RELEVANT CHILDREN'S MINISTRY: environments

Showing posts with label environments. Show all posts

The #1 Way to Grow Your Children's Ministry

7:10 AM Dale Hudson

What's the best way to grow a children's ministry?

Direct mail with great print pieces?

Television ads?

Vacation Bible school?

Outreach events?

Fall Festivals?

Bringing in a big-name special guest?

These are all different ways you can see families brought into your children's ministry. But...there's one thing that is not listed above. And it's the #1 way to grow your children's ministry.

Wait for it...wait for it...

Here it is...word of mouth.

People talk about a children's ministry that has impacted their lives. And those people talk to other people...and those people talk to other people...and...etc.

Before long, you've got guest families walking through the door every single week. And the majority are coming because someone told them about the ministry or brought them.

When this happens, you will experience the "big mo." Momentum. And when momentum kicks in, you will experience exponential growth.

The big question...how do you get people talking?

Give them something that's worth talking about.
Create environments for kids that will get them excited about coming to church. When that happens, parents will take notice and begin to talk.

Encourage them to talk.
Message how important it is to invest in relationships with people who don't attend church and invite them to come.

Give them tools they can use to talk.
Create invite cards that people can use to invite their friends and connections. Doing a really cool series? Make invite cards for the series.

This past Easter, we had a lady that came to our church for the very first time and accepted Christ as her Lord and Savior. When asked how she heard about the church, she told this story. She is a crossing guard at one of our local elementary schools. One of our kids talked with her and invited her to come to church while he was waiting to cross for school.

When people start talking...great things happen.

Do Kid's Traveling Sports Teams Teach Wrong Priorities?

6:12 AM Dale Hudson

There are over 35 million kids involved in youth sports. Over 21 million of these are involved in non-school teams.

I love sports. I played sports all the way through my school years. I believe sports teaches kids valuable life skills such as discipline, teamwork, perseverance, and more.

That being said, let's talk about traveling teams. If you're in children's ministry, you're probably very familiar with traveling teams. These are teams that travel to other cities and states to play. They require a much higher commitment level and are normally made up of kids who have above average skills.

There is a financial cost. Parents whose kids are on traveling teams currently spend over 7 billion dollars a year on travel alone.

But I believe the biggest costs cannot be measured financially.

How about the cost of disrupted home lives? A traveling team means increased practices, busy weekends away from home and hectic schedules.

And the biggest cost...misplaced spiritual priorities. In most cases, traveling teams can take kids out of church for weeks at a time. I have personally seen families miss church 6-8 weeks at a time due to this.

What message are we sending to kids when this happens? Are we teaching them that sports takes a priority over being in God's house? In churches across the country, families are attending church less frequently. The average family who attends church is showing up twice or less each month. A percentage of this can be attributed to traveling teams.

I have a feeling I am getting some "amen's" from children's ministry leaders who are reading this. So...what can we do to encourage families in this area?

We must teach parents the importance of bringing their children to church consistently. In a positive way, we must share the difference it will make in their lives spiritually.

One of the best times for this is when parents are young. If they can get this right when their children are in the nursery, they will continue when their children are in their pre-teen years. I talk in this post about a key way you can do this.

We must teach kids and their parents to follow Matthew 6:33 in every area of their lives. Seek God and His kingdom first. There is nothing wrong with kids playing sports...as long as it doesn't replace God at the top of the list. And where you're at on Sunday shows where God is on your list.

We must help kids fall in love with Jesus. As we model what it means to be in love with Jesus, kids will see this as more attractive than putting sports first.

We must make sure kids are personally known at church and are missed when they are not there. When a child knows Mr. ______ or Mrs. ______ is waiting to see them at church, they will want to be there. When they miss a weekend and get a handwritten postcard in the mail letting them know they were missed, they will want to be there.

Kids who are on the edge of the crowd will be prone to get involved in activities that take them out of church. Being connected is a glue that keeps kids in church when traveling teams come calling.

We must create environments that have kids dragging their parents to church. When kids are part of a ministry where they have fun...are loved...are personally known...and can't wait to be...they will not want to miss...for anything...including sports.

What are your thoughts on this?
Do traveling teams affect kid's attendance in your ministry?
How do you encourage kids and parents to put Jesus first in this area?
Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

How Does Your Children's Ministry Smell?

5:55 AM Unknown

Smell is such a powerful sense. It can draw you in, repulse you, evoke emotions, and even bring back memories. In fact, smell is the sense most associated with memory.

All of us can vouch for this. We have smells that instantly transport us back to our childhood. Perhaps it's the smell of a certain food cooking, a house smell, or a fire burning.

That being said, smell plays a vital part in your Children's Ministry.

Here are some tips on keeping your Children's Ministry smelling good...

Keep your rooms smelling fresh. When parents are met with bad odors, they immediately think "unsanitary."

Keep odor eliminating, spray air fresheners on hand. I recommend Febreze.

Dispose of those dirty diapers as quickly as possible. That's one smell you definitely don't want guests remembering.

Have the carpets cleaned on a regular basis. Dirty carpets are a source of bad smells.

Wash and change the sheets in your nursery every week.

Have an outsider walk through your facilities and do a smell inspection. After you've been in an environment for awhile, you grow accustomed to the smells. Bring in someone who can give you a fresh perspective.

Be intentional about bringing in "smells." Disneyworld is the master at this. Walt knew the power of smell and incorporated it into the parks.

You are greeted by the smell of popcorn when you enter the park. Walt wanted guests to feel like they were walking into a movie theater.

You are greeted by the smell of freshly baked cookies as you walk down main street.

The smell of cinnamon and pine is pumped into Ye Old Christmas Shoppe in Liberty Square.

You are greeted with a cold, musty smell when you enter the Haunted Mansion. Sensors trigger air cannon technology that blasts these smells into the room.

You get the faint smell of sea salt when you enter the battle scene on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride.

Some smells are intentionally foul on attractions like It's Tough to be a Bug and Stitches Great Escape.

Use smells in your teaching. Evidence shows that smells can enhance learning. An example would be bringing in a fresh piece of lumber for the kids to smell when teaching about Noah building the ark.

So...how does your Children's Ministry smell?

What are some additional thoughts you have about smell in Children's Ministry?

Share your thoughts, feedback, and ideas in the comment section below.