I have been going to as well as planning and doing Camps and Retreats for kids and teens most of my life. I don't do them because I've always done them or because that's what we do... (like many churches do VBS) but I do them because of the fruit I've seen consistently over the years. Here's a few reasons why I like camps.
1. There's something special about getting away and devoting a few days to God's purposes.
2. I like the relationship building opportunities it gives with other students, leaders and with the Lord.
3. I like the expectations that students and leaders bring to the event that God is going to do something big
4. I like spending time with the people I serve. (I do like the work of the ministry but I love spending time with people most of all)
5. I like having more time devoted to God's purposes in our lives.
6. It's one of the few times people unplug from the voices of the media and other electronic stimuli.
7. It always sparks something in our group when we get back. It's a new platform we can swing from toward God's next level for us as a ministry.
Pray for me and the students and leaders of HSinfinity this weekend. We are headed to camp and God is going to do some amazing things as we seek Him.
There are things I've learned I want to spend the rest of my life passing on to the next generation!
Showing posts with label #stumin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #stumin. Show all posts
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Monday, June 25, 2012
Hello Again
Last week I took my first ever solo vacation and media blackout. It was wonderful. I started my trip with my entire family (except my son-in-law Dustin who had to work, bummer he couldn't go, yea God he has a great job!) My youngest of my 3 nieces got married and I had the wonderful privilege to help with all the festivities. It was a great 3 days of not only spending time with my mother and my immediate family but also I got to reconnect with some wonderful extended family and long time family friends. The highlight for me though was spending Father's Day with my girls and my wonderful grandson.
That afternoon after we delivered my mother back to Birmingham, Yancy, Julie and Sparrow flew off to minister at a camp in Dallas, Cory and Whitney drove back home to Nashvegas to work and I left for 5 days I am calling my Macation. No phone calls, emails, twitter or facebook posts to anyone but family. The purpose of this trip was to rest, relax, hear from God and check a few additional things off my bucket list.
The first stop was Jacksonville, AL home of the Chief Ladiga Trail. Julie and I got to ride our first Rails to Trail route several years ago in Mississippi called the Longleaf Trace. It was the longest trip either of us had ridden at the time 41 miles. When I heard about the Chief I wanted to ride it because it would cause me to accomplish another one of my bucket list items which was to ride my bicycle from one state to another.
Monday I started my journey at the Jacksonville community center and rode to Piedmont, AL then rode back to Jacksonville then on to Weaver, AL and back to Jacksonville. All in all it was almost 35 miles. During that ride I heard the Lord tell me I needed to stop trying to do so much. I had already known that I was to not do very many conferences next year but as I rode the Lord showed me several other things beside conferences I needed to do differently. We talked about how Children's Ministry today has changed from where it began and what my part needed to be in the years ahead. He reconfirmed my commitment and calling to the local church. In the early days there were only children's pastors and evangelists. If you were seeing success you helped others by sharing what had worked for you. I appreciate blogs and social media but I feel that many of them have turned into a means for self promotion. I can not and will not judge the motives of others but I do have to judge mine. I am not going to be blogging as much and promoting myself like I have been. I will use my blog to help others through what I am doing in my local church and my walk with God as a husband, father and minister. My heart has always been and still is the local church and I am to be true to that calling. I want to be a man my grandchildren admire and want to be like more than a children's ministry guru, poobah, or hero. I belief that my fruit should be based on what I do not what I write. It matters more who I am, than what I say. The rest of the day I rode around taking pictures and looking at guns and knifes then went to bed before it even got dark.
Tuesday morning I drove over to Piedmont, AL to put in and ride northeast uphill to Georgia. The ride back was wonderful, you got to love going downhill when your legs are tired. I ended up doing only 29 miles but during the ride I had some wonderful prayer time for my family and ministry but on the way back the Lord showed me my next 8 books, as well as what to do over the next few years of theClub and reconfirmed His call on me to do Infuse.
Before I knew it I was back at my starting place and headed back to Jacksonville to pack up, clean-up and reload the truck to head to Macon, GA. Once I got checked into my hotel and headed to the grocery store and went and took a look around the city. I had wanted to come to Macon for more than a day for years all my other trips had been to fly in and do ministry training and fly out. Once again some more items where about to be checked off my bucket list.
More to come...
