Its no secret that times have changed since I was a wee little lad, things have changed: music, video games, tv shows, so much has changed; and if we as Children's Pastors and leaders we must adapt and create a fun and relevant ministry for kids. It's important for us to know what music is popular, what video games are hot, and what style of clothing is in. I am not saying we have to or need to condone certain things, I am just saying we need to stay current and fresh and know what the 411 is (not sure I even used that correctly). So how do we stay relevant?
We need to stay on top of the latest music.
I generally pop into iTunes and look at the top albums and songs that have been downloaded because chances are some if not most of the kids in my church have heard or downloaded the song themselves. So look to give away christian CD's, ones that you know the kids will get into and love.
Stay on top of the latest TV shows.
A great way to know and get inside the life of a kid is watch the tv shows they watch, check them out, see what they are teaching kids. Who knows you might get a new teaching series idea! Kids enjoy when you talk about their favorite TV show with them. Stay current stay hip (don't say hip in front of kids, they will make fun of you). Remember they all are not watching only disney and nickolodian.
We need to make a conscious effort and stay on top of kid culture and know whats going on. If you don't know where to start, ask the kids, trust me they will tell you what they like to watch and listen to. Once you are current use it to your advantage create a fun and relevant ministry your kids cant wait to come to. Never waiver on making your ministry biblically sound but you must make it appealing.
Wednesday, February 4, 2015
Monday, February 2, 2015
Evaluating your Ministry to Kids
Each week we work hard and put in many hours to build and invest in the lives of Children. We have team members in our ministry who put the same passion and effort into seeing kids develop a relationship with Jesus. The question is How are we doing? How do we evaluate or better yet measure our ministry?
First of all lets look and realize that Christ commissioned the Church with one task, he gave the church one BIG task and that is it - "to make disciples". Making disciples is the MOST important thing a church can provide, the same is true about Children;s ministry that our one BIG task is to make disciples, if we are not doing that then its time to revamp. So how do we measure our ministry we we use the measuring tape Christ gave us of making disciples, if we fall short of that then I would say we did not measure very well (evaluating a ministry is not to make us feel bad or think we are not doing our job, but to simply show us areas we can improve and if you are like me then A LOT needs to improve).
Not sure how others evaluate but here are 3 categories if you will I use to determine as I feel are part of the discipleship process. I call it the Know, Love, Serve process.
1. KNOWLEDGE: (know) Do we see kids coming to KNOW Christ more and more. Are we seeing grow as they memorize scripture and learn to apply Gods Word to their life.
2. CHARACTER: (Love) Do we see the Character of the kids change? Becoming more Christ like? If our goal is to make disciples then we should desire to see kids display Christlike character in every area of life.
3. CONDUCT: (Serve) Do we spend the time showing kids the importance of service? Do we show them that even as kids we can can serve that we can demonstrate faithful conduct that honors God and helps people.
First of all lets look and realize that Christ commissioned the Church with one task, he gave the church one BIG task and that is it - "to make disciples". Making disciples is the MOST important thing a church can provide, the same is true about Children;s ministry that our one BIG task is to make disciples, if we are not doing that then its time to revamp. So how do we measure our ministry we we use the measuring tape Christ gave us of making disciples, if we fall short of that then I would say we did not measure very well (evaluating a ministry is not to make us feel bad or think we are not doing our job, but to simply show us areas we can improve and if you are like me then A LOT needs to improve).
Not sure how others evaluate but here are 3 categories if you will I use to determine as I feel are part of the discipleship process. I call it the Know, Love, Serve process.
1. KNOWLEDGE: (know) Do we see kids coming to KNOW Christ more and more. Are we seeing grow as they memorize scripture and learn to apply Gods Word to their life.
2. CHARACTER: (Love) Do we see the Character of the kids change? Becoming more Christ like? If our goal is to make disciples then we should desire to see kids display Christlike character in every area of life.
3. CONDUCT: (Serve) Do we spend the time showing kids the importance of service? Do we show them that even as kids we can can serve that we can demonstrate faithful conduct that honors God and helps people.
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