[Kid Inspiration]

Well my kidinspiration.com website has exceeded its bandwidth this month… I actually had too many visitors! (For the not-so-technical among you, it’s kinda like they shut and lock the door on your website until they get some more money from you).
The good news is there is only one day left in August, so the site will come up again as soon as the time ticks over to September.

Kidshaper 2006 was a spectacular success, it looks like there will be some photos coming soon on the official site.

Now, I took an elective during the conference entitled ‘Fast Ministry’. And basically exposed my nerd-dom to the world, talking about the internet and tech stuff in Children’s Ministry. So if you are visiting the blog from that elective… welcome!! If you have been reading the blog for a while… welcome also! (just wanted to include everybody)

So my first installment in the Kidshaper report is simply a bunch of notes from my elective. You can download them in PDF form by clicking here:

http://kidinspiration.com/media/fast_ministry.pdf

You will need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the file (most computers have it installed). If not, click here: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html

God Bless and enjoy the notes.

P.S. If you really are confused about all this internet stuff, check
out this video here: http://kidinspiration.com/video/

Dear faithful blog reader,

You may not be aware of this, but I also have a newsletter at http://kidinspiration.com that you can subscribe to. It goes out once a month or so and I even talk about things that I don’t talk about here at this very blog.

But something has gone awry, yes there has been an incident over at my other website. About two weeks ago it stopped sending out emails. You see when you subscribe, you SHOULD receive an email instantly thanking you for joining. But, as I discovered a couple of days ago it has not been happening.

I tried to send out the August Newsletter and it simply sat there with it’s little beady email eyes and laughed at me.

So I am attempting to get it fixed, but fate has placed before me a conference in Melbourne Australia… Kidshaper and I am attending until Friday night. So the newsletter shall wait, and so shall you, and if you have not subscribed yet, make your way to kidinspiration.com and sign up (although you will not receive an email confirmation as outlined above).

Yours Faithfully

David Wakerley Esq.

Nothing to do with CM… but got me fired up. You probably have heard about some of these photos on the news. Most of us adults trust the news services, believing them to be integrous. But I think our kids will grow up differently, untrusting (rightly so) of news media… which ain’t ALL bad. (Hey, I did find a CM tie in!)

Kids 4 Truth International (www.kids4truth.com) announces the release of a brand new Dynamation:

The Watchmaker: www.kids4truth.com/watchmaker/watch.html

This dynamic animation (i.e. Dynamation) transports the viewer into an imaginary world where by chance and chance alone, a beautiful, working watch is formed over a process of millions of years. Where did the watch come from? Obviously, the idea of a watch forming by chance and/or accident is sheer lunacy!

You heard me!

Stop reading this blog and watch this video right now!

http://www.devilducky.com/media/49265/

Brilliant!

So there is a child in your ministry going through a tough time? Maybe there is a birthday looming.. you want to get them a gift that will show them that you care, without showing your ministry budget the meaning of the phrase, ‘in the red’. Here are 9 memorable gifts you can give your students on their without breaking the budget.

1. Art supplies: almost all kids enjoy crayons, markers, stickers, colored pencils, gel pens, special papers and scissors, sidewalk chalk, water colors, homemade rubber stamps, “how to draw” books calligraphy instructions, or origami instructions and colored paper. Art supplies guarantee the creative side of your students will emerge from the vacuum of TV.

2. Books are always great gifts for any age: you can get musical or squeaky books for the little ones, short stories for preschoolers, adventure books for 9-11 year olds, and so on: there is a book for every taste. With a quick phone call to mum find out their interests, books about jobs and careers and hook them up with something valuable.

3. A classic movie, which never goes out of style, great for when friends come over, or on that day when they are bored and nothing else could help. Skip the new releases and head for the discount rack. Make sure to sign the DVD with a marker to make sure they never forget who gave it to them!

4. For older boys, a tool kit would be great: gives them the opportunity to work side by side with dad. This is brilliant for those with Dads in a trade… they get to connect with Dad, or even the son of an accountant… THEY get to connect with… tools (boys like tools right?)

5. For older girls, beads could mean hours of fun. Sit down with them and create a masterful bracelet creation.

6. To the chef in the house, give a roll of sugar cookie dough from the grocery store, along with a couple of cookie cutters, and a rolling pin. You could even stick around to cook it with them… and enjoy the fruits of your labour.

7. For the nature lover, a gardening kit with a couple of small pots filled with potting soil, some seeds, and a plastic watering can give countless hours of fun, while caring for the plants, and watching them grow.

8. A disposable camera will give that photography a chance to blossom. Offer to develop the photos for the student if they bring it to church with them on the weekend. Add a small picture album, and you’ve instantly created wonderful memories.

9. Children crave attention from important people in their lives, (mom, dad, grandparent, aunt, older sibling). Give that special child the gift of time: a day out with you complete with lunch, a movie, and/or shopping for the gift of their choice.

These ideas are brilliant when you need to just hang out with a student. For example, turning up at their house holding cookie dough creates an easy 40 minutes of hang out time waiting for the dough to cook. And the student knows how long you are going to hang out for and takes away any awkward ‘How long do I have to stay for?’ moments.

Enjoy these tips and let me know any great stories you get from trying them!

Parents are going to ludicrous lengths to take the bumps out of life for their children. However, parental hyperconcern has the net effect of making kids more fragile; that may be why they’re breaking down in record numbers.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/pto-20041112-000010.html

[Seems like an interesting site to research on kids in general] – Dave.

Saw this link via another CM Blog, but cannot remember which one… if it was yours, let me know.

Brilliant post via Perry Noble… from Mark Batterson.

“I read a fascinating study a few years ago that suggested that we stop thinking about the lyrics of a song after hearing it thirty times. That has profound implications when it comes to worship. If we aren’t careful, we stop worshiping in spirit and in truth and start lip syncing. Maybe that’s why the Psalmist exhorts us eight times to sing a new song.”

Read the rest at Evotional.com

BTW, you should read both these blogs regulary:) Ok.

It’s cool to see this stuff online… here is a manual online to have a look at…

http://www.sonlifeafrica.com/children/index.htm