That afternoon after we delivered my mother back to Birmingham, Yancy, Julie and Sparrow flew off to minister at a camp in Dallas, Cory and Whitney drove back home to Nashvegas to work and I left for 5 days I am calling my Macation. No phone calls, emails, twitter or facebook posts to anyone but family. The purpose of this trip was to rest, relax, hear from God and check a few additional things off my bucket list.
The first stop was Jacksonville, AL home of the Chief Ladiga Trail. Julie and I got to ride our first Rails to Trail route several years ago in Mississippi called the Longleaf Trace. It was the longest trip either of us had ridden at the time 41 miles. When I heard about the Chief I wanted to ride it because it would cause me to accomplish another one of my bucket list items which was to ride my bicycle from one state to another.
Monday I started my journey at the Jacksonville community center and rode to Piedmont, AL then rode back to Jacksonville then on to Weaver, AL and back to Jacksonville. All in all it was almost 35 miles. During that ride I heard the Lord tell me I needed to stop trying to do so much. I had already known that I was to not do very many conferences next year but as I rode the Lord showed me several other things beside conferences I needed to do differently. We talked about how Children's Ministry today has changed from where it began and what my part needed to be in the years ahead. He reconfirmed my commitment and calling to the local church. In the early days there were only children's pastors and evangelists. If you were seeing success you helped others by sharing what had worked for you. I appreciate blogs and social media but I feel that many of them have turned into a means for self promotion. I can not and will not judge the motives of others but I do have to judge mine. I am not going to be blogging as much and promoting myself like I have been. I will use my blog to help others through what I am doing in my local church and my walk with God as a husband, father and minister. My heart has always been and still is the local church and I am to be true to that calling. I want to be a man my grandchildren admire and want to be like more than a children's ministry guru, poobah, or hero. I belief that my fruit should be based on what I do not what I write. It matters more who I am, than what I say. The rest of the day I rode around taking pictures and looking at guns and knifes then went to bed before it even got dark.
Tuesday morning I drove over to Piedmont, AL to put in and ride northeast uphill to Georgia. The ride back was wonderful, you got to love going downhill when your legs are tired. I ended up doing only 29 miles but during the ride I had some wonderful prayer time for my family and ministry but on the way back the Lord showed me my next 8 books, as well as what to do over the next few years of theClub and reconfirmed His call on me to do Infuse.
Before I knew it I was back at my starting place and headed back to Jacksonville to pack up, clean-up and reload the truck to head to Macon, GA. Once I got checked into my hotel and headed to the grocery store and went and took a look around the city. I had wanted to come to Macon for more than a day for years all my other trips had been to fly in and do ministry training and fly out. Once again some more items where about to be checked off my bucket list.
More to come...
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
I've Been Thinking- Part 2
The third area to evaluate is your priorities. Could you make a list of the top ten priorities for your life and ministry right this moment? If you don’t have priorities you can’t keep them. Proverbs 28:2 says “When a country is rebellious, it has many rulers, but a man of understanding and knowledge maintains order.” It’s one thing to know your priorities, it’s another thing all together to live according to those priorities.
The Forth area to evaluate is time management. In other words ask yourself; how am I spending my time? Am I spending time daily with the Lord? Is my family suffering while my ministry is flourishing? Am I making time for my personal growth and development? Are you identifying the time robbers in your life? Once you identify the areas that need improvement, you must come up with a plan to implement the needed changes. It’s your time, act like it!
The fifth area I evaluate on a regular basis is my performance. Am I being a team builder or a one-person show? What am I doing that someone else can do? Have I communicated clearly to all my workers what they are to do? Speaking of communication: am I a clear and skillful communicator? Am I skilled at solving problems? Can I be relied on to complete assignments and keep commitments? If you had to rate your level of leadership on a scale of 1 to 10 what would it be? Are you meeting the needs of the children and families of your church? It’s up to you to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses on a regular basis. If you’ll make personal evaluation a habit in your life you’ll grow as a leader!
As I think about each of these five areas I also have to ask myself what am I doing that I need to say no to. As I evaluate each area there comes a time for me to say yes to right things I have to also say no to things I have no business doing. Making time to think about better ways to do things, making time to listen and evaluate will make a difference in your leadership. The more you make time to stop and think and evaluate the more you will be able to navigate change both in your life and ministry.
Go ahead, I double dog dare you…. Do you some thinking, it will change your life and ministry!
The Forth area to evaluate is time management. In other words ask yourself; how am I spending my time? Am I spending time daily with the Lord? Is my family suffering while my ministry is flourishing? Am I making time for my personal growth and development? Are you identifying the time robbers in your life? Once you identify the areas that need improvement, you must come up with a plan to implement the needed changes. It’s your time, act like it!
