Family Ministry

I have had some great conversations with some folks lately about family ministry and family type services. I have always felt like if I am to be an effective children's pastor, I need to minister to the whole family and empower parents to be the spiritual leaders of their homes. I found a new children's ministry blog that had the best quote! Family events are awesome and can be done in a way to truly make a difference in living out their faith but events for just the sake of having them gets old fast.

Henry Zonio said this about family ministry, “We need to help families to allow God to change the entire story of their family rather than just giving them events or block quotes that they insert into their current story.”

That is a powerful statement. I want to minister in a way that helps people to live out their faith every day in practical, intentional, and evangelistic ways. I want to help them change their story!

Gotta Rant

I haven't had a good rant for awhile so here ya go. We just landed on Mars. Every time I hear about this kinda stuff, I get HOT. We spend millions and millions of dollars to travel in space and I personally think it's a huge waist! Oh, I know it's cool that we have the capability to do those things and that people are so incredibly smart to figure it all out but come on! There are tons of starving people, homeless children, people without health care and disasters all around us and we are spending money to scoop up some sand on Mars to see if humans have ever been there. I don't care! I know the Word says we will always have the poor but it just seems inhuman to spend all this money on space travel when we have kids in our city who will go to bed hungry tonight. I'm just sayin'.....

Family Mission Statement

I thought this was a great idea. I saw an article in Sunday's Des Moines Register that caught my eye. It talked about how more families are writing mission statements for their families including goals and areas they want to grow in and have accountability such as physical, mental, spiritual and emotional growth. I thought it was very cool, especially as your kids get to that pre-teen stage of life. If families talk about expectations, goals and their values, I think it is more likely to be a reality. A written mission statement can be displayed in a prominent place where you can have a daily reminder of where you are all heading in life. Kinda goes back to that empowering mantra that we talked about in parenting class..."In our family we......"

Graduation

Ta-Da...The Graduate!
Randy, Micaela, our niece Amanda

My dad graduated!!

Oh my, it's so exciting!

I did what?! Finally finished?!

Our good friends the Lively family minus one.

Pastor BBopp, Kathy and kids

The May family...look at my sweet Adele!

Shera and Olivia LOVE Mister Randy!Our good buddies...The Kimmer Clan

Me and Becky...we're so cute :)

Michelle, Keaton and MicaelaOur pastor, Dave and Elli Beroth and friends Dan and Jeanne Moeckl

Nate, Shanna, me and mini Nate, Aidan

I am so proud of my hunky husband! We attended his commencement service at Simpson College on Saturday morning. He received his BA in accounting after many years of taking classes here and there. Not only did he finish, he did so with incredible grades. Our niece, Amanda, was able to go Indianola with us and cheer Randy on. The speaker was kinda boring and focused on "saving the planet", which is all good, but not what I think of as a graduation speech. It was a beautiful day!

We had an open house for Randy Saturday night and it was great to see so many of our friends come out and honor him. We had about 50 people, tons of food, and lots of memories shared. I tried to get pictures of everyone who came. This is just a few!

Happy Birthday Jenn

Today is my buddy Jenn Adair's birthday. Jenn and I met at church and hit it off right away. She is an amazing woman of God who is growing in her relationship with Jesus in giant steps. She is one of those people who commits with her whole heart and soul and always does her best. She is a great wife to her husband, Shawn and a terrific mommy to Colby and Cale. She LOVES her pooch, Maggie, a long haired Dachshund. The whole fam is huge Cubs fans, which in my book rocks! Jenn has a super fun spirit and everyone instantly loves her. She has been a huge blessing to her niece, Ashlin, and loves her as her own. She was one of my drivers during my surgery recovery and even helped clean my house! That's a good friend! Have a wonderful birthday, Jenn! I love ya bunches!

