Do you know how Disneyland started over 66 years ago? On Saturday afternoons, Walt Disney would take his children out to do fun things together.
They would often go to local amusement parks. Walt would sit on a bench and watch his kids play and have fun.
One day the thought hit him. What if he created an amusement park where kids and parents can have fun together?
From this thought a place called Disneyland was birthed. It would be a family park - a place where kids and their parents could have fun together. 66 years later, Disneyland remains one of the top family destinations in the world. In an average year over 157 million people will walk into a Disney park. The vast majority of the people are kids and their parents.
Families are always on the lookout for places and experiences that they can do together. Create such a place or experience and they will come.
Here are a few examples that you should consider:
A family worship experience. This is a worship service that is geared for kids and their parents to enjoy together. The content is geared for children and invites their parents to come along for the fun. I hosted a Christmas family experience one year and we had over 4,000 kids and their parents attend. Families are looking for ways to spend quality time with their kiddos - especially during the Christmas season.
You can get more information about hosting a Christmas Family Experience at this link.
Family milestone events are another way to encourage families to spend time together. Information about these events is available at this link.
You can also have serving experiences that families can participate in together. I remember one Sunday, we let church out a half an hour earlier than normal. We had tents set up where families could go together and assemble meals for people who were in need. Participation was outstanding for this.
I often hear people say, "If I had Disney's money, I could pull off some great family events too."
But here is what I want you to remember. Walt started out with nothing. He was so broke, that at one point, he had to live off of dog food for a couple of weeks. But he didn't give up. He kept pursuing his dream of bringing kids and their parents to have fun together. And look where that vision has lead.I want to challenge you to think outside the box.
What can you do to bring families together to have some fun with a purpose?
How can you help parents enter their child's experience at church?
What serving opportunities can you provide for families?
Dream big.
Create family experiences for kids and parents.
Make it fun.
Watch the amazing things that will happen.