The fifth area I evaluate on a regular basis is my performance. Am I being a team builder or a one-person show? What am I doing that someone else can do? Have I communicated clearly to all my workers what they are to do? Speaking of communication: am I a clear and skillful communicator? Am I skilled at solving problems? Can I be relied on to complete assignments and keep commitments? If you had to rate your level of leadership on a scale of 1 to 10 what would it be? Are you meeting the needs of the children and families of your church? It’s up to you to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses on a regular basis. If you’ll make personal evaluation a habit in your life you’ll grow as a leader!
As I think about each of these five areas I also have to ask myself what am I doing that I need to say no to. As I evaluate each area there comes a time for me to say yes to right things I have to also say no to things I have no business doing. Making time to think about better ways to do things, making time to listen and evaluate will make a difference in your leadership. The more you make time to stop and think and evaluate the more you will be able to navigate change both in your life and ministry.
Go ahead, I double dog dare you…. Do you some thinking, it will change your life and ministry!
Monday, June 11, 2012
I've Been Thinking...
Every #kidmin, #stumin, and #fammin leader wants their ministry to grow. I believe God wants your ministry to grow as well. In order for our ministries to children to grow we must be willing to grow in our leadership abilities. Individual growth always comes before corporate growth.
The number one key to growth as a leader is evaluation. Change will never take place without constant evaluation. If you don’t identify ways that you can grow as a leader you’ll never reach your next level. How to you do this? I’m glad you asked that question. Make time to think about your life and ministry on a regular basis! Jim, I think about this all the time, no you think about what to do not how you are doing. You think about problems more than think about answers. You can’t get to where you are going if you don’t know where you are. Let’s look at five areas we should evaluate on a regular basis.
Area number one: Your relationship with Christ. A great question I ask my self is this… Has there ever been a time in my life that I was more in love with Jesus than I am right now? My walk with God is not about what I do, it’s all about what Jesus did for me. For a guy that believes we are not saved by works I evaluate my relationship with Christ with performance based criteria. The truth is I have to remind my self to evaluate my walk by how I surrender rather than what I do. Am I listening to the Word and choosing it in every area of my life? Am I worshipping Him for who He is not for what He does for me? Am I modeling his nature and character in my choices and taking every thought captive and making it obedient to Christ.
Area two: How’s your attitude? Here are some questions I ask myself on a regular basis. Do I have the heart of a servant? Have I made my Pastor look good this week? Have I made my Pastor’s life easier this week? Am I an asset or a liability to my Pastor? Am I a team player? What is my attitude about others around me? Am I grumbling and complaining? Am I enjoying the trip? Do I have a heart after God? Am I thinking about me and my wants too much?
(More to come...)
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Inside The Eric Trap- Part 2
The next author who wrote about Eric's second trap was Deana Hayes. Deana is now the Family Pastor at Light and Life Church in Avon, IN. Deana is one of my favorite infusers, she's really quiet but she's always thinking and asks great questions. She wrote about "Leadership Under Authority" Here's just a little bit of what she added to THE ERIC TRAP...
I remember the first day on the job like it was yesterday. I strolled into the church building not really knowing what to expect. The senior pastor greeted me with some warm and welcoming words, and then he escorted me to my office and asked that I meet with him in his office in a few minutes. The first thing I noticed was that my office had windows, a supposed luxury in the world of kidmin, so I knew things were already off to a good start. After setting some personal things down and again admiring the view from my window, I strolled down the hall to meet with my senior pastor. We went over the typical personnel and administrative stuff—those fun yet necessary tax and insurance forms. And afterward, he sent me to my office to begin my job.
I was so excited to get things going in children’s ministry at this church. I was the first children’s pastor my church had ever hired. It was a new venture, and I was eager to do a great job. Isn’t that what we all desire—to be the best at what we do? We attend school and conferences, and we network with others to be the best at our job. We dream of new and better programs that will reach more and more kids. We seek to acquire the newest tools and resources so that we can be the best (not in a conceited way, of course). We’re passionate about what we’ve been called to do, and we can quickly become absorbed in this huge and complex world of our vision for ministry. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?
Well, did I have a lot to learn.!
