RELEVANT CHILDREN'S MINISTRY

I normally play short videos while we are waiting to start our children's worship service. 

Some of the most popular videos we play are the ones from a group called Dude Perfect.  

Dude Perfect is an American sports and comedy group with a YouTube channel. They are headquartered in Frisco, Texas.

The group consists of Tyler "The Beard" Toney, "The Twins" Cory and Coby Cotton, Garrett "The Purple Hoser" Hilbert, and Cody "The Tall Guy" Jones, all of whom are former college roommates at Texas A&M University.

Dude Perfect's content predominantly consists of videos depicting various trick shots, stereotypes, and stunts. The group also regularly uploads videos of "battles", in which the individual members of Dude Perfect compete against one another in a good-natured game or contest, often incorporating different sports and a unique set of rules. 

Dude Perfect also created the show Overtime, a series where they host several segments, such as "Wheel Unfortunate", in which a contestant spins a wheel and gets a random penalty, "Cool Not Cool", a show-and-tell-like segment, and "Absurd Recurds", in which the Dudes attempt to break the most absurd world records they can find.  

Dude Perfect currently (2025) has 482 videos on their channel.  They have amassed over 61 million subscribers and over 18.5 billion total views.

Kids like Dude Perfect because the content is entertaining, funny, and age-appropriate.  Their videos are filled with trick shots, challenges, and competitions that are highly entertaining. 

Dude Perfect emphasizes sportsmanship, friendship, and creativity.  Their content is free of violence, swearing, sex, or drugs.  Dude Perfect has built trust with its audience...especially with parents.  Most parents feel comfortable letting their kids watch Dude Perfect because of this.

We can learn a lot from Dude Perfect about connecting with kids.  

What elements of their content can we bring into our teaching and class room experiences? 

Is our programming entertaining?  

Do we bring laughter and giggles into our lessons?

Are our lessons age-appropriate?

Do we use competition in our teaching?

Your turn.

Are you a fan of Dude Perfect?

Do you play their videos for kids in your ministry?

Do you use some of their elements in your classroom experience?

Share your thoughts about Dude Perfect in the comment section below.

In a couple of weeks, our staff will be working on our ministry calendars. Here are 7 tips we will keep in mind as we plan. These are 7 tips you can use to create a strategic ministry calendar.

Plan your calendar with other ministries.  

Get in a room with all ministries represented. Mesh your calendars and make sure you are working together. This is not the time to be a silo.

Planning together will keep you from having two big events planned on the same week, over booking things, etc.  This will help each ministry maximize their calendar dates.

Team work is essential when planning your calendars.  

Prioritize.

What events or programs are essential for your ministry?  Prioritizing your events and programs will help you know what to keep and what to drop if needed.

Think steps. 

Each date on your calendar should be a step toward the ministry goals and vision.  

Ask yourself "what spiritual step will this event help kids take?"

"How is this program going to move the ministry toward the overall vision?" 

Be proactive, not just busy.  

It's easy to fill up your calendar with events and programs.  But your goal should be productivity...not just being busy.

Remember...less is more. 

Focus on doing a few things well. It is a better to do a few things with excellence rather than a long list of things mediocre.

Sometimes the best thing you can put on your calendar is eraser marks.  

Review everything you do before placing it on your calendar.

Ask these questions about what you do. 

Why are we doing this? 

Is this bearing fruit?

Is this helping kids take spiritual steps?

Is this program effective?

Is this a duplicate of something else we are doing?

Is this the best use of our ministry resources?

Consider local school calendars when you plan.

When does school start and end?

When are their sporting events?  

What will be the holiday weekends? 

Coordinating your events and programs with local school calendars will help you maximize the events and programs you do.

Work a year out.  

By July of this year (2025),  I will have all of my 2026 ministry calendar done.  I like to work at least a year out.  This is very helpful when you are inviting guest speakers, starting new programs, and setting timelines for big events.

Your turn. What are some other things to keep in mind when creating your calendar? Share your thoughts and insight with us in the comment section below.

I could tell when he walked in that he was going to be a handful.  

"Defiant" is a nice way to say he didn't want to listen to what I or any of our volunteers had to say.  

He got into trouble several times during his first visit.  

He was very insecure and went to desperate measures to get our attention and feel important. 

He called several kids names and even uttered several "curse" words.  

This past week, I had several parents complain to me about him. Their kids were the ones he had called mean names.  I understand where they are coming from.  I can't allow kids to bully or call other kids names. Of course, I agree with them. It will not be tolerated.   

Some kids are simply not easy to deal with.

I get it.  

But....there is something else at play in this situation.  Something that trumps my tolerance level.  Something that trumps banning the child from coming back. 

It's the fact that Jesus loves this kid. 

It's the fact that God calls us to love the unlovable. 

It's the fact that God wants us to be a place where kids who are broken can come and receive the love that comes from our Heavenly Father. 

It's the fact that every kid matters...including the ones that don't fit into our little box of correct behavior. 

I spoke with the child's father this week.  He shared with me that they have tried church after church after church...looking for a place where he would be loved and accepted.  They haven't found that church yet. 

