Archive for 'Parents'
Baptism Video
Posted on20. Aug, 2010 by Kenny.
We like to celebrate baptisms big here at Gateway. We usually hold them three times a year (summer months) so that many can participate. We held a baptism a few weeks ago and nearly half of those baptized were kids. Several parents baptized their kids that night. Actually, two sets of parents were baptized and then baptized their kids. It was becasue of their kids that the parents finally decided to take this step. Powerful!
Enjoy the video!
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Immediate and constant evaluation
Posted on04. Aug, 2010 by Kenny.
My boss just came back from eight weeks of sabbatical. Something I get to look forward to in a little less than 5 more years. Sigh…
So, he’s been visiting other churches in Austin during these eight weeks. On one of these visits, he got an email just a few days after the visit thanking him for coming and asking him to fill out the following survey.
This is a simple google docs form. All the responses fill a spreadsheet with timestamps so you are likely to know what weekend a person is referring to in their review.
I honestly believe that most of us spend more time assuming how people feel about our ministry and more time moving on what we think is really going on. Honest and accurate evaluation is a lost art and a much-needed habit. We’re planning to implement a very similar evaluation in a few weeks or so.
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ReThink ReInvents Family Times
Posted on20. Jul, 2010 by Kenny.
I must say that I’m very excited about Cue Box, a new resource coming soon from reThink that ties directly into 252Basics. For years reThink has offered virtue packs through Family Times that tied into the monthly virtue. Don’t get me wrong, these are great resources. However, we couldn’t ever really get a lot of momentum behind them. The parents who used them like them, but few committed to using them regularly.
Cue Box is a reinvention of the Family Times virtue packs. The big change is that it’s DVD and Kid driven. Rather than going the route of offering a resource to parents that they “should” use, Cue Box offers a resource that basically does the same thing but because it is Kid-driven, the kids are pushing their parents toward getting it and using it.
Who knows how successful it will be? It probably depends on how you promote it among your parents and how readily available you make it. From what I’ve seen, the production value seems high (personally I think it’s on a significantly higher level than any of their other video content) and I can’t imagine that the content is anything less than excellent.
Click here to visit Studio252.tv and learn more about Cue Box. This resource begins with September’s virtue, so you don’t want to miss your opportunity to get in on the ground floor.
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Video Review: What’s in the Bible Disc Two
Posted on28. Jun, 2010 by Kenny.
Okay, I just finished watching disc two. Honestly, I intended to watch the review a month ago, but finding an hour to watch it and write my assessment has been harder than I’d have imagined. In case you didn’t read earlier, I wrote a review of disc one here.
I’m still impressed with the content. Several times I laugh out loud due to the witty and cleaver lines but it’s been well put together and it is certainly a fantastic way to be exposed to the Bible. Disc two covers the remainder of Genesis and and all of Exodus. What I love so much about WITB is that it’s not just an overview of key Bible stories, but key concepts are being introduced. In disc two, Biblical Cannon is explained, concepts of salvation and redemption are introduced as well as other things like patriarchal history and basic covenant theology. These concepts are key to understanding the “Bible story,” so it’s incredible that this DVD set is so well-rounded. If our kids grow up just knowing a bunch of stories, it isn’t likely that it will change their lives. However, if we tie the stories of the Bible to the problems and pain we experience, our kids might see God’s plan for their lives as told through his scriptures. Amazing.
One of the things I loved about this DVD were the tie-ins to current life. There’s a key point where the first commandment is explained. They went into a humorous explanation of how in those times people worshiped the sun and moon and statues. In my mind I’m thinking, “they really should tie this in to how we worship other gods like money and sports.” Then they did. Perfect!
Last of all, I loved the concept and strategy this series is revealing. In this disc they kept saying God’s rescue plan. When you read the Old Testament in light of the knowledge that God is at work to redeem his people, the stories all take on a different light. In this disc, they tie the ram God provided for Abraham instead of sacrificing Isaac and the lambs blood on the doorpost for the passover as foreshadowing of the sacrifice Jesus would make. This is so important, to tell the Bible story as one interconnected narrative that all points in the same direction.
