[Kid Inspiration]

So if only writing songs were this easy:

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My blog silence can be attributed to multiple projects at one time.

Kidsfest is tomorrow and I am studio bound finishing off tracks for the preschool album recording during the event. We are also finishing up our new BIG Curriculum ‘Supernatural’ which requires a chunk of attention.

I am eager to continue thoughts on the ‘violence in the bible’ discussion that started on this post here. So stay tuned for that!

Thanks for reading, I appreciate you taking the time!

A great video from Hillsong London on someones first Sunday in Church.

I famvir online don’t think you will be able to play it embedded in the blog, but click through to it on youtube!

The Sunday Experience – Hillsong London

So our annual KIDSFEST event is coming up very soon.

Here is our promo video famvir generic for it!

KIDSFEST 2010

You may have noticed the preschool CD recording announcement! Oh yeah. Our first ever preschool project!

Look for more announcements soon!

It’s time.

Time for something serious.

I don’t do too many posts like this, but I hope this opens up some serious discussion in the comments, because controversy is what gets lots of comments in the blog world and I am unlikely to write something truly controversial like… suggesting that we produce a VBS based on the twilight series of books.

So we are in the middle of creating our next children’s ministry curriculum – Hillsong Kids Big: Supernatural. I have been writing scripts like a madman and one of the weeks includes the story of Jericho. I send the scripts off for a little theology inspection (as usual) to one of our lecturers in our Bible College, Duncan Corby… it comes back pretty good, a few tweaks here and there, but I haven’t yet become a heretic. Yay.

But we start a discussion about something I hadn’t really expected, here is the question:

Should we be teaching/telling our kids the ultra-violent exelon prescription assistance stories found in the Old Testament?

When you get to the end of Joshua’s army walking around Jericho, the walls have fallen, they then proceed to kill every single man, woman and child in the city and burn it to the ground. This is all apparently sanctioned and encouraged by God (rinse and repeat for many other OT stories).

Now he was really thinking out loud and not endorsing the idea, but I need to (even if for my own sake) investigate this idea.

Let me present two perspectives as precisely as I can, because I don’t want this to be an essay.

YES: We should be teaching the whole counsel of God, and we can teach these stories in an age appropriate way. As children grow in understanding they can then begin to explore these issues further. We have to present the Bible as a narrative, the story of God dealing with his people over thousands of years so that our children grasp the big picture of faith. After all the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed.

NO: Exposing our kids to these stories has aided in creating our violent culture. Where Christians quite happily support capital punishment and can justify war in a heart beat. In much the same way that it is said that Jewish young men would not be allowed to read the Song of Songs until they were 30 years old our kids should focus on the life of Jesus, who was non-violent figure, until they are able to reconcile a jealous God in their hearts and minds.

I would love for you to post a pro/con thought in the comments, keep it short, focused and don’t try to present dozens of ideas in one go. Especially if you can point me in the direction of some resources/books that cover this thought.

So Tony Kummer at Ministry to Children has put together a evista without prescription target=”_blank”>top 100 list of kidmin blogs.

It took him a huge amount of effort to put this together, so hats off to you Tony!! I would be blogging about it even if I didn’t come in at third place… just because of the hours he put into it!

I have been blogging since late 2004 and all I can say is that there is something about longevity and persistence. Just showing up is 90% of success I think. It will be a big milestone to see this blog at the ten year mark!

Bring on 2014!

Or is there…

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Weird but awesome advice of the day!

Our first BIG curriculum was ‘Tell The World’, very evangelistic and foundational. Our second was ‘Follow You’, all about discipleship and ‘now you know Jesus’ – what do you do?

Well we are working on our 3rd curriculum right now called ‘Supernatural‘. This one is all about a lifestyle of worship.

It works right alongside our Supernatural album.

So we spent last week filming. And by last week I mean ALL of last week. From morning to night we filmed like maniacs to get it all done.

Its a great way to work, get it all done in one go… but the pressure was on and we felt it. I got grumpy a few times, but in the end we accomplished all we wanted to. Here are a few photos!

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The Set

Just another day with Dan

The girls of BIG HQ

What are we looking at?

There is no release date for BIG Supernatural yet. But as soon as I can give a date I will make sure to post it on this blog.

Almost a month ago I began an epic quest – to write a complete A-Z of Children’s Ministry.

I started at A (funny that) for Adults and finished with Z for Zeta. Along the way I hope that I was able to surprise you and make you think about the world of ministry to children.

If you have enjoyed it or found it insightful or even remotely helpful then please push the retweet button on the side of this post, or the facebook ‘like’ button at the bottom. Feel free to blog about it, tell your neighbours and your enemies, which of course you don’t, for you love all humanity and would want them to read this blog.

