My Blog Has Moved

You can find my new Blog here: http://www.superchurch.com/blog.html

Magnify Your Ministry

  The Children’s Pastor - Part 5 

“ I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch as I am an apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry,” Romans 11:13 NASB

A big part of your job as a CP is to recruit and train volunteers to minister to children. When I first started in children’s ministry I used to complain to my pastor that I didn’t have enough help. One day the Lord spoke to me “It’s not your pastor’s job to recruit your help. It’s your job.” Self-pity has never recruited one volunteer.

The best way to get people to follow you is to create a ministry that people want to be a part of. Paul said it like this “I magnify my ministry.” Paul was the apostle to the gentiles and sometimes the gentiles felt like second-class citizens. Peter and James saw the gentiles as a lesser ministry, but Paul did not see it that way.

There will always be people in the church who see children’s ministry as lesser ministry, but the only way for you to change that is for you to magnify your ministry. A church will judge the children’s ministry by how the children’s pastor represents it. If you don’t like how people view your ministry then you might need to change your self. People are looking for somewhere to hook up but they don’t want to get on a sinking ship. If you are passionate about children’s ministry your fire will run off on other people.

After thirty-two years in ministry I have only found two ways to effectively recruit volunteers.

1. Ask them. Jesus asked his disciples to follow him and you will need to follow his example. Most people need to be invited to join a ministry. You can ask them by email, text, telephone or face to face, but you are going to have to ask people to get involved. The good news is that once you get one excited volunteer he or she can help by asking their friends to get involved. It’s kind of like a giant multi-level marketing plan. You get more gold in heaven the more people you get involved in children’s ministry.
2. People will respond to vision. Ask your pastor if you can have ten minutes in the pulpit on a Sunday morning or maybe you can do a family service on a Wednesday night. If you get an opportunity to share in the pulpit do not beg for workers. Instead magnify your ministry.Talk about how important kids are to the Lord. Share testimonies about what God is doing in the kid’s lives. The Lord said it to me like this “Allow people to experience the anointing that is on your ministry and let me draw them to you.”

Next week we will talk about how to train all the new workers that you will be getting.

• What is a Children's Pastor Part 1
• What is a Children's Pastor Part 2
• What is a Children's Pastor Part 3
• What is a Children's Pastor Part 4

Helping Kids Make Friends at Church

The Children’s Pastor part 4

“Two are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble.” Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 NLT

One of the responsibilities of a CP is to help kids make friends at church. If kids do not make friends at church during their grade school years then they will not make the jump to youth ministry. Teenagers want to hang with their friends and if they don’t have friends at church they won’t hang out at church. One of the best ways to insure that 'your kids' will not fall away during their teen years is to help them make friends at church.

You cannot choose their friends for them, but you can create environments that will help them make friends. I do this in three ways:

1. Small groups. One of the hardest decisions I ever made was to take 30 minutes out of my preaching and dedicate it to small group ministry. The primary reason I did this was I noticed the bigger the church got, the less connected the kids were. Church is not just about the relationship between the pastor and his sheep. The glue that holds the church together is the love we have for one another.
2. Create opportunities for kids to serve in ministry. When kids get involved in a ministry they are spending time with other kids who love the Lord and want to give of their time to help others. The payback that my leadership kids get is the lifelong relationships they develop at worship rehearsal and drama practice.
3. Plan social activities for families. I try to plan one social activity for families with grade school age children. Most of these are not drop off events but opportunities where families can hang together. Here is a list of the activities I have done:

• Sledding party – January
• Lock IN – February
• Roller Skating Party - March
• Easter Egg Hunt – April
• Gym and Swim night at YMCA – May
• Vacation Family Adventure – June
• World’s Largest Squirt Gun Fight - July
• Summer Camp – July
• Zoo Trip – August
• 100 Foot Banana Split  - September
• Hay Ride and Apple Orchard - October
• Halloween Alternative – November
• Christmas Party and Gift Exchange -December

• What is a Children's Pastor Part 1
• What is a Children's Pastor Part 2
• What is a Children's Pastor Part 3

What is a Home Run to You?

Children's Pastor Part 3

What is a home run for you? Monica is a home run for me. Monica was eleven when she started leading worship in Super Church. Today Monica is 35 and she sings in the sanctuary.  She never left the church and she has always used her gift for the Lord.

