up and show off in the previous season
4. Email
5. Cell phone

Champion qualifications in no particular order:
1. A teachable spirit as evidenced by submitting to Safe Sanctuary training (submitting to the process including the “Sweet Spot Application”)
2. Active in worship (our presence in response to God’s presence – it’s what we do and who we are)
3. Joyful service (serving below their “pay grade” aka committee membership and overheard in the vbs kitchen “you know, I’m just here to serve.”)
4. A Spirit of “Yes!” (a sense of fearlessness to just “do it all for the glory of God” no matter the “what ifs,” or the all the details aren’t ironed out – a champion of a ministry should be able to set those details as an opportunity to take ownership and truly champion the ministry as their own for the next season)
5. Spiritual and Personal Integrity (not perfection, but we all know the “uh-oh” feeling we get when something’s just not right or the servant is just not ready . . . yet.)

July is Champion Hunting month – inviting specific disciples to answer God’s call on their lives to prayerfully consider their committment for the next school year or through December to throw themselves in to a season of “doing it all for the glory of God.”

Then I get to serve these humble servants as cheerleader, investor, resource provider, keeper of the fearless vision, and prayer warrior.  Short skirts aside, I have my pompoms ready.

I’m a part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have Holy Spirit Power. The dye has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I’m a disciple of HIS. I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still.

My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure. I’m finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don’t have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power.

My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way rough, my companions few, my Guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won’t give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, preached up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops me. And when He comes for His own, He will have no problem recognizing me – my banner will be clear.
(written by a young African pastor and tacked on the wall of his house; sits in a frame on the living room shelf of the Reilly Bed & Breakfast)

Just feeling the need to name it and claim it.

Shaking hands with folks during the “meet and greet your neighbor” minute of a Sunday worship service offers precious face time with people who are faithful to join in worship to a Savior we all share. But it doesn’t hold a candle to seeing the gifts shining on His behalf when people gather for a few short hours to welcome children into the local church.

I have been shaking hands with some fabulous people on Sunday mornings since April. But I have shared life and seen the gifts of others shine on Christ’s behalf so brightly in the last week and a half that I couldn’t have anticipated. These are just a few of my discoveries:

– When people wear panda ear headbands, they begin to raise their hands in worship and praise.
– A soft voice from one who LOVES His Word can captivate the attention of even the most rambunctious of little boys
– A kind word of inclusion will break down the walls of fear
– The environment and decorated space matters for children AND adults
– When 2 or more servants decked out in all their black and white regalia go to dinner afterwards, they can make a table waiter’s night
– Just because someone always has an opinion doesn’t mean that it or they translate into action
– Just because someone doesn’t have an opinion could mean that they are ready for the task, purposeful in their preparation, and completely engaging with every child they meet
– Rain is just weather and will not keep folks from doing what they need to do
– VBS is not a chick thing, but a “called disciple” thing
– Preschoolers just make me happy because they are naturally charismatic
– Men in VBS bring an element of inclusion like nothing else

Seeing the gifts of others poured out onto children are a drink offering as unto the LORD.  May I be found faithful in saying “thank you” to a God who gifts us all differently.  And may I also be found faithful in expressing to each and every servant that their very presence has been the perfect visual that “God is WILD about every child.”

I’ve been reading “Teacher: The Henrietta Mears Story.” This biography was given out as a take away at the Gospel Light’s breakout sesson at January’s Children’s Pastors Conference.

For a progressive thinking woman in 1928, she came to set the stage for a movement in Sunday School in Hollywood, of all places.  Her influence on Billy Graham, Bill Bright (Campus Crusade for Christ), and others instrumental in the discipleship of God’s people has earned her a place in the “saints who have gone before us.”   Check out some of her writings . . .

“How seldom the Sunday School teacher is asked for his credentials! A public school teacher is not questioned as to whether he will teach but rather, can he teach. Our request in securing Sunday School teachers is invariably, ‘Will you take a class?’ And good-natured men and women, much against their wills, answer, ‘I will keep the class going until you can find someone else.’ If a math teacher is absent, can you imagine the principal going out in the neighborhood, ringing doorbells and asking a housewife, ‘Will you come over and take a class in mathematics because the regular teacher is sick?’ Absurd! He notified the superintendent’s office of this need, and a trained person comes.'”

“Will you stop looking at your problems and wringing your hands in despair? Faith and despair cannot remain in the same heart. Take your choice; trust God or worry. You cannot really do both.”

