I have given myself a challenge for the next 26 days – post the complete A-Z of Ministry to Children.

V… Vision, vexed, virtuous, vectitation…

V is for Visual - It would be hard to imagine a technology that had more impact on 20th century life than photography. Imagine a world without school photos, travel pictures, without pictures of sports, wars, and disasters; and you have no way to document the birth of your children.

Images convey emotion brilliantly. I could write pages here on the facts of the recent Haiti earthquake; how many homes were ruined, how many people are homeless, what effect it will have on the country.

Or I could simply show images like this:

In an image saturated culture, pictures really do say a thousand words.

There is SO much that could be said about the power of image, so many questions to explore… Are Christians meant to be people of the word? Should we use images in this way to provoke emotion? What about pictures of Jesus? Where does it become idolatry? Are images a good thing or a negative thing?

The point of this post is to highlight the power that images have. If we are aware of the power, and we bring it into the light then it stops having power over us. Pornography (one of the most powerful type of image) has no power when it is ‘accountable’, when it is out of darkness… but when it is hidden, it has the power to destroy a life.

And one way to have power over a thing is to engage it, use it.

If an image helps you convey a truth, then use it!

I have given myself a challenge for the next 26 days – post the complete A-Z of Ministry to Children.

T… telephone, tiger, Tachydidaxy…

T is for Teaching – I belive the Church can lead a revolution.

“A good teacher knows how to read a story, and that each and every student arrives at our classroom door with a unique and intriguing yet incomplete story. The really good teachers know how to read a child’s story and recognize the remarkable opportunity to help author the story. The really good teachers want to script confidence and success onto the blank pages; they want to edit the mistakes; and they want to help write a happy ending.”
~ Anthony J. Mullen, 2009 NEA National Teacher of the Year

“My rewards don’t come from grades students get on a test, but from students coming back years after graduation to visit me and tell me about their experiences traveling the world and becoming passionate about learning.”
~ Craig Divis, 2010 Vermont Teacher of the Year

There is a movement developing regarding the teaching of children in schools all over the world. People like Ken Robinson in the UK are spearheading efforts to re-imagine teaching and schooling. BUT of course the resistance is institutional. It’s government there are (rightly so) laws and regulations set up to ensure high standards of learning and education.

2006 college graduates: U.S. – 1.3 million, India – 3.1 million, China – 3.3 million

In 10 years it is predicted that the number on English speaking country in the world will be China. (Did You Know 2.0)

Can hear the winds of change? I believe the Church lead this revolution.

The Church has no such regulations, we can turn in a moment and change, we can shift focus and begin to lead the world in the education of children, in the most important learning of all, the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ.

Investigate new educational models and USE ‘em. You don’t need permission from your local council, your education board, your elected officials, all you need is permission from your senior/lead/whatever pastor!

To change the school system you need a revolution, to change your ministry system you probably just need a decision. Which I think you will agree, is much simpler.

Quotes from: Encouraging Lessons from America’s Top Educators

Google Reader changed the way I interact with information quite a few years ago. I use RSS feeds for probably 70% of my online time. If you don’t know what that last sentence means just watch this video:

Google Reader in Plain English

Now I know you want to take this step in your life, so if you would just say this prayer after me…

But really here it is:

1. Visit Google Reader

2. Signup for a google account, if you use gmail or something else you probably already have one.

3. Watch the video again and start adding your favourite websites!

Life is too short to entertain bad leadership.

I have been reminded today of just how blessed I am to be in a Church leadership environment that has no room for red tape or bureaucracy. Our mission and vision is too important, our time too short to waste time and effort.

I prefer to think of leadership as a positive attribute — that is… bad leadership is not leadership at all it is simply… not leadership.

I am not talking about fresh faced eager leaders making mistakes, but leaders who have given up learning, growing and living in faith, not seeing the potential around them and therefore slowly quenching those they lead.

Watching the excellent Exit Interviews DVD which can be found at the reThink Group store (although seriously majorly pricey), I watched four ministry veterans (= code for Old Fart – Thanks Jim) talk about some of the times in ministry they had to really watch their hearts as they dealt with leadership decisions and attitude that we can probably all relate to.

You cannot control others opinions and attitudes but you CAN control your reaction, AND your heart. Sticks and stones will break your bones AND names will seriously hurt you. Do NOT develop a wounded spirit, do NOT let hurt develop into bitterness, we all have the wonderful opportunity to get offended in ministry — that is an opportunity you never want to take. Whatever you have had to face, someone has faced worse, don’t throw a pity party, you’ll probably be the only one there.