Monica is just one example. Seth is my assistant in Super Church. Kelly is one of our youth pastors. Krista and Ginger teach in our Christian school. Jacob owns his own business and he is one of my best teachers in Super Church. Adrian is the producer of a TV show at a church in Georgia. These people were all kids at one time who started out on the puppet team or the worship team or AV team and they are still in ministry today.

Jesus told us to go into all the world and make disciples. According to Young’s concordance a disciple is a “taught or trained one.”  The heart of a pastor is discipleship.  A pastor gives people and opportunity to do things.  If you are a one-man team you are not making disciples.

 I have observed that people that get involved in ministry at a young age will stay in the church. Stop complaining that you don’t have enough help and start using the people that are right under your nose. Train them up in the way they should go and they will always be faithful to you.

They say that 20% of the people in our churches do 80% of the work. Why is that? Maybe it is because we tell them when they are children that they can’t do anything in the church and they continue to believe that, when they become adults. 

So, what are some things that kids can do in church? I’m glad you asked that question. Here is a list of things that kids can do.

• Take up the offering
• Pass Buckets
• Help new kids find a seat
• Write out name tags
• Run power point presentations
• Create power point presentations
• Pray for the sick
• Teach an object lesson
• Puppetry
• Drama
• Sing
• Play the piano
• Lead Worship
• Run a Camera
• Pray with kids for salvation
• Pray with kids to receive the Holy Spirit
• Intercessory prayer

In short, kids can do whatever you will take the time to train them to do. What are you waiting for? Pick one child and get started.

• What is a Children's Pastor Part 1
• What is a Children's Pastor Part 2

What is a Children's Pastor Part 2

Feed the Flock

“Feed the flock of God which is among you” 1 Peter 5:2

The first thing Peter tells pastors to do is to “feed the flock”. This is the primary responsibility of a pastor. If you are going to feed the flock you need to feed yourself. Never stand up in front of a group of kids and read the curriculum.

I tell my volunteers they should minister out of their overflow. If you are preaching on prayer then look up scriptures on prayer and meditate on them. Find some good books on prayer and read them during the week. The more time you spend in the Word of God the better your preaching will be.

One trend that that really concerns me today is that many of today’s curriculums do not teach the deep things of the Word. The world is getting bolder with their message and the church seems to be more timid. Kids have to fight the same devil that we have to fight. Children don’t need less of God’s Word today - they need more. Jesus commanded us to “preach the gospel to every creature.” If it’s in the Bible you can preach it to kids.

Another thing we need to think about is that most children under the age of eight cannot read yet, so they are totally dependent on someone else to feed them. This is why what you do is so precious to the Lord. For many of the kids in your class the only meal they get is what you are preaching. Make sure you give them some meat and potatoes and not just the desert.

Here are ten practical steps for feeding your flock:    kids the Word of God:

1. FOCUS on one message per week. What is the one thing you want your kids to do with the message you are preaching?
2. THINK LIKE A CHILD – If you are teaching on prayer, what types of things would a child pray for?
3. TEACH IN A SERIES – This will help your flock know where you are going.
4. BE VISUAL – Preaching to kids without something visual does not work. Use short films, power points, object lessons, games and dramas.
5. TELL STORIES – The best preachers are good storytellers.
6. KEEP IT MOVING – One child who breaks the rules is a discipline problem. If the group is not paying attention it’s a leadership problem. Change what you are doing every five minutes or so.
7. STAY CURRENT – If you package an eternal message in an old wrapper it seems like an old message.
8. BUILD A TEAM – Don’t be a lone ranger.
9. BE FUNNY – When people laugh it opens up their heart. Use the sandwich method. Funny, Serious, Funny.
10. REVIEW AND REPETITION – Kids don’t get it if you just say it one time. (Neither do adults)

Don’t miss tomorrow’s blog, what is a CP? part #3

What is a Children's Pastor Part 1

What is a Children's Pastor?

Have you ever heard that question?

I used to hear it a lot when I first became a children’s pastor in 1979. I was the only full time children’s pastor that I knew of, in the state of Michigan. Today there are literally thousands of CP’s but there still is a lot of misunderstanding of what a children’s pastor is. 

The first job of a children’s pastor is to pastor the children in your local church. You are an extension of your pastor to the children under your care. In other words you are there to help your pastor. If you do not have a good relationship with your pastor you will not be effective as a children’s pastor.

Jesus is the chief shepherd, and the senior pastor is a shepherd under Jesus. Jesus is not physically here on the earth so he gave “gifts unto men”. He gave the gift of pastor to lead the local church just like a shepherd leads his flock.