Having a huge vision for children’s ministry isn’t wrong. Actually, it’s essential. But one of the biggest and most important things I have learned is the importance of knowing the vision of the house and submitting to my senior or lead pastor. To submit means to yield oneself to the will or authority of another. More personally, to submit as a children’s pastor means to know my senior pastor’s heart. Where is God leading him for the congregation in which we both serve? It is crucial to our personal well being as well as the success of our church to know that vision. Mark 3:24-26 NIV says, “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come.”
Naturally, as children’s pastors, we may wonder, how exactly do I serve my senior leader? or why do I put his calling before my own? Well the why is an easy one to answer. The relationship between a senior pastor and his associate pastors is often the key to the health and ministry of a church. Although we may have been hired because of our vision the for the children's ministry and our stated expectation is to lead the children's ministry, our top priority must always be to assist the pastor in his vision for the church. Period.
I have often heard children’s ministers argue, “But I went to school to serve the local church as the children’s pastor,” or “I was hired as the children’s pastor; therefore, my job is to lead and oversee the ministry to children, so what does getting to know the vision of the house or serving my senior pastor have do with my key responsibilities?”
Well, everything!
When the local church hires a person to oversee any area of ministry, what they are actually doing is hiring an associate to the pastor. The church is hiring an associate pastor who will assist the senior pastor in moving the church to accomplish the vision God gave him for that particular church. Once on staff, the senior pastor will delegate authority to the associate in overseeing and leading a ministry in a specific area. In our cases, that specific area happens to be a vibrant ministry to children. Therefore, it is not your ministry; it’s but an extension of the ministries offered by your local churches. Let me say that again. It is not YOUR ministry. Sometimes I think that we get that confused. Plainly said, we you have been entrusted to lead that area of ministry in the way it should go in line with the vision of the house. Our work should reflect highly on our senior pastors. Remember, we were hired to serve our senior pastor and his vision for the church, not the other way around.
Why did I have to learn this the hard way? I got to the point where I wanted the church to grow so badly that I was very eager to do something, anything, to move it forward. I failed to listen to my senior pastor. I did not honor him, nor did I extend the respect that he deserved as an ordained man of God. I had my own ideas of what could be done, and I knew they were great ideas.
Don’t get me wrong, having a desire, in and of itself, to grow and move a church is not wrong, but the way we try to see it through may have its faults. We must be careful in how we build and direct the ministry we’ve been given authority to lead. Building a ministry to children that teaches, encourages, challenges, strengthens, and leads children to the throne of grace for our own success is wrong. Reaching out to equip families, encourage moms, and develop dads in spite of what your our leadership has asked you us to do is failure. The ends never justify the means. In all that we do, we must build our ministry to children in a way that aligns with and reflects the vision of the house.
It is so easy to sit in our offices and totally get lost within our own ministry. Praying for, planning, and dreaming of what to do next are consuming. We wonder, how can we can improve our safety and security system in a way that gives parents more confidence? What tools can we seek or develop to better train and equip our staff? Which conferences should we attend to grow in both faith and skills, learn from great communicators, and network with other like--minded pastors?
As a children’s minister, there’s always more to do than we’ll have time for. There’s more to think about than weyou’ll have time to actually think about it. There’s nothing wrong with all of these things, right? This is what we were hired to do, isn’t it?
Stop. Get up from your desk. Walk out of your office, and go join a co-worker in his or her office. Ask him or her about plans he or she has for the ministry he or she has authority to lead. Probe deeper. Ask questions. How does what this person is talking about intersect with the children’s ministry? How can you help him or her be successful? How can he or she help you to be successful? Are you both headed in the same direction, following the vision your pastor laid out for your church?
We have a tendency to isolate ourselves in our own world and ministry, and we forget our place. We’re on a team. We’re working together. We are working for our senior pastor. We must not forget this.
I remember the first day on the job like it was yesterday. I strolled into the church building not really knowing what to expect. The senior pastor greeted me with some warm and welcoming words, and then he escorted me to my office and asked that I meet with him in his office in a few minutes. The first thing I noticed was that my office had windows, a supposed luxury in the world of kidmin, so I knew things were already off to a good start. After setting some personal things down and again admiring the view from my window, I strolled down the hall to meet with my senior pastor. We went over the typical personnel and administrative stuff—those fun yet necessary tax and insurance forms. And afterward, he sent me to my office to begin my job.
I was so excited to get things going in children’s ministry at this church. I was the first children’s pastor my church had ever hired. It was a new venture, and I was eager to do a great job. Isn’t that what we all desire—to be the best at what we do? We attend school and conferences, and we network with others to be the best at our job. We dream of new and better programs that will reach more and more kids. We seek to acquire the newest tools and resources so that we can be the best (not in a conceited way, of course). We’re passionate about what we’ve been called to do, and we can quickly become absorbed in this huge and complex world of our vision for ministry. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?
