Archive by Author
We are stewards of timeless truths
Posted on 24. Jan, 2012 by Kenny.
On more than one occasion, I heard Reggie say this line last week at the Orange Tour.
We are stewards of timeless truths.
What I think is interesting is that I often hear people complain about Orange curriculum Usually I hear people complaining from the point of view that there isn’t enough Bible in it. The funny thing is that I have people on my own staff who at times complain that the curriculum is too church. Honestly, there’s no such thing as a perfect curriculum and that alone isn’t reason enough to go out and start writing your own.
Curriculum was made to be tweaked… especially when they give it to you in editable digital form, right? Whether your curriculum comes from a virtue perspective or a chronological spin through the scriptures, the foundation doesn’t change that scripture is the basis for all things taught. If we don’t connect kids and students to the life-changing power of the scripture, we’re sunk. We may explore how the scripture can transform us to lead self-controlled lives or how certain events in the Old Testament teach us about what God wants to do in our lives right now. The bottom line is about how scripture connects to our lives.
In ministry, we have to understand that we are stewards of timeless truths. Every one of us. Leaders, small group leaders, hosts and story tellers. We steward these timeless truths and it is so important that we convey these truths accurately and responsibly. Too many times in my ministry have I heard a leader butcher the telling of a biblical truth, either in delivery or in content. We need not forget about James 3:1.
Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.
We are stewards of timeless truths and we must never take this responsibility lightly.
Continue Reading
Be Strategic
Posted on 23. Jan, 2012 by Kenny.
From day one of engaging with Orange (more than 4 years ago), the word strategy was a word I heard often. It’s not a new concept, but it was something that was brought to my attention again last Friday and I’m glad it was. Reggie painted a clear picture of the importance of strategy. He described how many great churches have incredible mission and vision statements that never really seem to do anything. Many of those church’s doors are closed now.
Strategy – A plan of action with an end in mind.
I love it. I’m leading a breakout at Illuminate in Nashville in a few weeks titled, “What Matters Most.” In this breakout I’m going to speak about how sometimes we lose track of that particular “end” in mind or maybe the “end” we’re focused on really isn’t as important as it should be.
I wonder what would happen if we as ministry leaders scripted out all that we did in a given week or month and then asked the very important question, “What is specific end we’re trying to get to as a result of this event/program/resource/meeting?” I think it would reveal what things we’re doing that are strategic and those things that are just wasting time. Man, do I hate wasting time. What’s worse is when I’m wasting time and don’t even know it.
Families, kids and students need us to be as strategic as possible. We must be strategic with our time, our tallent and our resources. How are you being strategic today?
Continue Reading
Orange Tour Gleanings
Posted on 23. Jan, 2012 by Kenny.
Last Friday I took 24 staff and leaders to the Dallas Orange Tour and Bent Tree Fellowship. What can I say, I’m a big believer in the local conference… something that’s close and affordable to inspire volunteers and staff that I can’t afford to take to the national events. It’s why I started Illuminate.
This Orange Tour was different for me. I was a little nervous. This was the first time I’ve ever taken student ministry volunteers. In the past I’ve brought my student pastor, but the team as a whole had never really been represented. They were very excited to have been invited and showed up in force. The Orange strategy is certainly something I believe in and I was more nervous that the student ministry volunteers would not connect with it or that it would somehow be a miss for them. Every year the Orange Tour has been one of the best conferences/seminars I attend and for no real reason, I was just nervous that it wouldn’t be as good as it had in the past.
Well, the day didn’t disappoint. If one year’s tour could be better than the previous one, this one was… but I must say that each of them stand out equally on their own. I learned so much, I was reminded of so much and I was inspired with so many new ideas. It was amazing and initial reaction from most of the student leaders was incredibly positive. I think there is still a lot to process with them, but overall, it was a great experience.
This week I’m not as much going to regurgitate my notes for you, but more or less share about what impacted me the most and what I plan to do with such thoughts. So, stay tuned for my Orange Tour Gleanings!
Continue Reading
Money issues
Posted on 22. Jan, 2012 by Kenny.
I came across this video a few weeks ago, very well done. The Great Recession has affected most of us. I’ve spoken to very few churches that haven’t had to make cuts. This satirical video very clearly illustrates the issue were facing in our country. It’s easy to point fingers at how sloppy our government has been, but most of us are to blame as well. When most of the population is carrying thousands in consumer debt, saving next to nothing yet still enjoying all the perks of life… it’s no wonder our nation’s financial situation is what it is.
In January, Gateway has been doing a series called Recovery Road. Really it’s just a four week sereis illustrating many of the principles from Financial Peace University. In February, we’re launching dozens of FPU classes to hopefully make a difference in the lives of people who need to make changes.