The pastor cannot reach all age groups effectively so he hired you to help him. You, as the children’s pastor, are an extension of your pastor’s ministry. In other words, you have the same job that your pastor does, but you don’t have the same authority. 

A good example of this is in Deuteronomy when the Lord told Moses to select 70 elders to help him so he wasn’t bearing the “burden of the people alone”.  The 70 elders were doing the same job that Moses was doing but they did not have the same authority. Moses was still in charge.

You job is very similar to your pastor’s job so we can look at what the Bible says to pastors and apply those scriptures to children’s ministry.

1 Peter 5:3 “Don't lord it over the people assigned to your care, but lead them by your own good example.” NLT

The word example in webster’s dictionary means “somebody or something worthy of imitation” Are you living a life that you want other people to imitate? There is a huge accountability that comes with pastoring kids because children are so easily influenced.

You are not just a CP at church. Just like being the senior pastor, you are in the gold fish bowl.It’s a 24/7 job.

Another part of this word example is that you need to be present so that your kids and volunteers can see your example. There is a lot of administration that comes with the children’s pastor job, but you are not just an administrator. You are in the people business and people need to see you. They need to see you in the sanctuary too. Don’t spend all your time in children’s church. It’s not a good example.

 We are just getting started. To be continued….

How do you change the method without changing the message

Relevant Spirit Filled Children's Ministry Conference

Our culture is always changing because people are constantly changing and yet the Bible says, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and forever." Our challenge as Christians is to connect people (who are always changing) with a God who never changes. The apostle Paul said it like this, "I become all things to all men that by all means I might win some."

To reach this generation, we must create sophisticated tools and maintain the purity of the Gospel at the same time. In other words, change our methods, but not our message. That is what this conference is all about. We hope to see you at this conference. I have things in my heart for children's pastors and leaders that I have never shared before.

Pastor Mark and Debbie Harper

Conference Topics:

• How to be relevant and Spirit Filled
• Right Balance to live ministry and media
• Train you kids to hear the voice of God
• Creative attention getters
• Developing leadership gifts in your kids
• Spirit filled Preschool ministry
• Recruiting volunteers

GRACE CHRISTIAN CHURCH

Pastors Jerry & Joy Weinzierl

33801 Van Dyke Ave. , Sterling Heights, MI 48312      586-258-4390

CONFERENCE  REGISTRATION  RATES

Registration includes lunch

Before Monday, September 26, 2011  Per Person.............................. $60.00 ea.         

                                                           Group of 4 or More................... $50.00 ea.

After Monday, September 26, 2011     Per Person.............................. $70.00 ea.          

                                                           Group of 4 or More................... $60.00 ea.

HOW TO REGISTER

Phone.................................800-798-4872            Online.................www.superchurch.com

CONFERENCE  HOTEL:

Hampton Inn   36400 Van Dyke Ave., Sterling Heights, MI,  586-276-0600 | hamptoninn1.hilton.com

Rate: $84 per night (King or Queen Suite special rate)

Reservation request: "Grace Christian"   (Book your room early. Rate is guaranteed until Friday, September 17-then rate goes up.)

Can Kids Hear From God?

Does God speak to kids? Emphatically, yes! God spoke to kids in the Bible and He still speaks to kids today. When kids get saved and filled with the Spirit. The Holy Sprit lives inside of kids just like He lives inside of their parents. Many times kids are more sensitive to the voice of God than adults are


Think about Samuel and Eli. God spoke to young Samuel because Eli had consistently disobeyed the Lord. God used a young King Josiah to turn Israel back to God, after his father had led the nation into idol worship.


God speaks to us through our spirit. There are three parts of man: spirit, soul and body (1 Thessalonians 5:23). The Holy Spirit does not live in your mind or your body. The Holy Spirit lives inside of your spirit man.


God speaks to us through the inward witness. In fact, the most frequent way thatGod talks to us is through the inward witness. The inward witness is not a voice, it is an inward sense. The Bible says it like this, “the Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit.” It is like this, you may be thinking about doing something and it just doesn’t seem right or it may even seem wrong. It is kind of like an inward stoplight. You start to make a decision and you get a red light on the inside. What is that? That is the inward witness. Kids don’t need to wait until they grow up to get the inward witness. They have it right now. Many times kids are asking their parents to do something and they already know they shouldn’t do it, but they are just hoping mom and dad will say yes.


Learn to listen to the inward witness, because the Holy Spirit lead you through the inward witness.