My only negatives. I don’t like the Pastor and Sunday School Lady characters very much. They just come off as being a little weird and out of touch. Granted, they look very much like what a lot of Pastors and Sunday School teachers look like, so maybe that’s part of the reason for it. It’s just my opinion, but it doesn’t change how I feel about the videos overall. Go get them. You can pick them up here!
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Father’s Day Video
Posted on27. Jun, 2010 by Kenny.
Not sure if you’ve seen this yet. Usually I see this on the blogs or on twitter, but actually found this from the facebook feed of someone I recently married who isn’t really that plugged into church. So, I’m assuming that this video has gone somewhat viral. I have been a little out of touch though, so if “everyone” was talking about this last week and I just didn’t see it, I’m sorry for passing it along. I’ve cracked up at this many times now. Enjoy!
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Communicating with parents while at camp
Posted on22. Jun, 2010 by Kenny.
Over the years I’ve used a variety of ways to keep parents in the loop of what was going on at camp. In the early days, I’d shoot my admin a summary email that she would forward on to all the parents. Then in 2003 or 2004, I took a big jump and started using a yahoo group, which worked pretty well. I’ve found that the more I help parents feel connected to what was going on with their kids at camp, the more excited they’d be about the ministry that happens to their kids, both at camp and back at home. A lot of parents are nervous about being away from their kids, so they just want to see pictures of their kids all happy and having fun. These days, it’s so easy to do this, easier than ever.
Our Kids Ministry already has a facebook group, facebook.com/kidsquest. All we did was update the facebook page like crazy. Last year I did a lock-in and I gave 5-8 of my leaders access to the Kids Quest twitter account. It worked well, but only for parents on twitter. If you’re using a facebook fan page, your status updates will sync to twitter, but not the other way around. So, I had a few of my staff just posting status updates with pics as often as they could. As soon as the update published, facebook sent it out as a tweet as well.
The parents loved the updates. We told them where we were on our travels, showed them pictures of what the kids were eating and let the parents know where we were on the drive home (so they could know what time to arrive). I even created “notes” every day with the content of what I would be teaching that day and giving the parents prayer points. It was a good system and the parents went nuts. They felt like they were a part of the camp.
Next year we plan to have even more interaction. On one day we held a contest asking the parents whether they thought the girls room or the boys room was cleanest. A few hours later we uploaded a video. The parents really got into this. Next year I think we’ll do even more stuff like this to keep the parents extra engaged, even creating opportunities for parents to interact some with their kids. I also want to play with the idea of a live feed. I’m not 100% sure you can actually do a live feed with the internet service there, but we could possibly upload the services a few hours later just so parents and families can see what their kids are experiencing.
Click here to jump over to our facebook page and see the kind of content we were posting.
Below is the clean room video contest we posted while at camp.
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Phonics Phail
Posted on20. Jun, 2010 by Kenny.
On Saturday we had a Child Dedication at Gateway. It was awesome. We dedicated over 30 young children to God and it was unique and special for all of our families involved. Every time I host a Dedication service, I learn something new. Here’s what I learned this time.
Try not to butcher some one’s name.
I have four kids where I wasn’t sure how to pronounce their name. I had my Early Childhood coordinator ask the parents when they signed in, which meant I got the pronunciation just a few minutes before I went on stage. Not enough time for me to remember. Two of the four names I massacred.
So, in the midst of my pain I realize that I need to be proactive in making sure I pronounce the names right. More than likely, their names are going to be mispronounced their entire lives, why not try to get it right here. So, I figured there are two ways to go about fixing this
- I always do electronic registration using Fellowship One for these dedications. Next time I can create a field under their “full name” asking them to phonetically spell out their name so that it is properly pronounced. I remember at college graduation I had to phonetically write out my name on an index card before handing it to the announcer before my name was called out to receive my diploma. It seems kinda mechanical, but efficient.
- One of the prayer leaders can call the family before the event and get the proper pronunciation before the event. That way it’s done in a more personal way.
