CMX: My Experience Part 2

Further ideas, resources and links I liked from the Children’s Ministry Expo, 2010 that will benefit children’s ministry leaders as well as parents influence the next generation to walk with Jesus.

(For part 1 click here).

In this article:

• Links
  • Just a random collection of websites you may want to check out.
• Resources
  • Parenting, family and church resources worth looking into.
• Ideas
  • Jim Wideman on organization
  • Coach D on fathering
  • Karen Rhodes on mission minded kids

LINKS I Liked:

The * indicates personal favourites.

• * www.ronniecaldwell.com Music videos for kids. Events for families. Daph and I bought two of his DVDs.
• * www.evangecube.org Tools to helps kids teach the Gospel to their friends.
• * www.tadpoletails.org LEDGE kids: look for “The Great Adventure” trading cards coming this Fall! What a cool idea! Dan Huffman, the creator, also gave us a curriculum DVD and a DVD for families to learn together.
• www.biblevisuals.org Kinda self-explanatory.
• * www.karynhenley.com Definitely like her stuff for young children! “My Learn to Pray Bible” is great.
• www.goodstewardbooks.com Online Christian books for purchase.
• www.footstepstools.com Bible navigation resources.
• * www.kidzkonnect4jesus.org and www.belizechristian.com Daph had a fantastic conversation with Karen Rhodes about missions to kids in Belize. She has a passion to get kids to be mission minded, ie. on mission for Jesus all the time. How do you fathom an entire country where 1/3 of the population is 14 and under?
• www.nomilkministries.com Curriculum that goes beyond elementary teaching.
• www.logotags.com Leader in custom dog tags.
• * www.biblicalparenting.org I’m thinking I need to check this site out a little more! Looks good.
• www.matt516.com Coach D has a passion for seeing fathers spiritually training their children.
• * www.seedsfamilyworship.com Great Scripture set to great music planting God’s Word into the hearts of children.
• www.wordaction.com They have a young believers discipleship series of booklets that I might look into. Topics such as prayer, baptism, sharing Jesus, etc.
• www.hlp4.com This group has a divorce care for kids curriculum.
• www.mops.org Mother’s of Preschoolers. They’ve been around awhile and have a solid reputation with young moms.

RESOURCES I Liked:

• Collaborate: Daph and I won this book cuz we’re expecting a child! (Thanks Michael Chanley). A book of ideas for connecting church and family.
• Parenting Beyond Your Capacity: A book by Reggie Joiner and Carey Nieuwhof (pastor of Connexus Church in Barrie, ON). I’m excited to read this one.
• Seeds Family Worship: Link above…good Scripture music.
• The Great Adventure Cards: from Tad Pole Tails (link above)
• The Lamb: This comes in book, powerpoint and DVD formats. I mentioned this in the first CMX post, but wanted to mention it again because I think it does a fantastic job of pulling out the symbolism of the Bible for kids. Go to www.goodseed.com to see products.

TRAINING Sessions I Liked:

Jim Wideman: Organization

• “You weren’t born organized, you were born naked.”
• Organization is a learned behaviour.
• Organization + order = management (Matthew 25).
• Be faithful with the small so God will entrust you with much.
• As believers we are managers of God’s resources, therefore, we must learn to manage them well.
• Time tools: calendar, timer, deadlines (ie. return calls/emails within 24hrs).
• Plan your calendar by priorities
• Preparation: think in steps (ie. break big things into its smaller parts).
• Know where you’re going and where you are.
• When you are overwhelmed you are being warned that burnout is close by. Again, break down into increments.
• Evaluation: track how you actually spend your time, ID time wasters, review priorities each night/week/etc.
• Delegation: not just duplication, define the role to be delegated, likely someone else can do it.
• Jim’s top ten:
• 10: account for your time
• 9: plan time offensively (say no and yes definitively to the right things)
• 8: keep priorities in order
• 7: delegate to the faithful (it’s like returning the favour because you had to learn somehow to)
• 6: plan for interruptions
• 5: respond rather than react (hear all sides of story first, say, “I’ll don’t know, but I’ll get back to you.”)
• 4: don’t procrastinate
• 3: get help and training
• 2: plan for growth
• 1: pray
• Don’t do business in the hall…make appointments.

Coach D: Fathers

• Based on Matthew 5:16, do good works to the Father will be glorified
• “I am who I am, but not who I want to be. So if I’m going to change it has to start with me.”
• He elevated the term “father” in contrast with “dad” in two acronyms.
• D-dedicated
• A-authoritative
• D-disciplinarian
• F-faithfully
• A-adhering
• T-to
• H-Heaven’s
• E-eternal
• R-righteousness
• S-system

Karen Rhodes: Mission Minded Kids

• Evangelism – sharing faith – conversation
• Discipleship – modeling faith – action
• Evangelism + Discipleship = Missions
• Conversation + Action = Impact
• MISSIONS = IMPACT
• Being mission minded is a LIFESTYLE not a project or an annual event.
• Provide a wide variety of serving opportunities for kids
• Write letters to missionaries