Taken from Holy Spirit lesson #2


Other Simaler Blog posts:
Does God Speak to Kids?
Does God Speak to Kids Part 2?
Does God Speak to Kids Part 3

Forgive and Forget

Ephesians 4:32, “…forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake has forgiven you...” (KJV)

Bad things happen to everybody. God doesn’t cause bad things to happen, they are a part of life. Sometimes strangers will be mean to us. Sometimes people we love will say or do hurtful things. Sometimes bad things just happen.

If somebody hurts us or sins against us we need to forgive them just like Father God has forgiven us. This can be really hard, but we need to remember that Jesus died for those people that sinned against us. When I think about it, Jesus already paid the price for their sin, then I don’t want to make them pay for their sin against me.

We need to forget the past. The Apostle Paul said, “But this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before.” Don’t let other people’s sin slow you down. Forget about the past, pick yourself up and keep running your race.

It helps us when we forgive others. God tells us to forgive others because unforgiveness will mess up your life.

• Unforgiveness will hinder your prayer life (Mark 11:25-26)
• It’s difficult to receive forgiveness for your sins when you are flowing in unforgiveness. (Matthew 18:23-35)
• Unforgiveness is a sin that will slow you down. 

The Holy Spirit will help you to forgive others. Admittedly forgiving others can be hard to do, especially if somebody hurt you that you trusted and loved. The good news is that you don’t have to do it by yourself. Even if it seems impossible, the Holy Spirit will help you forgive others.

When does Anger Turn into Sin?

The Ten Commandments of Networking

The Importance of Networking with Other Leaders

PART 4

So, how do I do this networking thing?

I’m glad you asked. Here are the Ten Commandments of Networking: 

1. Think Win/Win. Any relationship that God is a part of is mutually benefiting.
2. Lead by asking questions. (Come prepared with written questions.)
3. Think about the other guy first. What can you do to help him or her?
4. Listen more. Talk less. (Be quick to hear and slow to speak.)
5. Be a Giver. Find something of value that you can give away.
6. Avoid talking about politics and theological differences. You can learn from anybody, regardless of his or her theology.
7. Turn lunchtime into the most productive hour of the day.
8. Don’t be afraid to ask for help? My Mom always said “the worst they can say is no”.
9. Give people space. (Don’t be too clingy.) Meet somebody new and then meet somebody else.
10. Get outside of your circle. The body of Christ is a bunch of little circles. If you get to know someone in a new circle he or she can introduce you to many new friends. 

Sometimes meeting new people can be a little scary, but the benefits are out of this world!

Some of the Benefits of Networking:

• Make Friends with Like-minded people
• Learn New Ideas
• Stirs up your Creativity
• Feels good when you help other people
• Helps you think outside of your box
• Helps you advance your career and the careers of others 

What are you waiting for?

• Make a list of people you want to meet.
• Text somebody and invite them to lunch.
• Decide which conference you want to attend.
• Start networking today!

Don't forget to check out all the other parts on the Importance of Networking with Other Leaders 

Part 1, It's all about who you know

Part 2, How do I get started?

Part 3, How I met my good friend, Jim Wideman

How I met my good friend, Jim Wideman

The Importance of Networking with other Leaders

Part 3

*Jim Wideman, Roger Fields, and Myself at
Uncensored 2008 in Minneapolis.

In 1978 I was attending Bible School in Tulsa, OK. One of my teachers was a man named Willie George. Today Pastor Willie is Senior Pastor of one of the largest churches in America, (Church on the Move) but in 1978 Willie was Children’s Pastor at a local church in Tulsa. Pastor Willie taught a class on “Ministering to Children” that totally changed my life. One day in class I asked Pastor Willie if I could get involved in his children’s ministry. I went through the Pastor Willie’s training and taught in the 3-5 year old class for one year.

After graduating from Bible School I returned to Michigan where I served faithfully as a children’s pastor for four years. I loved what I was doing but I was not making money to live on. One day I called Pastor Willie to seek some counsel and he told me about a new church in Tulsa (Family Worship Center) that was looking to hire a children’s pastor. I met with the senior pastor, Dr. Ken Stewart and on Willie’s recommendation he hired me to be his Children’s Pastor. I was doing what I loved to do and I was making four times what I was making at the church in Michigan.