Amazing Technology for the Kingdom of Christ

I am LOVING Facebook. I'm having so much fun networking with other pastors from all over the world. I just had a live chat with a health care pastor from south India! How cool is that? I have pastor "friends" from Pakistan, England, Australia, several places in Africa and all over the US. I try not to spend too much time fiddling around with it and I get a little annoyed with all the application things but to connect with other believers from so many different places is like traveling to somewhere you may never be and feeling that the family of God is massive and spreading. It's good to realize there are so many different types of ministries in places that are incredibly "dark" and not be so focused on my small contribution in the Kingdom. The common thread of Christ weaves us together in a way that erases boundary lines and cultural differences and knits us together in this tapestry for the salvation of the world. Very cool.

T.A.L.K. Networking Group

I'm not sure if I have ever blogged about the children's pastor networking group I belong to but I should be! It is a great group of Central Iowa people from all different denominations that have one common thread; we all love and minister to kids. T.A.L.K. stands for teaching and loving kids. Pastor Brian Bopp (BBopp) is the founding inspiration and he asked Sherri Stufflebeem, cp at First Federated, and me to be co-leaders for the group. We meet the third Thursday of every month September through May. BBopp was a part of a group in Lexington, Kentucky where he pastored before coming to Iowa two years ago.

Each month, we discuss a different topic such as technology, holiday services and programs, VBS and summer activities, object lessons and games....you get the idea. The churches involved take turns hosting and then giving a tour of their children's facility. Of course, we include praise reports and prayer needs and find ways to encourage each other in what we do. Children's pastors are a part of a relatively small tribe so we stick together, share resources and sometimes equipment and borrow each other's ideas.

Last Thursday we met at First Federated and shared ideas for games and object lessons. We always bring our lunch and fellowship first and then have our meeting. It was such a fun time laughing about some of the crazy, messy games we have gotten ourselves into over the years. I always leave refreshed, encouraged and inspired with new ideas. We have about 60 people on our e-mail list and average about 10-12 at the meetings, depending on who can break away that day. We invite anyone who works with kids to join us!! You do not need to be a full time pastor to come to T.A.L.K.!

I love how we care for each other and no one sees denominations or doctrine. It's a bummer to take summers off but who has time for extra meetings during all the summer activities? Keep us in mind next September when we restart and join in the fun! If you want to receive e-mail minutes from the meetings and reminders of our meeting times and dates, just leave a request in the a comment and we'll get you on the list! Enjoy the pics of our game ideas!

I'm Gonna Spread the Joy...Not the Jam

That was our Big Idea today in chapel at Des Moines Christian School. I've said it before...I LOVE doing chapel at DMC! It was sad to think that it was the last time for this school year but Mr. Lambert said I could come back next year!

This year, DMC has focused all their chapel time on building healthy relationships and "Joyfulness" is the topic for May with the scripture verse being from Romans 15:13; "May the Lord of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." The Big Idea comes in as there are a lot of things that can jam up a relationship; jealousy, anger, selfishness, misunderstanding, etc. So we want to spread the joy, not the jam!

I spoke of the joy we can have in truly knowing our family and friends so in our relationships we can use that knowledge to bless and help them. I used the example of how I know more about my friend Amy than just her height, address and what color her eyes are. I love her more than that! In knowing her well, it brings me joy to minister to her needs. I said if I knew she was stressed out and having a bad day, a call to take the girls for awhile, plus a nice Starbucks beverage and some new fancy paper for the craft room would be just what the doctor ordered. I should have added a little Barry Manilow playing in the background!

Jesus was more than our Savior...He was a real friend to those around him. He knew Peter so well that when Peter acted before thinking, Jesus knew just what to say to him to make him listen. Jesus knew Thomas was a guy who didn't believe just everything, he needed proof. So when Jesus rose from the dead, He had to show Thomas the scars on His hands to get Thomas to believe. And John...this one speaks volumes. Jesus knew John so well that He totally trusted John to take care of His mom after He died. He told John, "Behold, your mother." You just don't trust a casual friend to take care of your mom!

We can be friends and friendly but how much easier would it be when ministering to the lost if we took time to learn something more about someone than just their name and where they live? There is true, boundless joy in having relationships that run deep with caring and trust. HEY ~ What's the Big Idea? I'm gonna spread the joy, not the jam!

