Childrens Ministry Online

#Orange10 Day 1: Catching volunteers up to Speed

Posted on29. Apr, 2010 by Kenny.

Over the years, I think I’ve attended more Darren Kizer breakouts than any other. He’s a great presenter and shares some great stuff!

Daren began is talk communicating about a crisis his church recently went through, when a former volunteer was arrested for molesting a child. What helped his church make it through and probably saved Daren’s job was the good documentation that was kept. All this tied into his talk as an introduction, as we recruit and train volunteers, it’s so essential to follow our processes, take our time and do things the right way. Don’t take shortcuts and document thoroughly.

Darren shared some great resources, one was a tool called the VSI which was tool that indicates people’s satisfaction about where they are in an organization. According to this VSI, there are four factors that relate to retention. When an employee or volunteer scores high in these four factors, it relates to them being satisfied and happy in their role.

• Organizational Support – Do they have the tools that they need to be successful? Are they fully resourced? Are they frustrated due to a lack of training or resources? Equip, equip, equip!
• Group Integration – Do they feel like they’re a part of a team? Are there others that they can connect with while doing their role? People need community!
• Participatory Efficacy – If people don’t see success or hear stories of success, they’ll wonder why they’re dong what they’re doing. They need to know that they’re making a difference and that their efforts are valuable to the organization and to others.
• Empowerment – Do they have a say in the game? Can they make decisions or take action? Do they feel as if their hands are tied? This is one of the quickest ways to kill a high-impact leader/volunteer.

In addition to this VSI, Darren shared a great book called 12: The Elements of Great Managing. It too asks great questions that you should ask yourself as one of your volunteers to gauge the environment you’re creating as a manager/leader of volunteers.

• Do I know what’s expected of me?
• Do I have materials to do my work right?
• Do I have the opportunity to do what I do best?
• Does someone care about me as a person?
• Do my opinions count?
• In the last 6 months, has someone checked on my progress?

One of the key take-aways for me was this: What I did to recruit a volunteers is different from what I had to do to keep a volunteer. A person usually volunteers because they want to do something good. They stay becasue they they are getting stuff out of their volunteering.

Some resources that Darren shared are as follows:

Better Safe than Sued
Moodle – a free site for setting up training volunteers
Ubvee

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Everyone does better with a coach

Posted on29. Mar, 2010 by Kenny.

This is a simple truth I’ve learned over the past year. Everyone does do better with a coach. I’ve learned this through personal experience. I’ve just entered my second year of Infuse with Jim Wideman and he’s helping me be a better version of myself. There’s little debate over what Jim’s accomplished over the 30 years of ministry to kids. His track record is nothing short of amazing. However, I’ve picked up very few tips and tricks from him that I can apply in Children’s Ministry (although he’s been a great source of wisdom there). What I’ve picked up from Jim this last year is how to be a better leader, how to better redeem the time I have each day, and I can better serve my church. I’ve grown in many ways and it’s becasue I’ve had a coach speaking into my life week after week through Infuse.

If you want to go to the next level in personal leadership, take a good look at having Jim coach you through Infuse. It’s probably best way you can spend any “personal development” funds this year. Click here to read more about what Infuse is all about.

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Plans for Orange Week

Posted on14. Jan, 2010 by Kenny.

So yesterday I announced that next week would be Orange week here at Children’s Ministry Online. My reasoning? Well, I just officially registered for Orange 2010 and next week I’ll be hitting the Orange Tour in Dallas. Why not?

Well, my intention to personally blog “orange” next week has picked up some momentum. A friend over at ReThink liked the idea and asked me to give some resources and stuff away. Woo hoo! Free stuff always makes people happy. Then my friend Dan Scott over at Ada Bible asked if he could participate (like he really had to ask). Then I started thinking, this thing could be bigger than my personal thoughts about Orange.

So, I’m extending the invitation. I’ve invited several other bloggers I know to participate as well. Hopefully the end result is a lot of perspectives and ideas about using the Orange strategy. We all benefit. If you’re interested in participating, shoot me an email (or just comment on this post) and I’ll get you some details (such as Orange topics each day).

So, just so you know, Orange week will launch on Sunday, so be sure to log in or check your feed reader that day. We’ll be giving something away everyday, so you won’t want to miss it. The best thing of all, it’s going to be a great collaborative effort by several people who’ve seen this strategy change lives. If you’re new to Orange or are not sure what it’s all about, you’re about to get a pretty big dose.