Here is the complete list with links:

• A is for Adults
• B is for Bible
• C is for Culture
• D is for Delegate
• E is for Encouragement
• F is for Fun
• G is for Growth
• H is for House
• I is for Inclusive
• J is for Journey
• K is for Kidology
• L is for Longevity
• M is for Mystery
• N is for New
• O is for Obedience
• P is for Paradigm
• Q is for Question
• R is for Respect
• S is for Sabbath
• T is for Teaching
• U is for Unexpected
• V is for Visual
• W is for Welcome
• X is for Xenogague
• Y is for Yahweh
• Z is for Zeta

Now this was the most epic mission I have attempted on this blog since starting in 2004, so in order to make me think it was worth it, please write your adoring comments below. Even if you post a simple, “Dave you’re the greatest” I won’t mind.

But feel free to write a long discorse on just how much this blog series has impacted your life and caused your Church to double in size because of all the kids in your children’s ministry.

But really, I hope it has been helpful to you, I know that I have learnt a lot putting these ideas to paper (digital paper).

I have given myself a challenge for the next 26 days – post the complete A-Z of Ministry to Children. (I almost pulled this off! Just missed yesterday through being a ‘little’ tired after Kidshaper Conference).

Z… zebra, zoology, zenith…

Z is for Zeta – A small room or closet in a church.

This might be a little heavy to finish this list on, but the final word for the A-Z of Ministry to Children is about safety and protection. The most pressing need of your Church is to safeguard your children!

The bottom line at Hillsong Church for our leaders is simply this: ‘never be alone with a child.’

Our toileting procedures is always in pairs (or groups), we don’t change nappies (diapers) and our new leader process is pretty blunt – you need to ask the hard questions up front.

There should be no Zeta’s in your church. No secret places, and no secretive volunteers (or pastors).

Our culture and society has seen enough abuse of children (rightly so). So your job is to avoid even the appearance of evil. Be diligent, be militant and proactive about the safety and care of your kids!

The next post will be a recap of this series. If you have enjoyed it or found it insightful or even remotely helpful then please push the retweet button on the side of the next post, or the facebook ‘like’ button at the bottom. Feel free to blog about it, tell your neighbours and your enemies, which of course you don’t, for you love all humanity and would want them to read this blog.

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

Y… young, yearn, yesterday…

Y is for Yahweh - So there it is. I didn’t choose J for Jesus, but put Y for Yahweh. The bottom line is that God came into His creation to reveal His plan to humanity and you and I and the children we lead all have a place in the grand story.

Jesus told His disciples “Let the little children come to me”. You and I are called to do just that.

Amen.

*Hey, I am at Kidshaper conference this week. Welcome any new readers, make sure you suscribe in the top right.

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

X… xylophone, xenophobia, xerography…

X is for Xenagogue – From Greek, to lead, leading; bring, take; plus a “guest” or stranger. A reference to someone who conducts strangers or foreigners; a tour guide.

The tour guide is a brilliant description of your mission as a minister to children. Your job is to give them a tour of the Kingdom of God, show them the sights, the sounds and the places that make up this diverse and mysterious universe. A world that is often opposite to what we know. Where up is down, the first are last, and when you give you receive.

But unlike the all knowing New York local on the top of a red double decker bus, you are here to learn as well. In fact, sometimes will be operating as a reverse tour guide, learning more than teaching and experiencing more than describing, because if we are not like little children we cannot inherit the very thing we are showing.

So go forth you Xenagogue and I will see you later, the tour will stop for a manna lunch in the wilderness.

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

W… water, witness, woah, wapenshaw…

W is for Welcome – One of the most important moments in your ministry to kids on a weekend is as they arrive. Not only kids but parents. How good is it for them to see their child welcomed like a champion, like one of the family. High fives all round, names remembered, discussions about what happened that week and also sometimes the injury of the week (for the boys usually).

It will probably be one of the only two moments during your program the parents get to see, the other being pickup.

When I see as a parent, my boy running into a room and welcomed well, it gives me a confidence and sets my mind at ease. It is no different for the parents we serve.

Your team can out do Disney and the biggest budgets in the world if their welcome is personal and fun!

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.

U… undies, uniform, uncle, Umbratious…

U is for Unexpected – Give them half a chance and I bet the kids in your ministry would surprise you. I have lost count of the times that I have heard something about a child, or see them do something that is surprising… unexpected.

Sometimes negative like one of our regular boys who returned to me (Mum right behind him) a number of air hockey pucks he had stolen over a number of weeks.

But usually positive.

• The 6 year old girl who exhibits her art
• The 9 year old violinist getting a major scholarship
• A 7 year old in the lead role in a major touring show

All surprising.

Some of the biggest surprises are when I see the resilience of children going through major life situations.

So don’t be surprised when you get surprised by a child. In fact, the more surprises you get, I believe the better you are in connecting with kids and families.

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