In her research into teaching methodologies and the available curriculum of the 1920’s led her to describe the Bible as “the most poorly taught book in the world.” Where was the action, the color, the truth, the depth? Where was the passion to know an ever-living, all-powerful, all-amazing Christ?

“I think of Jesus as vital, alert, enthusiastic-full of zest and zeal. So much emphasis is placed on the suffering and dying Christ – and certainly that is essential – but rarely do we see paintings or hear sermons that reflect the vitality of Christ’s personality and life He wants us to have. Christ is the ideal leader – men leave their professions, their homes, their companions to follow Him. He inspired them to do their best, to be their hightest self. Jesus must have been a physically vibrant person, radiating energy and confidence, mental alertness and interest in everything about Him. Think of Him being able to speak to a crowd of many thousands of people without a microphone! See Him walking through cities, His head high, His shoulders thrown back, bursting with good will, kindness, courage and faith! No wonder the multitudes followed Him!”

I’m only on page 52. Can I get an Amen?

June & July are truly Kingdom-Building months as vacation bible schools or similar programming reaches out into the community of little people to offer a snack, a craft, a new song, and a fresh word all for the cause of Christ. All this and you don’t have to wear a tie.

Tips:

SHARE – one of the first things we teach little people in weekday preschool is that Jesus likes it when we share. If you are a smaller church, call a larger church and ask what you can do to help. If you are a larger church, call a smaller church and ask what you can do to help. The children’s director at my home church does this exceptionally well. She invites smaller churches to coffee/tea gatherings in March (immediately after confirmation retreat) to begin encouraging smaller church directors with all the tips she has learned over the years. She also invites these folks to take a small part in the decorating at her church (100 paper lanterns) only to be blessed beyond measure with sets and props and extra resources to be picked up on the last day of her VBS. “Blessed to be a blessing.”

SERVE – another one of those things we encourage of our own congregations.  Ever consider serving in someone else’s VBS? It is a guarantee of getting fresh ideas and learning more about how to provide an excellent VBS in your own house when you serve in someone else’s. AND it blesses the socks off of a Director to have a section leader or crew leader who comes with experience and an enthusiasm he/she doesn’t have to provide herself.  AND it let’s a director “PLAY,” which few get to do anymore.

VISIT – This year I have the pleasure of sharing our multi-vbs-at-other-church experience with a family friend who has chosen to spend her summer following graduation serving the LORD through vacation bible school.  On the 3rd day of VBS, at the church we are helping this week, the church invited her to serve at their church on Sundays.  They had no idea she came all the way from Massachusetts to serve in vbs’s and didn’t even attend that church.  Made us both smile.

NETWORK – Use facebook/social media to find out when and where other churches are having their Vacation Bible Schools (we used Children’s Ministry of North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church).  Then begin making phone calls to find out what you can share, where you can visit, even where to go when you are blessed with 10 more kids than you had planned for and need memory buddies or tshirts or whatever.  Then, be willing to make the drive to make it easier.

PASS IT ON – We are helping one church (new church start, just moved into a permanent building, presenting their first vbs to their community), who were blessed with leftover resources from a larger church, who will be passing their leftover resources (and those they didn’t use from the larger church) onto to us.  After our week of VBS at the end of June, another church will pick up our goodies (and the leftover goodies from the other 2 churches) from our house to bring to their house to present their vbs 2 weeks later.  Blessed to be a blessing.

INVITE – Invite the community to get involved. If you go to Stevi B’s, they’ll give you certificates for your vbs attendees AND your helpers/leaders/teachers.  Our local Steve B’s actually came to the church we are helping this week and asked if they could drop off some certificates.  If you fill out a “donation request form” at your local Chik-Fil-A 2 weeks before your VBS, they will graciously give you these huge paper “VBS Graduation Certificates” for a free 6-piece nugget for your students.  When we were talking with the manager, he told us that he was helping at his church’s vbs this week during the day and working at night:  “I offered to serve in the snack area since I work in the food business.”

Then when you go to  pick up these precious donations, be sure to treat yourself to a small Banana Pudding milkshake because that’s how we roll for VBS in the south.

OK. So I got your attention. That’s a good thing. Because when you begin to talk about inviting volunteers to complete Criminal Background Checks and Servant-Leadership Applications the backlash begins.