Continue Reading
Kitchy Signs in Kidmin
Posted on 19. Jan, 2012 by Kenny.
Today I ate a burger (Number 15 burger in Texas) at one of the funniest restaurants I’ve ever been too. I kept cracking up at 
all the signs. Most of them would not have been appropriate in a church setting, but there were a few that would be tempting to install. Everyone enjoys a little slick humor in the form of a sign, but I’m not sure I’ve really noticed such signs in kidmin… or in most churches for that matter. I guess that many of these signs tend to border on the side of inappropriate, but that’s not always the case. So I’m curious, have you seen or do you have such signage in your church/kidmin? These would be signs that deliver smiles to adults and even has a disarming affect for those who are tense about their first church experience. Church should be fun, right?
Continue Reading
Results of PIPA/SOPA protests yesterday
Posted on 19. Jan, 2012 by Kenny.
If you came to this site yesterday, you noticed that it was intentionally down in protest of the two bills going before congress next week. You can read more about this stuff in a post I wrote yesterday. A lot of people participated yesterday and good stuff was done. Here’s an email I got yesterday from Fight For the Future.
Today was nuts, right?
Google launched a petition. Wikipedia voted to shut itself off. Senators’ websites went down just from the sheer surge of voters trying to write them. NYC and SF geeks had protests that packed city blocks.
You made history today: nothing like this has ever happened before. Tech companies and users teamed up. Tens of millions of people who make the internet what it is joined together to defend their freedoms. The free network defended itself. Whatever you call it, the bottom line is clear: from today forward, it will be much harder to mess up the internet.
The really crazy part? We might even win.
Approaching Monday’s crucial Senate vote there are now 35 Senators publicly opposing PIPA. Last week there were 5. And it just takes just 41 solid “no” votes to permanently stall PIPA (and SOPA) in the Senate. What seemed like miles away a few weeks ago is now within reach.
But don’t trust predictions. The forces behind SOPA & PIPA (mostly movie companies) can make small changes to these bills until they know they have the votes to pass. Members of Congress know SOPA & PIPA are unpopular, but they don’t understand why–so they’re easily duped by superficial changes. The Senate returns next week, and the next few days are critical. Here are two things to think about:
1. Plan on calling your Senator every day next week. Pick up the phone each morning and call your Senators’ offices, until they vote “no” on cloture. If your site participated today, consider running a “Call the Senate” link all next week.
2. Tomorrow, drop in at your Senators’ district offices. We don’t have a cool map widget to show you the offices nearest you (we’re too exhausted! any takers?). So do it the old fashioned way: use Google, or the phonebook to find the address, and just walk in, say you oppose PIPA, and urge the Senator to vote “no” on cloture. These drop-in visits make our spectacular online protests more tangible and credible.
That’s it for now. Be proud and stay on it!
–Holmes, Tiffiniy, and the whole Fight for the Future team.
___
P.S. Huge credit goes to participants in the 11/16 American Censorship Day protest: Mozilla, 4chan, BoingBoing, Tumblr, TGWTG, and thousands of others. That’s what got this ball rolling! Reddit, both the community and the team behind it, you’re amazing. And of course, thanks to the Wikimedians whose patient and inexorable pursuit of the right answer brought them to take world-changing action. Thanks to David S, David K, Cory D, and E Stark for bold action at critical times.
P.P.S. If you haven’t already, show this video to as many people as you can. It works!http://fightforthefuture.org/
So, it’s not over yet. If you haven’t signed the petition yet, do it today!
Continue Reading
I love my freedom! Stop Pipa/Sopa!
Posted on 18. Jan, 2012 by Kenny.
I don’t really ever get political on this blog, but I guess when political issues intersect with the content/purpose of this blog, then I feel like I have something to say. Actually, I want to do more than just say something, but ask you to do something.
Next week, two bills go before congress that threaten the freedom we have enjoyed over the years on the web, putting the power to sensor in the hands of large corporations and the government. This is not good for our nation!
The Protect IP act goes before congress and the Stop Online Piracy Act goes before the house. I’m not going to go into detail on what both of these bills are about because so many others have explained it much better than I could.
Click here to read about these two bills in detail.
Click here to see an infographic that clearly describes both these bills.
These bills were written to stop piracy mainly distributed by foreign entities, but this bill really isn’t going to be able to stop piracy as there are already too many easy work arounds. But, it gives significant power to government and big media in hollywood to shut people down with little to no restraint. It’s an assault on our freedom and many have declared this bill unconstitutional. However, due to the power of lobbies, these bills have a lot of congressional support.
You can help though. Contact your representatives and let them know that you oppose these bills. This task has been made easy.