I want to be that church for them.  I want to be the children's ministry that every child can come to and know they are loved and accepted.  I want to be the children's ministry that cares for children...even the ones who are hard to "manage."

I am reminded of the one lost sheep found in Luke 15.  

Ever thought about it like this.  The sheep that got lost had wandered away from the rest of the sheep.  It was the sheep that was a troublemaker.  It was the sheep that couldn't seem to follow rules like the rest of the group. It was the sheep that gave the shepherd anxiety.

But the shepherd didn't give up on this sheep. He went out and found Him. He spent whatever time it took to find the sheep.  He went to where the sheep was.  Yes...it cost the shepherd some extra hours.  It was inconvenient to go and find the sheep.  The sheep had to have individual attention.  The sheep was frustrating at times.  The sheep caused the shepherd to lose sleep.

Why couldn't the sheep be like the other sheep?  Why couldn't he follow the rules and stay in the pen with the other sheep?  

This causes me to think about my commitment to reaching the one child who is like that sheep.

Am I willing to go outside of my comfort zone to help this child?

Am I willing to invest my time to help this child?

Am I willing to do whatever it takes to rescue this child?

Am I willing to travel down the second mile to reach this child?

Back to the phone call with the father.  

I shared with him that we loved his son and would be there to help them.  We want his son to be part of our children's ministry.  He will only be able to attend every other week due to shared custody.  

I look into the future and see this kid accepting Jesus into his life one day.  I look into the future and see this kid as a committed follower of Jesus one day.  I believe God has plans for this kid. I don't know yet what that plan will be, but I will be there to help him find God's plans for his life. 

I have a feeling that as you have been reading this, a child's name and face came into view.  You have a child like this in your ministry. Yes...he or she has to have extra attention.  Yes...he or she gives you anxiety at times.  Yes...he or she disrupts the class on a regular basis. 

Don't give up on that child.  God wants to use you to change the course of that child's life.  Get a vision for what that child can be one day through God's grace.

The kid that no church wants to deal with...be the church that opens your arms wide to embrace this child. One day soon the child will be grown and will share how God used your love and acceptance to make the difference in their life.

If you're like me, you are finalizing your final plans for Easter. 

But there is something that is just as important as your plans leading into Easter. 

It's your plans and strategies for AFTER Easter.  What happens after Easter is just as important as what happens before Easter.

Let's take a look at 6 important steps you should take after Easter.

Take some time to rest. 

Hopefully, you can take a day or two to rest and catch your breath. You put a lot into Easter and you are probably very drained.  Rest is important.  Before you rush into the next big thing, stop and relax.  Slow down and spend some time with Jesus.  Pause and thank Him for the work He did in the lives of the kids and parents you ministered to.  

Remember, ministry is a marathon, not a sprint.  You must pace yourself.  Easter probably has left your tank on empty.  Take some time to fill it back up.  

Are you like me? I don't like stopping to get gas. I have places to go and people to met and things to do.  I hate having to sit there and watch the dollars click away on the gas pump. But I must do this or I will run out of gas. 

It's the same spiritually. You are probably wired to go and go and go.  But you have to take time to refill spiritually or you will eventually run out of gas.

Sign up volunteers.

Did you have any new volunteers serve at Easter?  Now is the time to connect with them and invite them to join your volunteer team on a full-time basis.  I have found I can enlist about 85% of Easter volunteers to join our team.  

Go through your list of Easter volunteers and call all the people who served for the first time. Invite them to join you.  You will be pleasantly surprised how many people will say "yes" if you ask them. 

Follow up with guests.

Send each guest family a handwritten postcard and thank them for coming. It's a big deal for a child to get a postcard.

Invite them to come back.  Offer a gift for the kids on their second visit.  However you do it, connect with guests on a personal level.  This is important if you want to see them return.

Thank your volunteers.

Many of your volunteers went the second mile to serve at Easter.  They took care of more kids than normal.  Some served at extra services for you.  

Be sure you thank them for serving.  Tell them in person.  Give them a small gift with a personal note from you.  

Easter couldn't have happened without them.  Show them how much you value them.

Start a new, relevant teaching series the week after Easter.

I will be starting a brand new teaching series the weekend after Easter.  I will promote this series to the kids and families at Easter.  This will encourage new families and families who are not consistent to return the next week and establish a pattern of attending more regularly.

Follow up with kids who indicate they want to become a follower of Jesus.

I will be hosting a salvation class the week after Easter. I will be sharing the Gospel at Easter and then inviting kids who respond to attend this class with their parents. 

The class is called Starting Point and is for kids who want to invite Jesus into their life. It is designed for kids and parents to attend together. No drop offs. The cool thing...I almost always have parents who come to Christ as a result of attending this class with their child.

You can get more information about Starting Point at this link. 

Churches across the country are using this class to reach kids and parents with the Gospel.

However or whatever your strategy is, make sure you follow up with kids who indicate they want to follow Jesus.

Take these 6 steps and you will see more fruit in the weeks following Easter in all areas of your ministry. 

Your turn. What are some other steps that are important to take after Easter? Share your thoughts and ideas in the comment section below.