RELEVANT CHILDREN'S MINISTRY

How would you like to have your children's ministry services, videos, announcements, parent connection videos, etc. on television?

I know what you're thinking..."I'd love to, but our ministry doesn't have the budget to purchase air time on television."

I've got some good news for you.  You can afford it even if you have little to no children's ministry budget.  How?

Here's the deal.  There's a new trend that's growing quickly that puts television well within your reach.

With the rise of smart televisions, Roku, Apple TV, video game systems, Google Chromecast, smartphones and a host of other options...kids and families can now watch YouTube on their television.  And guest what?  They are! 

The most recent reports show that people are watching over 100 million hours of YouTube videos every day on their TV sets.  This is a 70% increase over last year!  More and more kids and families are using their televisions to watch YouTube.

Here's what that means.  You now have the ability to put videos on YouTube and then encourage kids and families to watch the content on their television.

What if you grabbed a camera....(a video camera or even something as simple as your smartphone camera)

and then you...

created a short video to recap the lesson from church...put it on YouTube...and then encouraged kids and parents to watch it together during the week on their television set?

or

made a monthly memory verse video that parents could watch with their preschoolers to help them memorize it?

or

filmed a monthly announcement video so parents and their kids could get excited about what's coming?

or

recorded your elementary large group time and encouraged kids to watch it during the week with their parents?

or

created a quarterly family worship experience that kids and parents could do at home together? 

or

made a video with a clue that preschoolers worked with their parents to figure out and then revealed the answer at church the following weekend?

or

created videos for pre-teens about relevant topics such as bullying, self-esteem, peer pressure, etc. and encouraged parents to watch it with their child?

or

created a Gospel presentation that kids could pull up and show their unchurched friends when they are at their house?

______________________?  There are so many possibilities.


A few tips when making videos....

• keep it short (2-3 minutes max)

• keep it simple (you don't need a big budget, a studio set, etc. to do this, it can be as simple as standing in front of  a backdrop)

• keep it strategic (have a clear purpose for each video)

This watching YouTube on television trend opens the door for you to have a significant impact on kids and families during the week in their homes.  If you can get on their television screens, you can extend your ministry's influence in their lives and help them grow in their faith. 

Your turn.  The floor is yours.  Are you doing this yet?  If so, what are you doing?  What other ideas do you have for getting on the television screens of kids and their families through YouTube?  Share your thoughts, ideas and insight in the comment section below.