RELEVANT CHILDREN'S MINISTRY

Christmas is just around the corner and now is the time to start preparing.  If you're looking for Christmas resources for plays, musicals, programs or simply something to teach kids about the true meaning of Christmas, I recommend The Animals' Carols.

The Animals' Carols recaptures the wonder of the beloved story of the day Jesus was born, as told by the animals themselves. It has been featured on The Discovery Channel and has won a gold award from the Mom's Choice Awards. 

The carols are available at www.theanimalscarols.com in mp3 and sheet music formats.  There is also an app where the animals present at the manger are given voice for the first time, and tell their own story of the Day that Jesus was born.  It is beautifully and classically illustrated with added interactions on the screen in 3D gyroscopic effects.  The gorgeous, modern carols are fully orchestrated and sung by a choir with children and set to the wonderful poems by Jules Cashford.  It is a glorious and meaningful offering, an unequaled experience for children and their parents for Christmas and beyond.

We are partnering with the Animals' Carols to give away 2 carols.  If you would like to enter the giveaway, simply email me atdalehudsoncm2@gmail.com.  We will randomly select one person and announce the winner right here next Monday, October 3rd.

Christmas brings a great opportunity to reach families.

This year we decided to make one of our Christmas Service nights especially for families.

Families are looking for ways to make memories together and if you provide them with an opportunity, they will come.  Thousands of kids and parents attended.

Here are a few of the highlights.

LIVE NATIVITY SCENE

FREE HOT CHOCOLATE & COOKIES

MARY, JOSEPH & BABY JESUS

CAMELS

DANCE PARTY FOR FAMILIES

KIDS LOVE CHARACTERS

VOLUNTEERS MAKE IT HAPPEN

KIDS LEADING WORSHIP

PEOPLE TOOK CAMEL SELFIES

CANDLELIGHT MOMENT DURING SERVICE

HUNDREDS OF FAMILIES WORSHIPPING TOGETHER

VOLUNTEER GREETERS

SNOW MACHINES - SNOW'S A BIG DEAL IN FLORIDA

FAMILY DANCE PARTY

MORE FAMILY DANCE PARTY PETTING AREA FOR MANGER ANIMALS

Each year we decorate our children's building at the Gardens Campus for Christmas.  This includes creating snow falling after each service. (we're in South Florida so kids love this)  Here's a look at this year's Christmas decor.

Each year at Christmas we encourage the kids to give a special offering.  Here is our strategy.

We give each child an offering box (pictured above) the weekend after Thanksgiving.

We announce a Happy Birthday Jesus party that will take place right before Christmas (during weekend services).

We prepare the kids by teaching one or more lessons about the true meaning of Christmas.  We share with them that it is Jesus' birthday and we should give our best gift to Him.

We show the kids what their offering will go towards.  Kids are visual and showing them how their offering will make an impact will get them excited about giving.  You can do this through pictures or videos or in person.  An example - this year the offering was going to the Watoto Orphanage in Uganda.  We were able to have some of the kids from the orphanage come and sing live for the kids. 

On the day of the offering, we have a special place that kids can bring their offering to.  Here are a couple of examples.

















After the offering, we report back and let the kids know how much they gave and how their gift is being used to make an impact.

Our kids have responded by giving thousands of dollars.  Coin by coin, dollar by dollar, they are impacting the world with the love and message of Jesus Christ.

What is your Christmas offering strategy for kids?  Share with us in the comment section below.

American Atheists have launched a campaign to persuade families to not attend church this Christmas season.

They have placed billboard ads across the 'Bible Belt" that show a little girl saying, "Dear Santa, All I want for Christmas is to skip church!  I'm too old for fairy tales."

The spokesman for the group says, "Today's adults have no obligation to pretend to believe the lies their parents believed.  It's okay to admit that your parents were wrong about God, and it's definitely okay to tell your children the truth."

The Bible says in Psalm 53:1 that being an atheist is not a truth problem...it's a HEART problem.  The atheist doesn't want to surrender to the truth of God, but instead wants to find his or her "truth" somewhere else.

