Last night someone sent me a link to the video posted below. I had no idea this was coming, but I’m very excited about it. Planning Center Online, the creators of the absolute best service planning software has just launched check-in software. Honestly, I wasn’t expecting this but I think that this could be a game changer.
I found Planning Center Online shortly after it came out. I personally didn’t have a need for it as I wasn’t planning services in a way that the software would help me. However, I was intrigued by how it scheduled volunteers. I exchanged emails with one of the developers making suggestions on how this software could be modified to help manage volunteers in a Children’s Ministry context. At that point, it assumed that the same set of volunteers would serve for multiple services on a weekend. Since then they have modified their software to allow you to schedule volunteers for multiple services with an “evite” type feel.
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Okay, Easter is only 26 days away now… you better get busy. Yesterday I shared a bunch of free (and links to high quality paid) graphics and slides to enhance your Easter experience. Today, I’d like to share some incredible media that could enhance your Easter services in a major way. The resources I’ve gathered below are from Worship House Media and Worship House Kids. There are literally hundreds of other resources on their respective sites. It’s a great time to be in ministry, so many great resources to choose from.
Theatrical “trailer” for your Easter service. Very high energy, intense scoring and a good recap of the Easter story. Would be a great addition to an older elementary audience.
A very powerful and well animated wordless mini movie that recaps the final days of Jesus. The movie artistically connects events from Jesus’ ministry with the final moments before his crucifixion. I really love this video. It goes on to tell the story all the way until his ascension to heaven… but the video could probably be faded out if you wanted to end it with the resurrection.
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Last night, Chris Parker, the student pastor at Gateway wrote a blog post that totally inspired me and I knew that I had to write this post today.
When I first took the job at Gateway six years ago, a reference told me that one of the “negatives” about Gateway was the office space. There just wasn’t enough. Many years later, we’re an even larger staff with the same amount of space. About a year ago, a decision was made to radically transform the offices. The idea was to transition to a highly collaborative office space. The private offices on the perimeter of the building would be shared or even general office space for meetings and the cube farm in the middle would be divided up into larger working spaces with couches and tables.
I was one of those lucky few who had a private office. It wasn’t a big office, but I could close the door and be in my own world all day. However, when I heard about the transition, I put my finger on the largest space and said, “Can I have half of this room, I want to bring my entire team together?”
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Easter is 27 days away. Do you know what you’re doing yet? Do you need some help? Looking for some resources to enhance the plan you’re trying to execute? It’s good to know that we don’t always have to re-invent the wheel. There are others who have been in your shoes and have created beautiful resources and have made them available for free and for purchase. This week I’m going to connect you to some incredible Easter resources. There is still plenty of time, so hopefully some of these resources will meet your needs!
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I just wrapped up a two week vacation and it was marvelous. After the intense Fall and winter, two full weeks of disconnect have been much needed. The only agenda I had for this time off was a week away with my family followed by a week of yard projects that would take an entire week.
I’ve been living in Texas for just under ten years and they have been (almost) ten glorious years. Sara and I actually have our “move date to Texas” as a reoccurring date on our calendar and we celebrate annually. I don’t know what it takes to be a “Texan” or to say that one is from “Texas,” but I’m very proud to live in the state.
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A couple of days ago I came across the following video. With over 3 million views, you may or may not have seen it, but you’ll love it.
This is a funny video, but it PERFECTLY illustrates a key principle of the book Switch, a book all about change. The concept is “If you want people to change, you must provide crystal clear direction.”
The illustration used in switch is how two college professors tried to encourage a change in public health in a West Virginia city. Getting healthy is about a vague as you can imagine. Everyone has their own opinions of what getting healthy looks like or consists of. The two professors decided to attack local unhealthiness through milk.
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This is a critical thought that every leader needs to wrestle with. “I’m not as important as I think I am.” Many leaders find themselves stuck in their ministry. They’ve surrounded themselves with programs, tasks and responsibilities that depend on them. So many plates are spinning and it’s up to the leader to keep them going. I really don’t believe it’s a pride of vanity issue. It’s not that these leaders think so much of themselves and have some kind of messiah complex. But for some reason, so many of us struggle with this very issue.
Several years ago I heard Doug Fields speak at Orange Conference. Doug had been the student pastor at Saddleback Church for 15+ years. He talk about his transition off of staff. One day he had the weight of one of the largest and most renown student ministries in the country and the next day it wasn’t his to lead anymore. He felt sure that someone was going to call him that first day… or that first week. The phone never rang.
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Last week I was on vacation with my family. Technically, I’m still on vacation, but just doing projects around the house which is nice. Last week I wrote that I was taking on a personal experience of unplugging. I’d like to share a little about how that went and the things I learned.
I’ll start with the truth. I didn’t do everything I said I was going to do. I was mostly unplugged, but not 100%. While I was gone, I did disconnect from facebook, twitter, instagram and email fully. I made 2-3 phone calls but I did send a handful of texts, but only to 3 people.
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According to a recent study, the most productive time of the day is actually 10:26 AM. This time was derived by a survey of more than 400 individuals. The same survey stated that the most unproductive time of day is at 2:55 PM, about the time your lunch has settled and you’re feeling ready for a short coma. The second most productive time is listed as 4:16, when the day is almost coming to a close and everyone’s trying to get everything done before it is time to go home.
True, this is just a survey of 400 random people. More than likely, your times of productivity and less that productivity are close to these times as well, but it’s entirely possible that you’re the exception to the rule. What’s most important is that you do have times of higher productivity as well as times where you’re more likely to be checking facebook or walking around the office looking for someone to talk to. The point of this post isn’t about how closely your times line up with the norm. I just think there are two questions we should each ask ourselves.
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I’m pretty plugged in as far as connectivity is concerned. I’m pretty much addicted to my phone as is the rest of the country. So, I’m embarking on a little experiment this week. I’m unplugging. Hardcore. All the way.
I’m taking a nice two week vacation of Spring Break. The first week I’m taking the family to SW Texas. After speaking for a few days at a family camp in Rocksprings TX, we’re headed to Alpine, TX and Carlsbad, NM. I’ll have a second week of vacation at home where I’ll just rest and work on little projects around the house.
However, I decided that our trip out west is as good as anytime to attempt a media fast. There were several contributing factors:
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