Connect


April 2009 Welcome to Connect, the monthly Kid Connection eNewsletter for those who minister to children in small Sunday schools, midweek programs, and new church plants. Invite others to receive this free eNewsletter! Now is your chance to get the Sing With Me Children's Songbook and Leader's Edition for HALF OFF! Many of the songs are used with Kid Connection and are are God centered, relevant, and fun to sing! Sale ends April 30—order now! Non-Negotiables in a Changing World Last week my ten-year-old daughter and I were walking outdoors at sunset. The spring sky was an amazing orange-blue-purple blend, and we couldn’t help but stop and stare. “Wow!” said Tara. “That sky looks just like a screensaver!” My daughter and millions of kids like her are growing up in a world where the reality beyond the screen blends with their reality in front of the screen. They play with technological toys, text their friends, watch shows on channels designed just for kids, and then visit those shows’ websites for a “behind the scenes” glimpse into the “real lives” of their favorite stars. Phil Vischer, creator of Veggie Tales, describes it as a world in which we’re advancing a new religion—the religion of FUN. As children’s ministry leaders we often feel pressure to compete with all of the above. We hear little voices in our heads saying things like: “Kids shouldn’t just walk into Sunday school—they need to swoop in on a winding red slide!” “Kids can’t listen to someone telling a Bible story—they need to watch it on a high definition, flat screen TV!” and “The best way to reach families is by hosting a Super Family Blitz featuring a sponge ball shooting bazooka!” So how do we reach kids on this side of the screen? If a slide, high-def, and a ball shooting bazooka are necessary this year, how will we be able to compete with that next year? Should we even be competing with that? Although I’d be the first in line if my church let me enter on a swirly red slide and I love HDTV and sponge ball shooting bazookas as much as the next person, those things are not what makes Sunday schools or midweek ministry programs that help transform kids into spiritual champions. Here are the non-negotiables that do: Great theology. I can’t emphasize this one enough. Put on a pair of Reformed glasses and read through a session in the Sunday school or midweek program you’re using at church with your kids now or one that you are considering buying. Put your finger on the goal for that session. Read it. Now ask yourself: “Does the goal show how God is at the front and center of the passage, or does the goal reduce the passage to a story about a biblical hero, a moral lesson, or a virtue of the month?” How the story is interpreted matters. Good theology is not rated “adults only.” *Learn more about how theology impacts your kids by attending a FREE More Than Storytelling* webinar. Register now for Thursday, April 23, 2009 - 2:00 pm Eastern (1 pm Central) Learn more about other upcoming Webinars at www.FaithAliveResources.org/Webinars. Personal relationships. There are great arguments both for and against using DVDs in children’s ministry and I agree that an excellent video clip can make a strong connection with kids and drive a point home. But, kids should never spend the entire precious hour you have with them each week in front of a TV screen. Why? In a competition between a TV screen and a personal relationship, the relationship wins every time. Nothing beats a warm smile, eye contact, and one-on-one conversation. Kids need to hear your faith stories, they need to know what God is doing in your life, and they need you to hear about theirs. Studies show that the average child under the age of eleven condenses about eight hours of general media content (i.e. Internet, cell phones, computer games, iPods, and so on) into each day. They need to spend the hour they have with you on this side of the screen. Family ties.** Speaking of that one precious hour you have with your kids in your program—it’s not enough. The people with the most religious influence in the lives of the kids you teach are their parents—even when they aren’t nurturing the faith of their kids. Instead of being angry that parents aren’t showing up at Sunday school because of sports or other extracurricular activities, reach out to them and provide ways to help them connect with their kids. The Guess What! Family Magazine was designed to help families talk faith with their kids at home by giving them the stories kids learned at church, a family devotional, parent talks, and a simple calendar they can hang up at home—but parents probably won’t open it if you don’t tell them about it! Email them a quick reminder or attach a post-it note to the magazine that says “Parents/caregivers: check out page 14.” Extended family connections. My oldest daughter is at university now, but when she was twelve she was featured in our local paper for an athletic accomplishment. A few days after the article appeared she received a homemade card in the mail from an older couple in our church. Although they didn’t know her personally, they’d seen the article and took the time to send her a personal message of congratulations along with a Scripture reference and note that they were praying for her. Eight years later that note still hangs on her bulletin board. Imagine the impact your church family can have on the faith of its younger members when they welcome kids with love, pray for them, encourage them, and help parents nurture faith. (All of which are baptismal promises by the way!) At Faith Alive we’ve been doing a lot of imagining lately about how it takes a church to nurture the faith of all its members, and we’re working on some important materials to help you do that. In the meantime here are a few ideas to help you create an intergenerational faith nurture environment in your ministry: Invite members of the congregation to stop by and share their faith stories with small groups of kids. Some Kid Connection sessions include specific activities for inviting a guest, but you may know of other times when inviting a particular guest may connect well with your lesson—and with the kids! Do you give kids a Bible to keep? Before you put the Bible in their hands, get it into the hands of some church family members so they can write a few personal notes in the opening blank pages, along with some favorite Scripture references. Pass a blank note book around to some experienced parents in your church family so they can add some words of wit, wisdom, and encouragement for a new parent. Make the notebook a gift on baptism day. Ask the pastor, the church custodian, the church administrator, and some praise team members to stop by for a visit when your program is in action. While each one is there take a moment for a group interview and invite kids to come up with a curling iron microphone to ask a few questions. Kids will get to know the members in their church family, and they will get to know the kids. Tip: Ask your kids for suggestions about which church family member they would like to get to know better and send that person a personal invitation! Life on this side of the screen may be challenging at times—but you don’t need a truckload of bells and whistles to reach your kids. The message of the Bible provides something that lasts longer than fun—it’s called JOY. Praying that you experience the fullness of that joy in your ministry! Blessings, Karen DeBoer P.S. In Kid Connection Year 2 Unit 7 you have an opportunity to engage the whole church in a service project that involves a Lemonade Stand. (It is also an option in Unit 9). I’d love to see photos and hear stories from those of you who decide to use that option! Let me know how it (and any other Kid Connection session you’re leading) goes by emailing Editors@FaithAliveResources.org. You are subscribed as %%emailaddr%%. You are receiving Connect because you either signed up on our website or talked with a customer service rep, asking to be subscribed to our mailing list. Unsubscribe \| Update profile \| Email us \| 1-800-333-8300 \| Twitter \| Facebook