Stats show that the next generation is being influenced by this mindset.  22% of young adults who previously classified themselves as evangelical now say they have no "religion." 

The answer?  We must be intentional about connecting with and reaching the next generation.  As a children's ministry leader, you are on the front lines of helping people know the truth that is not based on man's ever-changing opinions, but on the eternal Word of God.

Let's shift up to the next gear.  So much is at stake.

Don't have enough volunteers?  It may be because of one or more of these reasons.

You're not asking.
You're not inviting people to join your team.  Week in, week out, you've got to invite, invite, invite.  You have not because you ask not.  The best way to build a volunteer team is personal 1-on-1 invites. 

You're not praying for volunteers.
What did Jesus say to do when the "laborers are few?"  He told us to, "pray to the Lord of the harvest that He would send laborers into His harvest fields.

Spend time each day asking God to send you volunteers.  Jesus wouldn't ask us to pray for something He didn't intend on giving us.

You're not casting vision.
People are drawn toward vision.  Stop using words like, "need...help...please..." and start using words like, "impact...opportunity...make a difference."

You're not getting out of the kid world.
You have to go where adults are if you want them to join your team.  Get into the adult world.  Show up for new member's class, visit adult Bible study groups, connect with the men's and women's ministry.

You're not partnering with the student ministry leaders.
Student volunteers are the bomb.  You should have lots of student ministry volunteers serving in your children's ministry.  If you don't, then reach out to your student ministry leaders and ask how you can partner with them to get students involved.

You're not keeping the volunteers you already have.
If you're having constant volunteer turnover, then it will be hard to maintain enough volunteers.  How do you keep them?

Two words.  Family and Fun.  Family - people stay where they feel connected and have relationships.  Foster this.  Fun - people stay where they enjoy being.  Work hard to create a culture of fun.

You're not effectively following up with people who have served one time.
There are certain times of the year when people serve in children's ministry one time.

Normally this is during a church-wide push for an event or special services.  Easter services....Christmas events...VBS...camps...fall festivals, etc.

Have a strategy to go after the people who sign up to serve that one time.  You can turn one-time servers into full-time servers if you're intentional about looping back with them.

You're not providing enough entry level positions.
More jobs = more volunteers.  Especially entry level positions.

Not everyone wants to start out teaching, leading worship, or overseeing a program.  Provide lots of easy, entry level positions.  You'll find that people start out in these entry level positions, but down the road gain enough confidence and experience to step into a bigger role.

You're not in a church that has a culture of serving.
Look around.  If all the ministries in your church are lean on volunteers, you may be in a church where serving is not embedded in the DNA. 

You're not encouraging your current volunteers to invite people to join them.
Encourage your current volunteers to invite people to serve with them.  They know people you don't know and have influence you don't have.

Concluding thoughts...
If you don't have enough volunteers, don't beat yourself up.  You're not alone.  I don't know anyone who doesn't need more volunteers.  I have a lot of volunteers, but I need a lot more...and always will.

The key is eliminating road blocks like the ones you've just read about. 

 You call everyone "brother" or "sister" at church instead of just using their first name.

When you receive recognition for an act of service, you get a pious look on your face and say, "It wasn't me...it was God.  I did it for His glory.  All the praise belongs to Him, not me."  (we know that, just say "thank you")

If a song at church doesn't match your taste in music, you think it's "worldly."

You don't think kids should laugh and have fun at church.

You think any church that is larger than yours must be "shallow."

You turn your personal preferences into commandments for others.

You pick a church based on whether or not they have kids memorize 20 verses of scripture each week.

You rant and rave against Harry Potter while watching The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and Lord of the Rings.

You don't think kids should be allowed to play video games at church.

You think spending money on theming a children's environment is a waste of money.

You think the only way for kids to worship is with their parents in the "main" service.

You don't have a Christmas tree.

You think it's terrible to go trick or treating.

You think you are more spiritual than parents who have their kids in public or private schools.

