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Sharing the Gospel to Get Results

This past Sunday our church enjoyed having Barney Kinard visit as our guest speaker. Barney is known as the Kidhelper. He is a former children’s pastor, 50 year veteran children’s evangelist, and Kidology Coach. We celebrated 26 children making decisions for Christ on Sunday. Guiding children to making this life-altering decision doesn’t happen by mistake. It requires intentionality, creativity, skill and a sense of purpose. Let me share with you several observations I made on Sunday as I watched Barney “do his thing” that he has been doing for years developing presentations that create results. 1) Be Real. Barney doesn’t go into character. He is himself. He is the same person before and after the presentation. Kids need to connect with a real person if they are to make real decisions. 2) Don’t Talk Down to Children. Too often adults talk down to kids. They can do this both with their tone of voice, mannerisms or by talking to them as though they are younger or “dumber” than they really are. Expect kids to engage and understand and they will. They appreciate being honored as people, not as “just kids.” 3) Use Language Kids Understand. Barney avoids using “big words”…

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Quick Mac Tip: Get to your files faster

Mac users – when you open your Finder, does it always open to that annoying “All Files?” Would you like it to auto-matically go to your Dropbox folder or Ministry Files? I set each computer to open right where I go 95% of the time to get files…. and home it’s my Dropbox Folder, at work, it’s my church files. How? Open up finder and select preferences: And the under the General tab, look for New Finder windows show: And select “Other” and navigate to the folder you want. Now, every time you open a Finder window – you’ll be there! You’ll see above at work I want my Finder to always open right to my “Rock Files” instead all “All Files” then clicking on “Dropbox” and then navigating to the “The Rock Files” folder… when you are doing this countless times a day, this shortcut makes your time more productive. Hope it helps!  If you’d like more Quick Mac Tips, let me know, and I’ll post more.

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Get Results From Being Positive

Have discipline issues in your class, club or program? How do you train kids to behave? Hopefully no one will take offense at me comparing training kids to training my dog, but house training our Teddy reminded me of the power of positive reinforcement. As first time dog owners, we had to learn to house train our little puppy by trial and error. We listened to people, read articles, and even signed up for doggie training at our local Pet Smart… but the results were discouraging. Months into him joining our family, I was secretly thinking of giving him away because of being weary of cleaning up the unpleasant “gifts” he was leaving around the house. (Though, I knew that wasn’t really an option if I wanted to keep living in house!) Then we had a break through. A friend told me – give up scolding him or correcting him when he messes up. (He can’t understand you anyway.) Instead, when he does do his business outside where you want him to, CELEBRATE it to the MAX! So when he did it right, we jumped up and down, we clapped and cheered yelling “GOOD TEDDY.” Basically, the advice was go overboard…

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What Makes a Ministry Successful?

There is no shortage of books or online articles on success – but what does success look like in Children’s Ministry? You’ll be glad to know the keys to success in kidmin are free. They don’t require a big budget or a specific resource. Budgets and resources can help, but don’t be fooled by thinking they are the key. In fact, they can at times lead you away from real success. So how do you measure success? What are the Four Secrets to a successful children’s ministry? A Successful Children’s Ministry Must Be: Child Centered. God loves every child, and therefore we accept them and love them, just the way they are. Children who need special attention are lovingly welcomed. Our environments are kid-friendly, engaging, and educational. Our volunteers strive to understand a child’s perspective and to make the message of Christianity relevant to the life of a child. We have fun, but it is fun with a purpose! Therefore, our teaching is creative and engaging and connects with the world of kids in order to help them connect with God. “To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so…

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Horse Race vs. Locomotive Ministry

If a train were to race a horse, over the long haul the train would certainly win. The average train cruises along at speeds well over 100 mph, whereas a race horse runs about 35-45mph. But in a short sprint, the race horse would leave the train in it’s dust. Have you ever watched a train start? You might fall asleep! Have you ever watched a horse race start? When the gate opens the horses burst out and the race is on! Which describes your ministry programming? VS. When it comes to children’s ministry, we certainly are in the business of long term results, but when it comes to a Sunday morning – we don’t have a lot of time. We MUST gain kids attention and fast so that we can lead them into a life-changing learning experience. Slowly picking up speed from a dead stand still is a formula for boring kids and disengaging their active minds. Your children’s ministry programming, whether it is Kid’s Church or a midweek club – needs to START promptly and be off and running as soon as the “gate” opens. I’ve been saying it for years, “You don’t demand kid’s attention – you…

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