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I’m registered for Orange 2010

Posted on13. Jan, 2010 by Kenny.

Yesterday I registered for the Orange Conference 2010! Due to a lot of reasons, I’m only taking a small group to this year’s conference, probably just my Children’s Pastors. Looks like I’m going to reprise my role in the lounge for bloggers, so I’m really excited about that. This will be by third year at Orange and I’m expecting great things. Just curious, who else is coming to Orange this year? Hoping to meet many more new ministry friends.

Mmmmm, thinking about the second annual Orange Tweetup… but this calls for something creative (gears actively turning). I’ll get back to you on this.

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Policy Manuals for Multi-Site

Posted on12. Jan, 2010 by Kenny.

Quick question for those of you who have multiple campuses.

I’ve found that there are sections of our policy manual that are “site-specific.” In redesigning our policy manual, I’ve created a core manual with addendum. These addendum includes specific content for check-in volunteers, early childhood, elementary, special needs and paid childcare. I don’t want every volunteer to have to sort through one super long policy manual, but rather tell them to read the core manual and the addendum that applies to the area they’re serving in.

However, I’m trying to think ahead concerning multi-site with the core manual and these addendums. As we continue to launch multiple sites, about 95% of the material in the manuals will apply regardless of the site. However, that 5% that is site specific is scattered all throughout the manuals. I can imagine making changes to a core policy and then having to go through each manual looking for how that policy affects each campus.

So, my question. How do you other multi-site people do your policies and procedures for multiple campuses. Do you have a core manual with extra stuff that pertains to individual campuses. I’m looking for a solution that is as simple as possible.

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Orange 09: Preconference – College Ministry 101

Posted on13. May, 2009 by Kenny.

So, why are you posting notes about a College Ministry session on a Children’s Ministry website?

1. Technically my role is the Next Gen pastor and it’s my job to oversee College Ministry. This is why I did this pre-conference session. I put all my notes on the blog so it’s easy for me to find later. So, it’s kind of a convenience things for me.
2. Just becasue it’s College Ministry doesn’t mean you can’t learn something from them. Will your kids in preschool eventually enter college? Do you have any college students serve in your ministry? So, it’s probably a good idea to know something about college ministry.

Like I said before, I’m going to oversee college ministry here at Gateway. I don’t have much experience in college ministry. I’ve been in ministry and I’ve been in college. Does that qualify me? Seriously, my knowledge of college ministry tripled at the Orange Conference. So, here we go:

Overview:

This pre-conference was taught by Chuck Bomar. He’s amazing… the grand czar of college ministry. For a good portion of the pre-conference, I felt like I was in a sociology class looking into the way college students think. It was really detailed, but really good. I think I would have connected more if I was actually a College Pastor, but it was helpful. The final part of the final session was all application and it helped me tremendously.

History:

This age stage really developed in the last 100 years.

In the late 1800’s, child labor laws are passed keeping kids from working and sending them ot schools. In 1910 and 1912 the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts are formed since kids are not working. Older teens were still working though. However, during the Great Depression, teenagers were the first ones let go from jobs, so now there was a need for High Schools. In 1930, the first high school in New York opens. After depression, companies are hiring more educated people, so high school becomes a necessary step. In the 1970’s the church first recognizes high school students as a age group to focus on. In 1900, less that 10% of age group in college. Today the number is more than 65%.

Characteristics of this age (18-25)

• Prolonged adolescent thinking/living
• Delayed family life
• Financial dependence

Many churches start a college service:

• Rarely accomplishes what we think
• Temporary solution
• Overly focused on a church service
• Inherently teaches disunity
• Makes discipleship more difficult
• Has teaching difficulty

Ultimately college age is a transition time much like moving from elementary to middle school. The purpose is to transition them from High School to Adult life. We want to protect our investment in these lives. Whether they have grown up in our church or came during college, we want them to fully integrate into our church.

Philosophy

Chuck spent a lot of time talking about philosophy. College students are in the identity formation phase of their life. They don’t need to be told who they are or who they need to be, but someone to walk with them and help them discover their identity.

Application

You don’t need a David Crowder or Louie Gigleo to pull off a successful college ministry. You need seasoned adults (probably the age of the college studetn’s parents) who will form relationships with these students (intergenerational relationships). Again, the focus is assimilation. This happens through home gatherings, justice/service projects and occasional retreats. Ultimately, college ministry is not student ministry on stereroids.