Criminal Background checks are required by Scouts, School Systems, and Ball Teams and no one thinks twice. But to ask a church volunteer, the fear of “offense” can sometimes be overwhelming. And anyone over the age of 60, who already lives with the fear of identity theft (my mother in law won’t even mail her bills from her own home mailbox), the reluctance to provide a social security number is asking too much. But it is a fact of life and absolutely necessary to due diligently screen those who will have direct influence over little and vulnerable people.

There are companies now whose sole purpose is to provide Criminal Background Checks, maintain the records, and notify you when updates are necessary that will also offer Safe Sanctuary online training (Trac1) for a much more reasonable fee (less than $15) than several years ago. It’s an investment that should NOT be considered as part of the Kid Min budget, but more along the lines of security or office supplies.

But Criminal Background checks alone are not enough.

Servant-Leaders Applications go hand-in-hand in providing due diligent screening. But here’s the good part: These applications (kept confidential by the ministry lead/head) offer the greatest insight in placing folks in their “sweet spot.”

As a new staff member required to recruit and train volunteer servants, I can not know one’s gifts and graces by offering a handshake and a polite conversation in the parking lot or worship service in a few minutes on a Sunday morning. These applications are fabulous for finding out if volunteers can serve seasonally (VBS/got band in the fall) or are better to serve for special events (Christimas play) or are available during the school year (they travel during the week with their work.) This also lets you know where they’ve been “a-learning” their Jesus information, what spiritual disciplines they practice (and have no clue what you’re talking about as in, “Tithe? What is that?”)

And my favorite part, the personal non-kin references, give a ministry leader the chance to hear others toot the horn of a fantastic youth or adult. They will tell me stories about how you live out your faith in areas that a servant is usually too humble to share or don’t even recognize in themselves.

Criminal Background checks AND Servant Leader Applications . . .now that’s due diligence and a treat.

In the words of Loralee Boe, “The subject of safety and security in Children’s Ministry is one often overlooked or not emphasized enough. Sometimes this is from a lack of knowledge or from a desire not to offend. As those called to teach children the Gospel, we cannot ignore the environment in which we care for them.” (from “It Worked for Us: Best Practices for Ministry with Children and Families”)

Over the last 6 months I have logged some serious miles sharing the guidelines of what the United Methodist Church calls, “Safe Sanctuary.” What used to be considered a Kid Min thing, the audience has changed and I am speaking to more and more Administrative Councils. That’s a very good thing.

The architect for Safe Sanctuary, Joy Thornburg Melon, an ordained clergy-person as well as an attorney, comments that “Justice and hospitality are essential elements of the covenant between the people and God.”  We can truly do both.

Some of the basic goals of any local church to offer a safe haven and sanctuary for children, youth, and vulnerable adults would include:

1.  The 2 adult rule, where 2 adult team members are present in a classroom or environment at all times.

2.  Use of classrooms/environments with windowed and open doors.

3.  Institute a 6 month hospitality rule – this gives the congregation a chance to love on pre-servants before they run head-long into leadership roles.  My experience has also shown that anyone new coming into a congregation has some grieving to do, as well, as they say goodbye to their old family of faith and begin to build relationships in a new one.

4.  Servant leaders making classroom management decisions should always be adults over the age of 18.

5.  Name tags and/or identifiable clothing let others know that “you are safe to approach to get questions answered.”

6.  Check-in and release of students are in place and age-appropriate.

7.  Appropriate touch boundaries are understood.  (When are full-on frontal-body hugs appropriate for church staff and leadership?)

8.  Appropriate adult behavior (especially regarding social media, communication, and sharing of information).

9.  Adequate ratios of adults to minors and anyone in any sort of leadership role must be at least 5 years older than the oldest minor in the the room (and if under 18, the minor is considered part of the “minor” number in those adequate ratios.)

10.  Reporting requirements and expectations (before something happens.)

The adoption of Safe Sanctuary guidelines is just one more tool that the local church provides to better equip the disciples of Christ to serve without fear.  And there is nothing like serving our risen Savior without fear.

You can order materials at www.discipleshipresources.org.

Last year I picked up the newest tool for implementing Safe Sanctuary in the local church specific to Ministers, entitled “Safe Sanctuaries for Ministers:  Best Practices and Ethical Decisions.”  This is a must-read for anyone, not just ministers/clergy persons, who serve on church staff or in covenant leadership roles as laity, as well.