You believe offering contests for kids are of the devil.

You are against using movie clips to illustrate Biblical truth.

You don't have any unsaved friends.

You think Easter egg hunts at church are evil.

You think Santa Clause is Satan Claus.

Reading this has irritated you.

The floor is yours. What do you think?  Agree?  Disagree?  What are some of other signs of being "oversaved?"

I'm guessing you want your children's ministry to grow.

You want to reach the families in the community God has called you to.

You want new families walking in your doors every week.

You want your rooms full.

You want to outgrow your current facility and build a larger one or start more services. 

How can you see that happen?

Lots of big events?  A bigger budget?   More staff?  More volunteers?  Billboards all over town?  Television commercials?  Direct mail to every family in your city?

All of these are helpful...but they are not the best way to grow your children's ministry.

The best way...WORD OF MOUTH.

86% of people come to church because of a personal invitation.  If you want your children's ministry to grow...get the kids and families in your ministry to start talking.

Make your ministry worth talking about.  When a family has a great experience, they will tell other families about it.  Raise the excellence of your ministry and the natural result will be families talking about it.  And the natural result of families talking will be new families.

Create a culture of invest and invite.  Every week at the end of the kid's service, we have an empty chair on stage.  We take time to share that the empty chair represents our friends who do not attend church.  We ask the kids to pray for and invite one friend to come with them the next week.

Teach families to invest in relationships with unchurched families.  This will give them an open door to invite these families to church.  Remember...you get what you emphasize.

Provide invite tools.  Create simple invite cards that kids and families can use to invite their friends.  Make them available every week.

Let kids and families know about special "invite opportunities."  Events like fall festivals, Christmas services, family events, etc. are great opportunities for kids and families to invite others.  Highlight these opportunities.

Word of mouth...it's the best way to grow your children's ministry.  Get people talking and you will grow.

My friends at God's Kids Worship are giving away free music.  They have pre-planned worship for the whole year, including Christmas & Easter.  It works with your worship leader, your praise team, or no leader at all. You get songs you know, and new songs that inspire and engage kids. 

God's Kids Worship works with any curriculum, any ministry event, DVDs, mobile devices, and computers.  It’s real worship for real kids.  Plan and prepare with free YouTube videos, or use it with no preparation at all.  It can even be used by your last-minute volunteer who would rather be set on fire than lead singing.

They will be announcing winners everyday through August 2nd.  You can enter the giveaway at this link.

1. Send them a handwritten thank you note.
2. Bring them their favorite candy bar.
3. Give them a Starbucks gift card.
4. Recognize their birthday.
5. Give a flower to the mothers who volunteer on Mother's Day.
6. Have snacks available for them.
7. Bring bottled water to them while they are serving.
8. Take a volunteer to lunch.
9. Bake homemade cookies for them.
10. Take a picture of them serving and put it on Facebook.  Use the comment section to brag on them.
11. Ask for their input and ideas on a regular basis.
12. Have them over for a cookout.
13. Text them and tell them how much you appreciate them.
14. Personally thank them for serving as they are leaving.
15. Brag on them publicly.
16. Give them movie tickets.
17. Recognize them each year on their serving anniversary.
18. Give them a small gift and card at Christmas.
19. Have the kids make a card that tells how they've impacted their lives.
20. Give them a book or other resource that will help them grow personally.

How do you show your volunteers you appreciate them?  Share your ideas with us in the comment section.

Easter is a great time to place key communication pieces in parents' hands.  Here are some of the pieces we are giving parents who attend Easter services.

Children's Ministry brochure

Special piece for those who only come Christmas & Easter

Lesson Take Home page

Small Group info.

Text and Facebook sign-up

Summer Camp info.

Faith Commitment / Baptism class info. (side 1)

Faith Commitment / Baptism class info. (side 2)

Parent Partnership info.

Each year we decorate our children's building for the Christmas season.  Here's an inside look.  We have also installed snow machines inside the building.  If you live in South Florida, snow is a big deal for kids.