My Take Away

My job description states that I will oversee our college ministry at some point. Up until this point, my only thoughts of college ministry was a college service. This meant finding a leader first. Someone who could teach and lead. With this thought, I knew that it would probably be another year before we attempted to start something like this.

However, this session turn my thoughts of College Ministry on it’s head. The idea of a ministry based on groups really fits with our church’s philosophy. If this is the case, we can probably launch a college ministry this fall. So, I’m encourage. I also work with college students in our Children’s Ministry. This information will also help me know how to best interact with them.

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Sam Luce: He’s famous and he’s my friend

Posted on30. Apr, 2009 by Kenny.

Sam Luce: He’s famous and he’s my friend from Kenny Conley on Vimeo.

Read the article here! Actually you can read the whole magazine!

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Orange preconference and breakout sessions I’m attending

Posted on05. Feb, 2009 by Kenny.

I registered my team for Orange last week. I chose my breakouts today. Here’s what I’m doing:

Preconference: CONCENTRATE: Bridging the Generational Gap: The Vitality of Being a College-Friendly Church
Breakout A: Capturing the Heart of New Parents
Breakout B: Fine Tuning Your Systems
Breakout C: MESSAGE: Rules of Engagement…The Art of Communication
Breakout D: STRATEGY: Leading an Integrated Family Ministry Team

Okay, I really wanted to do Partnering with Parents to Build Faith Skills during Breakout A, but it appears to be full already. If someone wants to switch with me, I’ll give you a dollar. Actually I really would like to go to it, I’ll buy you lunch!

Below are the descriptions of the breakouts. Come on people, how can you resist a conference with this level of quality in every breakout. Click here to check out all the breakouts.

CONCENTRATE: Bridging Generational Gap: The Vitality of Being a College-Friendly Church
Chuck Bomar
There is an ever-growing generational gap in most churches, and it starts when college-age people disengage. As leaders and parents, we recognize the problem and talk about it, but what do we do? One key is to look at churches that aren’t experiencing a generational gap in their congregation and determine what makes them different. Why are so many college-age people viewing those churches as friendly? Is it because they have a service designed specifically for them, or is it something much deeper? This seminar suggests that there is much, much more to the issue! This seminar addresses specific questions such as: What deeper teaching and ministry philosophies are churches adapting that are immediately engaging college-age people and putting a halt on generational gaps? What sort of things have they adapted in their children’s and student ministries that have helped bring lasting resolution? In what ways might you subtly be contributing to the detachment of college-age people—without even knowing it? This seminar will take an honest look at these questions and help you walk away with practical ideas for making your church college friendly.

Capturing the Heart of New Parents
Kendra Fleming
Isn’t it amazing how you can love someone so much who keeps you up all night, spits up on your favorite shirt, and screams in your ear? That’s the miracle of what happens in your heart when a baby is born. This beginning stage in a parent’s life will change them like few others will. Suddenly they are overwhelmed, intimidated, inspired for the future, and incredibly responsible. This breakout is about how we can seize this unique opportunity to partner with parents from the very beginning.

Fine-Tuning Your Systems
Diane Runge
Do you have tasks in your ministry that are repeated over and over? If so, then you have systems, and finding ways to accomplish them with efficiency and excellence is important. Strong leaders give constant attention to fine-tuning their systems. In this breakout, we will talk practically about strategies for making budgeting decisions; downloading, preparing, and distributing curriculum resources; and getting volunteers started.

Rules of Engagement
The Art of Communication
Reed Dickens

Mark Twain once said, “Noise produces nothing. Often a hen who merely has laid an egg cackles as though she has laid an asteroid.” Every communicator wants to be better at his or her craft. Unfortunately, in our attempt to become better, we tend to speak louder or longer, ignoring the chasm between speaking and communicating. Reed Dickens, former White House Assistant Press Secretary, regular contributor on Larry King Live, Fox News and MSNBC, and CEO of Outside Eyes, a multi million dollar consulting firm that specializes in media strategy and crisis management, leads this eye opening discussion on the art of persuasive communication, the goal of communication, keys to effective persuasion, non-verbal language, message training, and crisis communication.

Leading an Integrated Family Ministry Team
Scott Austin
You’ve got your children’s ministry and youth ministry teams at the same table. Now what are you going to do with them? As traditional models of ministry fade away and your church goes Orange, you quickly realize that you need a new level of leadership and new strategies of management. How do you create one team out of silo organizations? How do you create a culture of collaboration? What needs to change in order to thrive as a family ministry team? This session moves past grand schemes and philosophies into the nuts and bolts of leading an integrated ministry team. Whether you are the leader of your church’s family ministry, a part of the family ministry team, or you want to lead your church to make a change, this session is for you.