I think it’s really important to pronounce the name correctly. I think my first way is really efficient, but not very personal. The second way is personal, but not necessarily efficient (if someone forgets to call, then you’re stuck in the position of not knowing how to pronounce their name.
What do you think? Any other ideas?
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Where Does a Parent Learn to Be a Parent?
Posted on08. Jun, 2010 by Kenny.
Here’s some news on the family ministry front. Here’s a press release from Group Publishing concerning a new product that ties into their Faith Weaver line of curriculum.
New Curriculum Helps Parents Develop a Spiritual Foundation for Their Kids
Loveland, CO—For years, parents have been encouraged to take an active role in their child’s spiritual development, but oftentimes the primary responsibility falls on the shoulders of the church. In many cases, it’s because parents don’t know where to turn.
“Although many parents desire that their children develop spiritually, my experience shows that about 60 percent of parents aren’t doing anything at home to help build their children’s spiritual lives,” says Christine Yount Jones, executive editor of Children’s Ministry magazine. “I think this is because parents often lack confidence and don’t have a place to go to learn.”
As churches are looking for ways to equip parents to apply spiritual teaching in their everyday parenting, Group Publishing in Loveland, CO, has developed special small group curriculum for parents to meet that need. The curriculum is designed specifically to give parents the tools they need to guide and encourage their children’s spiritual growth.
The new small group curriculum, which launches this fall in churches around the country, is part of Group’s FaithWeaver® line of resources, which includes classes for all ages and has been successfully used in more than 25,000 churches nationwide since 1999. While parents are attending their small group, their children attend classes designed for them. Each week, everyone studies and discusses the same Bible point at an age-appropriate level.
“For example,” says Yount Jones, “one week the children might learn how they can rely on God. At the same time, the parents are taught how to help their children rely on God. Parents learn how to do this in practical ways and share ideas with other parents in their group. Now they can go home and weave faith teaching into their children’s lives throughout the week, focusing on this particular area.”
Other Bible points that the fall small group curriculum will cover include selflessness versus selfishness, showing true kindness, seeking wisdom during parenting challenges, and faithfulness. Group plans to introduce a new set of Bible points each quarter. Each meeting includes a lesson from the Bible on the point being presented, as well as extensive discussion and application time.
Parents interested in joining a small group can ask their local church for additional information or visit faithweaver.com. Churches interested in ordering the materials for a small group can visit faithweaver.com or check out their local Christian bookstore. Materials will be available in June.
About the Product
FaithWeaver Parent Small Group
Quarterly Parent Leader Guide: $9.99; ISBN: 9780764447471
Quarterly Parent Handbook: $5.29; ISBN: 9780764447488
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Child dedication gift
Posted on07. Jun, 2010 by Kenny.
Quick question for those of you in the community. I’ve got another child dedication coming up in a few weeks. In the past we’ve given out gift bibles to the kids. We pay $6-8 per Bible. I’m re-thinking this. This $6-8 Bible is not a children’s Bible, so it’s likely to sit on a shelf somewhere for a decade or more before it’s ever really used. Seems like a waste to me. I’m thinking about giving every parent the book, Revolutionary Parenting. I know that every parent wont read it, but at least I know that if they did, it would challenge them to the core of what it means to spiritually lead kids.
So, what do you give to your kids/families? If you could change what you gave (I know some have their hands tied), what would it be?
(By the way, I am kidding about the picture. For the record, I’ve never given away a precious moments gift Bible.)
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Best commercial I’ve seen about parents in years
Posted on20. May, 2010 by Kenny.
This is a silly commercial advertising the Toyota Sienna. I laughed out loud many times.
I think what I like most about this commercial were the parents and they way they were portrayed. Really, it was a commercial geared to mini-van moms and dads showing how cool you might be driving a Sienna. Although these parents might be a little over confident (and arrogant), they look like pretty good parents. They’re engaged in their kids lives. Period. When statistics say that the average parent spends only 15 minutes a day interacting with their kids, I say we need more parents like these.
Maybe Toyota is trying to tell people that paretns who drive Siennas are cool. I didn’t catch that. I saw parents who connect with their kids are cool.
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