April 2009

Welcome to Connect, the monthly Kid Connection eNewsletter for those who minister to children in small Sunday schools, midweek programs, and new church plants. Invite others to receive this free eNewsletter!

Now is your chance to get the Sing With Me Children's Songbook and Leader's Edition for HALF OFF!

Many of the songs are used with Kid Connection and are are God centered, relevant, and fun to sing!

Sale ends April 30—order now!

Non-Negotiables in a Changing World

Last week my ten-year-old daughter and I were walking outdoors at sunset. The spring sky was an amazing orange-blue-purple blend, and we couldn’t help but stop and stare. “Wow!” said Tara. “That sky looks just like a screensaver!”

My daughter and millions of kids like her are growing up in a world where the reality beyond the screen blends with their reality in front of the screen. They play with technological toys, text their friends, watch shows on channels designed just for kids, and then visit those shows’ websites for a “behind the scenes” glimpse into the “real lives” of their favorite stars. Phil Vischer, creator of Veggie Tales, describes it as a world in which we’re advancing a new religion—the religion of FUN.

As children’s ministry leaders we often feel pressure to compete with all of the above. We hear little voices in our heads saying things like: “Kids shouldn’t just walk into Sunday school—they need to swoop in on a winding red slide!” “Kids can’t listen to someone telling a Bible story—they need to watch it on a high definition, flat screen TV!” and “The best way to reach families is by hosting a Super Family Blitz featuring a sponge ball shooting bazooka!”

So how do we reach kids on this side of the screen? If a slide, high-def, and a ball shooting bazooka are necessary this year, how will we be able to compete with that next year? Should we even be competing with that? Although I’d be the first in line if my church let me enter on a swirly red slide and I love HDTV and sponge ball shooting bazookas as much as the next person, those things are not what makes Sunday schools or midweek ministry programs that help transform kids into spiritual champions. Here are the non-negotiables that do:

Great theology. I can’t emphasize this one enough. Put on a pair of Reformed glasses and read through a session in the Sunday school or midweek program you’re using at church with your kids now or one that you are considering buying. Put your finger on the goal for that session. Read it. Now ask yourself: “Does the goal show how God is at the front and center of the passage, or does the goal reduce the passage to a story about a biblical hero, a moral lesson, or a virtue of the month?” How the story is interpreted matters. Good theology is not rated “adults only.”