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84 days until the Orange Conference

Posted on04. Feb, 2009 by Kenny.

Don’t worry, I’m not going to count every day down to 0.

This year will be my second year to attend the Orange Conference. If you’ve never attended, let me tell you what it is.

Initially you’ll notice that it’s a conference with incredible speakers and breakout sessions all geared to children’s, student’s and family ministries. It absolutely is. If that’s all you know about it, that alone is compelling enough reason to sign up and go. I’d been to the CPC for a few years and was looking for a new and slightly different conference. The Purpose Driven Conference was not happening and I wasn’t convinced I wanted to go to Willow Creek. I didn’t know anything about Orange, but when I saw the speaker line-up, I knew it would be worth it.

However, about two months before I went, I figured out what Orange was really about. It was a new philosophy for Student and Children’s Ministry. It was a new philosophy for Family Ministry. When “Orange” was explained to me, I saw that it was the solution to many of the roadblocks I’d run into as a Children’s Pastor. I think it’s possibly to attend Orange, experience a great conference and amazing sessions and miss what Orange is really all about… but you’ll still have a great experience. However, if you get an understanding of the “Orange” philosophy is, you’ll be impacted in an even more profound way.

What is the Orange Philosophy? Buy this DVD. It’s $40, but it has the potential to shake up everything you ever believed about family ministry. You’ll understand what Orange is and you’ll probably want to attend the conference. Can’t afford to attend a conference this year? Buy this DVD. It’s not quite a conference, but it’s only $40.

Want more info? Last year I attended Orange and blogged every session, every breakout and every experience I had. Check it out here. I plan to take my blogging/twittering to the next level this year. I’m meeting up with all kinds of people this next year, so maybe I’ll add some video content along with everything else. You don’t want to miss it!

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Orange Conference 2009

Posted on27. Jan, 2009 by Kenny.

I got this in my email today. I’m taking my Children’s staff to Orange this year. Actually I’m registering on Thursday. Let me know if you’re going to be there, it will be great to connect with a few new faces!

I just wanted to remind everyone that you have two more days to take advantage of the discounted registration rate for Orange Conference. The last day to sign up at the current rate is Thursday, January 29.

To get your tickets secured before the price increase, simply head over to www.TheOrangeConference.com and click on “Register” near the top of the page.
(Note: The increased price takes effect at 12:00 a.m., Eastern Standard Time, Friday, January 30, 2009.)

If you’re on the fence about whether or not you will be joining us this year, here are a few little known facts that just might make your decision a little easier:
- We are offering over 60 NEW breakout topics this year – never-heard-before material.
- You’ll have the opportunity to check out either the Family Production Showcase, the first- ever demonstration of Preschool Party, or the Student Ministry Forum all offered on Thursday evening.

If you bring a group of 10 or more people to Orange 2009, you can choose a free gift*:

Three months FREE of the reThink curriculum of your choice
One free 12-month subscription to our upcoming release of OrangeLeaders.com
One free 12-month subscription to AmberSkyRecords.com
50 percent off the registration fees for any Orange Tour 09 Event
* See the conference Web site for more details.

If you bring a group of 15 or more people to Orange 2009, you’ll be able to send someone from your group to attend a special lunch with Francis Chan during the conference.

Nancy Beach, Perry Noble, Francis Chan, Sue Miller, Reggie Joiner, Chap Clark, Dan Webster, Jeanne Stevens, Craig Jutila, Jim Wideman, Sherry Surratt, Stuart Hall, Jared Herd, Steve Fee, Phil Whickham – do we need to say much more?

And if you’re looking for some ammo to get your senior pastor to join you at Orange, we’ve expanded the number of preconference breakouts that target specific needs of someone in this leadership role. We’re bringing in six different senior pastors and church leaders to speak in these breakouts, and they pack a punch: Scott Hodge, Dan Reiland, Jeff Henderson, Geoff Surratt, David Kinnaman and Carey Nieuwhof.

And if you really need more reasons to attend Orange in 2009, just drop us an email and we’ll be happy to tell you all about our plans.
We can’t wait to see YOU in April!

Reggie Joiner
www.theorangeconference.com

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