More than any time in history the impact of the individual can be felt all across society and culture! Be part of something that excites and terrifies you every morning with it’s quivering, bone-melting potential!

I am pretty much completely mind-numbingly staggered with what is possible in my Church community – I hope you can say that too… you deserve it.

Our 2008 Hillsong Kids album is called Follow You.

It takes Jesus out of an abstract belief and makes it concrete, a cultural shift from faith being a set of propositions you put your trust in.

A generation ago that album could have been called ‘Believe This’.

Witness the rise of social justice in the Church which (hopefully) gives equal footing to worship and justice in our faith.

Justice takes our abstract doctrine and makes it concrete… we are called to be Jesus’ hands and feet.

Amen.

The mountain our kids are going to climb.

Their working lives/jobs are going to be radically different to ours. How can we help prepare them as the Church?

Every few months a new version of the famous “Shift Happens” video is released, with startling stats and eye opening facts, and bowel moving predictions… here is the latest:

The latest version of the “Shift happens” videos updated for autumn 2009, developed by XPLANE in partnership with The Economist. This Did You Know video focuses on the changing media landscape, including convergence and technology.

Youtube Link: Shift Happens

Here are a few posts that hit it out of the park in the last few weeks!

Pudge on Leading for Tomorrow

A bunch of posts from Henry Zonio about the Conspire Conference Rewiring Ministry for the Digital Learner,  Spiritual Formation in Children

Fascinating stuff from The Connecting Church and Home Conference from Jared Kennedy via Doug

Shane Hipps on Technology from the Q blog! MUST WATCH! Hipps discusses how technology shapes your faith and offers a critique of the cliche “the methods change but the message doesn’t.”

How to Blog 101 from churchrelevance.com

Just want to give a shout out to Pioneer Clubs – I have been reading the Mix It Up! blog since it started last November, great content that covers The Jonas Brothers to devotions about Lent.

But you have to watch the video “Window of Opportunity”a great way to cast vision for a ministry.

You can find out a lot from the core values of an organisation and I love these from the site:

We value…

…a God-honoring ministry. We seek to honor God in our curriculum, programs, customer relations, and all other aspects of ministry. As we honor God, we believe he will honor our work by fostering Christ-centered faith in the children we serve.

…the Scriptures as God’s inspired Word, his authority for all aspects of life; the core of everything we do; the tool we use to introduce children to Jesus Christ and disciple them. A primary goal of our curriculum is to help children use, understand, and apply the Bible in daily life.

…children as whole beings created in God’s image with individuality, uniqueness, dignity, and potential. Therefore, we will help create a safe environment where children can meet Christ and choose to live for him. Our materials effectively communicate God’s love for children.

…a holistic ministry for children, because authentic Christianity touches every aspect of life. Our curriculum and ministry are designed to help children grow physically, intellectually, emotionally, socially, and spiritually.

…excellence! We strive for constant improvement in every aspect of ministry. We design our curriculum to be educationally sound and our programs to be of the highest quality.

...relationships as God’s created design. We recognize the significance of children’s building healthy relationships with adults, peers, and children of other ages in the context of the family, local church and community.

…responsible stewardship. We recognize that all we have comes from God. He is the source and owner of all gifts and resources we have. We are merely managers with the responsibility to use wisely all that we have, to bring glory to God and expand the boundaries of his kingdom.

Guest blogspot from Nick Fisk today.

Nick is an awesome ex-kiwi (just like me) on our team whose role (or at least one of them) is to oversee all our extension services from a kids perspective.

He has a massive heart for kids, especially those going through separation and divorce. Here is a quick training thought we used in our ministry.

Communicate Caring in Small Groups – Nick Fisk.

Children are very discerning, even when you don’t expect it. They intuitively know if you love to connect with them and if you love what you’re doing. There are many ways to intentionally connect more deeply with children. For optimal learning and life change in the minds and hearts of children, they need to feel as though you want to hear them.

Children need to know they matter to you! Always remember ‘kids don’t care how much we know until they know how much we care’ Getting to know your kids versus getting through the worksheets, will pay off in the long run. You’ll be able to go twice as deep because relationships are in place and your kids will want to come back for more. Remember, for some children church might be the only safe place they have.

Children need to know they are accepted by you! For children to grow and understand God’s love, they need to know they’re loved, accepted, and cared for. How are you intentionally getting to know your children? Notice a pattern in what children want to talk about. Concentrate on keeping track of what they’re asking about or telling you. Check the percentage of time you spend on active listening, don’t be the one doing all the talking.

You will connect intentionally with your children when you care, stay focused, use the worksheets, communicate clearly and concisely, and challenge them to think creatively and critically.