Learn more about how theology impacts your kids by attending a FREE More Than Storytelling webinar.

Register now for Thursday, April 23, 2009 - 2:00 pm Eastern (1 pm Central)

Learn more about other upcoming Webinars at www.FaithAliveResources.org/Webinars.

Personal relationships. There are great arguments both for and against using DVDs in children’s ministry and I agree that an excellent video clip can make a strong connection with kids and drive a point home. But, kids should never spend the entire precious hour you have with them each week in front of a TV screen. Why? In a competition between a TV screen and a personal relationship, the relationship wins every time. Nothing beats a warm smile, eye contact, and one-on-one conversation. Kids need to hear your faith stories, they need to know what God is doing in your life, and they need you to hear about theirs. Studies show that the average child under the age of eleven condenses about eight hours of general media content (i.e. Internet, cell phones, computer games, iPods, and so on) into each day. They need to spend the hour they have with you on this side of the screen.

Family ties. Speaking of that one precious hour you have with your kids in your program—it’s not enough. The people with the most religious influence in the lives of the kids you teach are their parents—even when they aren’t nurturing the faith of their kids. Instead of being angry that parents aren’t showing up at Sunday school because of sports or other extracurricular activities, reach out to them and provide ways to help them connect with their kids.

The Guess What! Family Magazine was designed to help families talk faith with their kids at home by giving them the stories kids learned at church, a family devotional, parent talks, and a simple calendar they can hang up at home—but parents probably won’t open it if you don’t tell them about it! Email them a quick reminder or attach a post-it note to the magazine that says “Parents/caregivers: check out page 14.”

Extended family connections. My oldest daughter is at university now, but when she was twelve she was featured in our local paper for an athletic accomplishment. A few days after the article appeared she received a homemade card in the mail from an older couple in our church. Although they didn’t know her personally, they’d seen the article and took the time to send her a personal message of congratulations along with a Scripture reference and note that they were praying for her. Eight years later that note still hangs on her bulletin board. Imagine the impact your church family can have on the faith of its younger members when they welcome kids with love, pray for them, encourage them, and help parents nurture faith. (All of which are baptismal promises by the way!) At Faith Alive we’ve been doing a lot of imagining lately about how it takes a church to nurture the faith of all its members, and we’re working on some important materials to help you do that. In the meantime here are a few ideas to help you create an intergenerational faith nurture environment in your ministry:

Invite members of the congregation to stop by and share their faith stories with small groups of kids. Some Kid Connection sessions include specific activities for inviting a guest, but you may know of other times when inviting a particular guest may connect well with your lesson—and with the kids!
Do you give kids a Bible to keep? Before you put the Bible in their hands, get it into the hands of some church family members so they can write a few personal notes in the opening blank pages, along with some favorite Scripture references.
Pass a blank note book around to some experienced parents in your church family so they can add some words of wit, wisdom, and encouragement for a new parent. Make the notebook a gift on baptism day.
Ask the pastor, the church custodian, the church administrator, and some praise team members to stop by for a visit when your program is in action. While each one is there take a moment for a group interview and invite kids to come up with a curling iron microphone to ask a few questions. Kids will get to know the members in their church family, and they will get to know the kids. Tip: Ask your kids for suggestions about which church family member they would like to get to know better and send that person a personal invitation!

Life on this side of the screen may be challenging at times—but you don’t need a truckload of bells and whistles to reach your kids. The message of the Bible provides something that lasts longer than fun—it’s called JOY.

Praying that you experience the fullness of that joy in your ministry!

Blessings,

Karen DeBoer

P.S. In Kid Connection Year 2 Unit 7 you have an opportunity to engage the whole church in a service project that involves a Lemonade Stand. (It is also an option in Unit 9). I’d love to see photos and hear stories from those of you who decide to use that option! Let me know how it (and any other Kid Connection session you’re leading) goes by emailing Editors@FaithAliveResources.org.

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