NEW YEAR – New Opportunity!

I love a New Year! And this time, we get a new Decade! While I see the point the New Year’s Resolution Nasayers are trying to make in poo-pooing making goals at the New Year, I personally think that’s a silly way of admitting failure before even beginning. To ridicule new years resolutions I think is a redemptive attack on failure. But one that assures failure rather than promotes success. To not play a game because you might lose is to miss out on the joy and excitement of the game. Didn’t our parents teach us that winning isn’t everything? I set new goals every year. Do they last all year? Rarely. Does that make them a waste or pointless? Far from it! Even if they improve your life for the next three to six months, they are worth it. And the good news? You don’t have to wait until next January 1st to make fresh ones. August 1st Resolutions are just as valuable, as are March 17th. So don’t let the question of whether you’ll make it a year stop you from making goals for 2020. I’m sure you’ve heard it said, “Aim at nothing and you are sure…

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JOIN ME for my First Master Class: Thriving in Ministry

It doesn’t matter how talented, skilled or experienced you are in ministry. If you burn out, none of that will matter. Ministry is TOUGH. You must take care of yourself! YOU are the most important part of your ministry. That’s why you need to join me for a 6-week Master Class that will ensure that you not only survive ministry, but thrive in ministry. The First Master Class starts in January – and space is limited! 1. January 6th through February 14th – Thriving in Ministry – Become who you must be to thrive personally while growing a ministry. Included: Admittance to a closed Facebook Group for direct Access to Karl throughout the course. You get Priority help from Karl as you work through the material. Two live webinars with training content as well as Q and A time with Karl. Additional video challenges and bonus content provided in the Group, often in response to needs from students. Coaching to accomplish your personal and ministry goals! Textbook Requirement: Kidology’s Ultimate Toolbox for Children’s Ministry Purchase the book and get the digital version FREE! The same textbook is used for the first five Master Classes, so there is only one book…

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Proactive Leadership

If you are the one placed in charge of a children’s ministry, most likely you a leader. However, unless you are intentional, the weekly demands of ministry programs and needy volunteers can quickly push you into a role of being a reactive leader – constantly reacting to the needs that are presented to you via e-mail, voice mail, and in person. You will be doing a lot of good, but you’ll soon feel like the ministry isn’t going anywhere – and you’ll be right. It will be treading water and it will be all you can do just to keep your nose above the surface. You may be a servant leader, and that is a good thing – but you if you want your ministry to improve you must learn to be a proactive leader – one that is driving and determining his or her actions more than being driven by the endless demands that are constantly pouring in.What does it mean to be a proactive leader? It means you lean into the challenging situations that face you. You don’t avoid them, post-pone facing them, or pretend they will resolve themselves if you just ignore them a little longer. (Hint:…

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Living a Legacy – A Tribute to My Friend Craig Jutila

Pastor Craig Jutila passed away on December 26th, 2018.  as a result of a snowboarding accident. An official statement is available on his church’s Facebook page. This is my tribute to him. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9 There are people who live a full life. There are others who live life to the fullest. Still others who are full of life. But rare are those who do all of these and leave the world fuller because they were here. I don’t even remember when I first met Craig Jutila. He’s one of those friends I’ve just always known. When you have memories that go back farther than your digital pictures, you know you have known someone a long time. I sat in his workshops as a learner, I served with him at training events, even once on a cruise at a conference our friend Roger Fields organized on a ship. The last time we chatted about ministry, life, and family was during a break earlier this year as we coached leaders at the children’s pastors conference. Like me, he…

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Jesus is Proof – God Prefers the Unlikely

Have you figured it out yet? I know, you’ve heard it many times. God prefers to use the ordinary. The unexpected. The unknown. The unlikely. Jesus came through an unknown young girl and her husband of unknown heritage. His birth was announced to humble shepherds. There was no room in the Inn so the Son of God was born in a place suitable more for animals than the King of Kings. We know this story. We’ve taught this story. A hundred times in a hundreds ways. But what does this mean for us in Children’s Ministry? It means everything. It’s more than just a story for Christmas time. It reveals how God prefers to get things done. He is a God who’s glory and power and provision is best on display when it is needed most. When we look at our ministries, too often we see how things ought to be. How our staffing ought to be. Our facilities. Our budgets. Our resources. Our…. (dare I say it?) appreciation for all that we do for the children. We may even look at the lack of skill in the volunteers we have to work with, the age of the equipment we…

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