Just for Fun

Thursday afternoon, I was invited to DM Christian's Preschool program where Lisi stole the show! She knew every word of every song and the girl has some great pipes! You can't get much cuter than preschoolers! My buddy Colin was announcing he needed to potty. One little girl had a melt down because she had a sweater on and announced quite loudly that she was just too hot! Rachel C. was taking care of Colin and his sister Ana that day and she said he wasn't too happy that he couldn't wear his Spiderman outfit. Welcome to parenthood! Good times.

Friday night, Randy and I went to a dinner put on by the Division of Adult Learning at Simpson. Great food and a fun time of celebrating the accomplishments of these folks that work full-time, have families and still are able to do college! We are soooo proud of Randy. It was cool how each of their own advisers spoke about each graduate personally. You could tell the advisers really got to know the students.

Saturday, Keaton and I had a few errands to run and we ended up at one of our favorite places, Nobbies. Now you need to understand something. This is a store that gives children's pastors goose bumps...chicken skin, if you will. It's just got cool stuff! We always make the most of any time together and boring errands can be made into pee-your-pants laughter. Who knew hats could be so entertaining. Helps that it is Keaton wearing them. :)

Dreaming Big

I had a great meeting yesterday with my partner in crime, Pastor BBopp. He is so great to work with and a VERY creative thinker. He and I had a dreaming time together as we brain stormed about possible ministry paths. It's been a long time since I was in a meeting that I was so excited about. We are praying for some big things that will take a move of God and some hard work to accomplish. It's definitely one of those Mark Batterson quoting moments, "Pray like it depends on God and work like it depends on you." BBopp is always saying that I am strong in areas that he is weak so I guess we compliment each other's ministry styles.

I haven't broke the news to him yet, but another thing that God is showing me is that we will need three nurseries by this fall when people rally back to church after the summer slump. Hope I don't scare him too bad. :) I'm just chasing lions.

Sacrifice

Sacrifice - what does that word mean to you? I think of giving up or going without something that means a lot to me or gives me pleasure. We all have experienced sacrifice but I heard of an example this week that was very inspirational. A college girl's softball game on a lovely spring day takes an unusual turn. After hitting an over the fence home run, Sara, from Western Oregon realizes she missed tagging first base and makes a quick turn to tag the bag. As she does, she tears her ACL and drops to the ground in horrible pain. The coaches and ump realize if she cannot run and they use a pinch runner, it's ruled a two run single. (There was a runner at second and third base.) If her teammates even touch her, she will be ruled out. Mallory, the first baseman for the opposing team, Central Washington, asks the ump if she can help her. Of course he was shocked by the question but stated there was no rule against it. So....the first baseman and shortstop proceed to pick her up and carry her around the bases and carefully help her tag each bag with her good leg and carry her to home plate. By helping this injured girl, the opposing team gave the others enough runs that they lost the game. Now that is a sacrifice that you don't see happen too often in our competitive world. The parents of those girls should be so proud. It really should be a "normal" reaction but the world is what it is - selfish on most ends.

In the big scheme of things, this isn't huge but what if more people behaved this way? BTW ~ Mallory won the player of the year award!

Taking a Survey

I got to thinking that as a person who hasn't taken her child to a church nursery in over 20 years, maybe what I think is crucial isn't to everyone else. So...I'm taking a survey. Leave me a comment with the top three or four things you look for when visiting a church nursery, you know, the things that are non-negotiable. Thanks for your help in this unscientific survey. Just want to always be on the right track. :)

That Time of Year

Graduation time....It always makes me reflect about the impact of children's ministry. I have done this pastor thing long enough that some of "my kids" now have kids themselves and we have seen many graduations! I always get sentimental about them and have that bit of pride in how well they all have turned out and just hope I somehow was a blessing in their lives. There is a large group graduating at our former church, Berean Assembly of God, and they were such a fun group. I look at these particular kids and they are all so talented, smart and creative but best of all are using their gifts and talents in serving Jesus. Way to go guys...the Lord has wonderful plans for each of you. We'll be stopping by as many open houses as possible and rejoicing with them!