In 1986 I took a new position as Children’s Pastor at Living Word in Minneapolis. (Pastor Willie helped me get that job too.) One day I received a package in the mail from this guy named Jim Wideman. (Jim was Children’s Pastor at Evangel Assembly in Montgomery at this time.) I opened up the box and there were a slew of Brother Jim’s Puppet Trax tapes. I gave Jim a call to thank him for the free tapes. (Jim has always been a giver) I got some free tapes for children’s church and I made a new children’s pastor friend.

Four years later (1990) Pastor Willie gave me a call. He was starting a Bible School for Children’s Ministry and he was looking for somebody to head up the school. I gave Pastor Willie Jim’s name and phone number. Pastor Willie originally hired Jim to start the Bible School, but eventually Brother Jim became Children’s Pastor at Church on the Move.

Let’s think about what happened here:

• I helped Pastor Willie by serving in his pre-school class as a volunteer.
• In that one year I learned a lot by watching Pastor Willie and serving in a class.
• Pastor Willie helped me get two children’s pastor jobs.
• I got some free tapes and a good friend for life!
• Jim got to be part of a really great church.
• Pastor Willie got the services of one of the best children’s pastors in the nation.
• Bother Jim helped Pastor Willie grow the church from 1,000 people to 17,000 people.

Here’s my point: God works through relationships. When networking is done right everybody wins.

Check out Part One and Part two of The Importance of Networking with Other Leaders

Part One, It's all about who you know

Part Two, How do I get started?

How do I get started?

The Importance of Networking with Other Leaders.

Part 2

The Ability to network with other leaders is a key to success in your own ministry. How do I get started with Networking?

I am glad you asked,

1. Start with the leaders in your own church. Make a list of the most influential leaders in your church and have coffee with them or take them to lunch. Make a concerted effort to get to know them. Great leaders know how to work with other leaders.
2. Participate in events at your church that are not sponsored by the children’s ministry. Attend the Ladies Meetings and the Men’s Retreats. If the greeters don’t recognize you, don’t blame them. Maybe you need to get out more. (Just a thought.)
3. Connect with other children’s pastors in your state. Every lunch is an opportunity to meet another like-minded leader.
4. Visit other churches. Ask around: Who has a really good children’s program? Go visit those churches. If you can’t get away on a Sunday, do it on a Wednesday night or a Saturday night.
5. Participate in networking sites. Take advantage if web sites like CMconnect, Kidology, and Face Book.
6. Go To Conferences. By far, the best place to meet like-minded people is at Conferences. Three things happen at conferences, Training, Product Sales and Networking. All three are valuable but my favorite part is networking and meeting new people

In his excellent networking book “Never Eat Lunch Alone”, Keith Ferrazzi says, “True conference commandos aren’t restricted by the agenda that they receive at registration. Who says you can’t arrange your own dinner while at the conference, or put together an informal discussion on a particular topic that matters to you.” In other words create the conference within the conference.

Chances are you will meet someone who went through something that you are going through right now, and they know how to help! Or, maybe you have info to help them! 

 If you enjoyed this, you should read 'It's all about who you know' to learn why networking is so important.

It's All About Who You Know!

The Importance of Networking with Other Leaders.

PART 1

Networking means different things to different people. According to Webster’s Dictionary networking is “The developing of contacts or exchanging of information with others in an informal network, as to further a career.” I asked my daughter, Missy, What is networking? Missy said, “It’s like making friends”. (I like both definitions.)

Networking is the intersection between work and friendship. For the purpose of this article I am defining networking as “Building friendships with like-minded people where you can help each other fulfill your goals.”

“It’s all about who you know.” I first heard this statement from a pastor’s wife. She was commenting on how (in her opinion) her denomination was too political. The inference was that people were promoted to positions of leadership, not based on their character or abilities, but simply on whom their friends were.

Admittedly this does happen on occasion, however if you receive a promotion simply based on friendship, and don’t have the necessary abilities, you won’t have that job for very long. On the other hand if you don’t have any relationships, you may not ever get a shot at job that you really want. It doesn’t matter how good you are at something if nobody knows about it.

The truth is that “who you know” is a key part of what makes life work. My best friends are people I work with at my church, or have met at a conference somewhere around the country. These are people that I genuinely care about. I want to see them succeed and they want to see me succeed.

Networking is like breathing. It’s not the only thing that matters, but if you don’t do it, you won’t last very long.

Take a moment and think about the various jobs that you have had. Ask yourself: How did I get this job? My guess is that there is good chance that either you knew the people that hired you, or that your boss knew a good friend of yours that recommended you.

What are your thoughts on networking?

How do you get started with networking? Well, come back in a couple of days and I will tell you!