Well, did I have a lot to learn.!
Having a huge vision for children’s ministry isn’t wrong. Actually, it’s essential. But one of the biggest and most important things I have learned is the importance of knowing the vision of the house and submitting to my senior or lead pastor. To submit means to yield oneself to the will or authority of another. More personally, to submit as a children’s pastor means to know my senior pastor’s heart. Where is God leading him for the congregation in which we both serve? It is crucial to our personal well being as well as the success of our church to know that vision. Mark 3:24-26 NIV says, “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come.”
Naturally, as children’s pastors, we may wonder, how exactly do I serve my senior leader? or why do I put his calling before my own? Well the why is an easy one to answer. The relationship between a senior pastor and his associate pastors is often the key to the health and ministry of a church. Although we may have been hired because of our vision the for the children's ministry and our stated expectation is to lead the children's ministry, our top priority must always be to assist the pastor in his vision for the church. Period.
I have often heard children’s ministers argue, “But I went to school to serve the local church as the children’s pastor,” or “I was hired as the children’s pastor; therefore, my job is to lead and oversee the ministry to children, so what does getting to know the vision of the house or serving my senior pastor have do with my key responsibilities?”
Well, everything!
When the local church hires a person to oversee any area of ministry, what they are actually doing is hiring an associate to the pastor. The church is hiring an associate pastor who will assist the senior pastor in moving the church to accomplish the vision God gave him for that particular church. Once on staff, the senior pastor will delegate authority to the associate in overseeing and leading a ministry in a specific area. In our cases, that specific area happens to be a vibrant ministry to children. Therefore, it is not your ministry; it’s but an extension of the ministries offered by your local churches. Let me say that again. It is not YOUR ministry. Sometimes I think that we get that confused. Plainly said, we you have been entrusted to lead that area of ministry in the way it should go in line with the vision of the house. Our work should reflect highly on our senior pastors. Remember, we were hired to serve our senior pastor and his vision for the church, not the other way around.
Why did I have to learn this the hard way? I got to the point where I wanted the church to grow so badly that I was very eager to do something, anything, to move it forward. I failed to listen to my senior pastor. I did not honor him, nor did I extend the respect that he deserved as an ordained man of God. I had my own ideas of what could be done, and I knew they were great ideas.
Don’t get me wrong, having a desire, in and of itself, to grow and move a church is not wrong, but the way we try to see it through may have its faults. We must be careful in how we build and direct the ministry we’ve been given authority to lead. Building a ministry to children that teaches, encourages, challenges, strengthens, and leads children to the throne of grace for our own success is wrong. Reaching out to equip families, encourage moms, and develop dads in spite of what your our leadership has asked you us to do is failure. The ends never justify the means. In all that we do, we must build our ministry to children in a way that aligns with and reflects the vision of the house.
It is so easy to sit in our offices and totally get lost within our own ministry. Praying for, planning, and dreaming of what to do next are consuming. We wonder, how can we can improve our safety and security system in a way that gives parents more confidence? What tools can we seek or develop to better train and equip our staff? Which conferences should we attend to grow in both faith and skills, learn from great communicators, and network with other like--minded pastors?
As a children’s minister, there’s always more to do than we’ll have time for. There’s more to think about than weyou’ll have time to actually think about it. There’s nothing wrong with all of these things, right? This is what we were hired to do, isn’t it?
Stop. Get up from your desk. Walk out of your office, and go join a co-worker in his or her office. Ask him or her about plans he or she has for the ministry he or she has authority to lead. Probe deeper. Ask questions. How does what this person is talking about intersect with the children’s ministry? How can you help him or her be successful? How can he or she help you to be successful? Are you both headed in the same direction, following the vision your pastor laid out for your church?
We have a tendency to isolate ourselves in our own world and ministry, and we forget our place. We’re on a team. We’re working together. We are working for our senior pastor. We must not forget this.
Want to read the rest? Order your copy of THE ERIC TRAP today!
You can buy the book on my site, or Amazon. It's also available for the Kindle.
You can buy the book on my site, or Amazon. It's also available for the Kindle.
I'm also going to be giving away some free Ebook copies... to be eligible to win leave a comment and then retweet my tweets about THE ERIC TRAP from now through the weekend.
Have fun!
Have fun!
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