RELEVANT CHILDREN'S MINISTRY: connected

Showing posts with label connected. Show all posts

The Biggest Thing Your Volunteers Are Looking For

7:37 AM Dale Hudson

People who volunteer are usually looking for one or more of these things...

Fulfillment...joy...spiritual growth...an avenue to give back...an opportunity to say thanks to God...purpose...a way to make a difference.

But I believe the biggest thing volunteers are looking for is this...relationships.

People are lonely. Recent reports say that unprecedented numbers of people are lonely. Increasing numbers of people have less and less personal connection to close friends and families. Families have 60% fewer family outings and 40% fewer family dinners together.

People are more "connected" through social media than ever before while at the same time being less connected face-to-face. In many cases, the social media connections are not true relational connections.

In every church, people are looking for ways to get connected with other believers. One of the best ways to build relationships in a church is through serving.

Want to build your volunteer team? Instead of telling people how much you need help...instead of guilting people into serving...instead of "requiring" parents to serve...instead of asking the pastor to beg for volunteers from the pulpit for you...

Why not invite people to a family? Why not invite people to a place where they can build relationships? Why not invite people to an opportunity to get connected? It's what they are looking for.

Relationships will not only bring people to your team, it will also keep people on your team. A relationally connected volunteer is a long-term volunteer.

Relationships is where it's at.

Brilliant Teacher Creates Way to Help Kids Stay Connected

8:27 AM Dale Hudson

It is vital that children are connected with others at church. Show me a child who doesn't want to go to church and I'll show you a child who doesn't have any friends at church.

Recently, I heard about a school teacher that has a unique way to help kids stay connected in her class.

Every Friday afternoon, she asks her students to take out a piece of paper and write down the names of four children with whom they'd like to sit the following week. The children know that these requests may or may not be honored.

She also asks the students to nominate one student who they believe has been an exceptional classroom citizen that week. All ballots are privately submitted to her.

And every single Friday afternoon, after the students go home, she takes out those slips of paper, places them in front of her and studies them. And she looks for patterns.

Who is not getting requested by anyone else?
Who doesn't even know who to request?
Who never gets noticed enough to be nominated?
Who had a million friends last week and none this week?

What is she looking for? She is looking for lonely children. She is looking for children who are struggling to connect with other children. She's identifying the ones who are falling through the cracks. She's looking for kids whose gifts are not being recognized by their peers.

And she uses what she finds to break the patterns of disconnection. She reaches out to the lonely kids and gets them the help they need.

There are lonely kids sitting in our services every week. Do we know who they are? Are we reaching out to them? Are we being intentional about helping them get connected?

How do you identify the lonely kids?
What do you do to help kids stay connect?
Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below.

12 Reasons Guests Don't Come Back

6:02 AM Dale Hudson

Having a difficult time getting guests to return? Here's twelve reasons why they may not be coming back.

You only greeted them at the front door. Most churches have greeters at the front door. But once you move past the front door...good luck...you're on your own.

You made them wait in line. People hate to wait in line.

No one talked to them...I mean really talked to them. This goes along with the first reason. Just a "hello" at the front door is not talking to someone.

Someone was rude to them. An usher was short with them. Or they were told they were "sitting in someone's seat." Or people just looked past them as they walked down the hallway. Or someone enforced a "hard and fast" rule in the children's area without kindness.

They didn't see people they could identify with. Perhaps they didn't see many people their age, season of life, social economic background, or ethnicity.

They weren't invited by a friend. Since they didn't know anyone else and no one reached out to them once they got there, they have no relational connection to bring them back.

You didn't provide them with an easy, clear next step to get connected.

You didn't make them feel valued. They had to park in the worst area of the parking lot. There were no signs or directions about where to go. The people they interacted with made them feel like they were a "bother."

You were too friendly. You smothered them. You've experienced that in a store. As soon as you walk in, you're pounced on by an associate eager to make a sales commission. It makes you want to run out the door.

The service was boring and irrelevant to their life. They couldn't relate to the music. The lesson was full of information without application. 20 minutes in, they realized it would have been more comfortable to stay home and take a nap on the couch instead of taking one in a church seat.

Their kids didn't like it. When they picked up their kids, the kids weren't smiling. The children's service matched the adult service in dullness and irrelevance.

You didn't capitalize on the first 8 minutes. Guests decide in the first 8 minutes if they are going to return. Most of the above happens in the first 8 minutes.

Questions to ask your team...