Happy Birthday Adrian

It was my buddy Adrian's birthday yesterday. Adrian is one of the sweetest gals you'll ever meet with an infectious laugh and passionate heart. She is a wonderful mommy to two precious girls and knows how to treat her amazing husband, Drew. Adrian understands the importance of family, who affectionately call her, Addy! Hope your birthday ROCKED, my friend! Love ya!

Good Day

The nursery split went awesome! All of my team did a great job, the kids loved the new table, parents were super positive, the Bumbo chairs came in handy, and the lesson time was so fun. We had all but one of our previous week visitors return, which was very exciting because I was worried the chaos of the week before may have scared them off! I recruited three new volunteers this week and a fourth to join us after May. I'm anxious to see how our summer ministry sign up went yesterday. Our children's programing changes a little with summer time and so we were looking for additional team members. Praise God for when a plan all comes together! Next Sunday....Baby Dedication! :)

New Home

We are so excited for our friends, Becky and Paul, as they moved into their new home Friday! We stopped by to see if we could be of any assistance but, of course, Becky was pretty on top of everything and had a lot done already. The house is so pretty, warm and inviting. Love the carpet color, appliances and counter tops. Of course, Becky is an artist at heart and has a great eye and taste. The boys were so cute showing us their rooms! Jaden picked the smaller room so he could have the view of his new school where he'll go to kindergarten in the fall. Ethan is getting so tall and talking so much more. He's not the baby anymore. :( Happy new home guys! May God bless your new place with love, happiness, and many opportunities to use it for ministry to seeking and hurting people. Hope we'll be moving sometime soon, too.

Odds and Ends

Did you see the Ellen show the other day with the seventy year old gentleman that went back to 1st grade to learn how to read? Oh-my-lan-ta...I cried at that one! So sweet and the teacher was awesome. Ellen gave the teacher 25 lap tops for her class and a group who encourages people who show great leadership gave him $10,000 and gave the teacher money for library books. Very cool.

My darling friend, Adele, and her mommy, Sandy, brought me a May basket! My one and only this year. I sure enjoyed that pop corn but loved the surprise visit more!

I stopped at KFC to try one of their Snacker sandwiches. Now I know they are a snack and only 99 cents but come on. The piece of chicken on it was the smallest chicken strip I have ever seen. I'm just sayin'! It was literally 2 inches.

My physical therapist tried to get my muscle next to my knee cap to "fire" better by taping it somewhat pushed to the side and then had me do some of my exercises. Her plan flopped and caused me to be super sore! Grrrrr...it was doing great until then. She has been so awesome so I can't be too upset with her! I only have a couple more sessions and I'm done. I still struggle with steps but mainly because I'm afraid to trust the new knee and I shouldn't....it works fine.

Randy's graduation is coming up May 17th! I tried to send everyone an e-invite so if you didn't get one to the party, let me know!!! We want to celebrate big. The party is at our apartment party room from 5 - 8 on Saturday the 17th. We'll have food so come hungry and the kids are welcome! Let me know so we have plenty of eats. In the mass e-mail, I could have missed someone important so forgive me and call or leave a comment! We are so proud of him, I sure wished his mom could have been here, too. Come for a few minutes or stay all night.

I have had a lot of fun with Facebook. I belong to a couple of groups that have given me opportunity to talk to other pastors all around the world. It's awesome to get a message like I did today from a friend in Kenya who felt led to pray for me. I have friends from all around the USA, Australia and China, too. So cool to have "family" members everywhere and to know there are people across the globe praying for each other and the cause of Christ.

Have a great weekend!

It's Here!

The toddler table arrived so we had to break it in last night. The kids were so funny....they looked at me like "What are you doing to me?" but really liked it once they figured out it involved Gold Fish crackers. Now for Sunday....