Do we help guests once they pass the front door?
Do we walk guests to their classrooms?
Do we have a separate check-in area for guests?
How long do guests have to wait in line to check-in?
Is someone engaging guests in meaningful conversation between the front door and the auditorium door?
Do we have kind, friendly people as ushers, greeters, teachers, etc.?
Do we teach our people to live for others? Do they have a heart for new people who walk in the door? Have we helped them see "it's not about us?"
What is the demographic of our church? Who are we reaching? Who are we not reaching? Are we diverse?
Are we making relational connections with guests?
Do we have clear, next steps that guests can take to get connected? Are they simple and easy to communicate?
Do we give guests the best parking spots?
Is there clear, easy-to-understand signage?
Are we "smothering" new guests? Does it sound like we are giving a sales pitch?
Is our music and message relevant to their life?
Are we creating a fun, engaging environment for kids? Are kids dragging their parents to or away from our church?
Are we maximizing the first 8 minutes? What are guests experiencing in the first 8 minutes?

What are some other reasons guests don't come back?
Share your thoughts, ideas, and insight with us in the comment section below.

70 Things You Need to Know About Today's Kids

6:35 AM Unknown

Today's kids have cultural characteristics that influence the way they think, learn, and connect with others. Here's some important factors to keep in mind as you seek to effectively minister to kids.

They have never needed a set of bound encyclopedias.They prefer to watch television everywhere except on a television.
They don’t take pictures on “film."
They have always lived in cyberspace, addicted to a new generation of “electronic narcotics.”
The Green Bay Packers have always celebrated with the Lambeau Leap.
The Metropolitan Opera House in New York has always translated operas on seatback screens.
They have always enjoyed school and summer camp memories with a digital yearbook.
They know many established film stars by their voices on computer-animated blockbusters.
Two-thirds of the independent bookstores in the United States have closed for good during their lifetime.
Astronauts have always spent well over a year in a single space flight.
They “swipe” cards, not merchandise.
As they grow up on websites and cell phones, adult experts are constantly fretting about their alleged deficits of empathy and concentration.
Their school’s “blackboards” have always been getting smarter.
American tax forms have always been available in Spanish.
Amazon has never been just a river in South America.
Refer to LBJ, and they might assume you're talking about LeBron James.
Video games have always had ratings.
Music has always been available via free downloads.
Grown-ups have always been arguing about health care policy.
Sears has never sold anything out of a Big Book that could also serve as a doorstop.
Electric cars have always been humming in relative silence on the road.
While they’ve been playing outside, their parents have always worried about nasty new viruses borne by birds and mosquitoes.
Charter schools have always been an alternative.
New kids have always been known as NKOTB.
Nurses have always been in short supply.
Colorful lapel ribbons have always been worn to indicate support for a cause.
They never twisted the coiled handset wire aimlessly around their wrists while chatting on the phone.
Computers have never lacked a CD-ROM disk drive.
“Viewer Discretion” has always been an available warning on TV shows.
There have always been HIV positive athletes in the Olympics.
The dominance of television news by the three networks no longer exists..
The Post Office has always been going broke.
The Green Giant has always been Shrek, not a big guy picking vegetables.
They have never used a card catalog to find a book.
Babies have always had a Social Security Number.
Cable television systems have always offered telephone service and vice versa.
There has always been a Cartoon Network.
They have always been able to read books on an electronic screen.
They have always watched wars, coups, and police arrests unfold on television in real time.
There have always been flat screen televisions.
Everyone has always known what the evening news was before the Evening News came on.
Most communities have always had a mega-church.
There has always been blue Jell-O.
GPS satellite navigation systems have always been available.
Coke and Pepsi have always used recycled plastic bottles.
Shampoo and conditioner have always been available in the same bottle.
Electronic filing of tax returns has always been an option.
Schools have always been concerned about multiculturalism.
They have grown up with bottled water.
High definition television has always been available.
MTV has never featured music videos.
They have never heard anyone actually "ring it up" on a cash register.
They are wireless, yet always connected.
Text messaging is their email.
Madden has always been a game, not a Superbowl-winning coach.
Carbon copies are oddities found in their grandparents' attics.
Reality shows have always been on television.
They have rarely mailed anything using a stamp.
They never had the chance to eat bad airline food.
They have virtual pets to feed, water, and play games with, lest they die.
They don't remember when "cut and paste" involved scissors.
Pixar has always existed.
Digital cameras have always existed.
Miss Piggy and Kermit have always dwelt in Disneyland.
Photographs have always been processed in an hour or less
Network television has always struggled to keep up with cable.
"Ctrl + Alt + Del" is as basic as "ABC."