Click here to petition your representatives easily… you just provide your info and they’ll get your message to your representatives! This site also contains tools to help get the word out.
Click here to visit Google’s petition if you prefer.
Here’s a great video that will even better explain how all of this works.
I’m all for stoping piracy, but this is NOT the answer!
So, please take a moment to let your representatives know how you would like them to vote!
Continue Reading
Dallas Orange Tour!
Posted on 18. Jan, 2012 by Kenny.
I’m pumped! Tomorrow I leave for Dallas for the Dallas Orange Tour. This year I’m taking about 24 volunteers and staff. This year I’m actually bringing more student ministry volunteers than those in kidmin. For the last 6 months I’ve been far more involved in student ministry than I have in the past and I wanted to make a big investment in these leaders… plus I want them to start thinking Orange. These student ministry leaders were so excited to be invited, which is why I have about 18 going.
I can’t over-communicate how important these kinds of events are for ministry teams. I’ve been to the Orange Conference for the past 4 years and I’ll probably continue to attend for some time. The conference has impacted me and influenced me tremendously and I want the same for my staff and volunteers, but I can’t always bring all of them due to money issues, but something like the Orange Tour is a complete no brainer. I’m taking 24 and by the time I pay hotel, food and registration, it cost me less than sending 2 to Atlanta for Orange. To help out, I’m even having the volunteers car pool and cover their travel expenses.
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE the Orange Conference, but there is something really special about the Orange Tour. Because the entire thing is hosted directly by Reggie and Sue, it feels far more pure and concentrated. You’ll leve the Tour with a strong grasp of what the Orange strategy is all about… maybe even better than the conference. I’d encourage everyone to attend a tour stop… even if that means catching a flight into one of their locations. I’ll be blogging about my tour experience next week (since I don’t blog a lot over the weekend), so stay tuned!
Continue Reading
My CPC thoughts
Posted on 17. Jan, 2012 by Kenny.
No, I didn’t attend CPC this year. I explained why here. However, I must say that I was keeping my finger on the pulse of the conference all last week. I was constantly following the CPC twitter hashtag, texting friends who were there and peering in any way that I could. Believe it or not, I actually have some opinions about this year’s event. But, I need to share some background.
I first attended CPC in Atlanta back in 2003 (I think) and it was actually a great experience. It was the first time I had ever attended a Children’s Ministry conference and I learned a lot. Several years later in 2007, I attended again in Orlando. I wasn’t really impressed. I had fun and it was valuable time, but not as much because of CPC but because of the time I had with my staff. I figured that it would probably be the last year I attended CPC. The following year I went to Orange, mainly because it seemed to be the event that was attracting the leaders who were speaking to my heart and ministry.
About a year ago, I got a phone call from an executive head hunter. They were looking to fill the vacant role of Executive Director of INCM. The head hunter asked me a lot of questions about INCM and CPC. I was brutally honest, but I remember telling her that I had a lot of hope for CPC. I felt (and still do) that there’s always room for more voices in the world of kidmin and it was my hope that CPC could turn the corner and be a significant voice in kidmin. I was thrilled when they hired Michael Chanley (one of the people I recommended to the head hunter) because I knew that INCM and CPC had a fighting chance!
What I experienced last week at CPC (through blogs, tweets and texts) showed me that the CPC is not through. It appeared that CPC knocked it out of the park and was the voice of relevance and significance it had been for so many years (even if it lost its way for a time). Many of the keynotes and breakouts were conversations about things that really matter. I really wish I’d been able to be there. Next year I won’t have any infants in the house, so hopefully I’ll be able to participate.
Great job Michael Chanley and your INCM team! I look forward to seeing what ya’ll can take this thing to!
Continue Reading
The power of Kidmin community
Posted on 17. Jan, 2012 by Kenny.
I was really bummed that I missed out on CPC this year. I had the opportunity to watch a video of a session where Michael Chanley interviewed Matt McKee, Sam Luce and Jonathan Cliff about the “networking group” Gina McClain and I share with those guys. I say “networking group” lightly because now it’s more like a strong group of friends that give and receive so much life from each other far beyond conversations about ministry. I think that “our story” was a glimpse of what great networking and community can look like in the world of kidmin.
However, right now I’m experiencing kidmin community right now in an entirely different level and I’m really excited about it. Last week I wrote this post and tweeted several times about starting an official Kidmin Biggest Loser group. Well, today was the first official “weigh in” and there are 16 kidmin folks from all over the country participating. Here’s what I love about this group.
- One person is a kidmin volunteer at my church (she saw all my tweets and wanted to join)
- One person attended one of my breakouts at Kidmin Conference in Chicago and started following my blog
- One person did Infuse with me for two years
- Two people I met through my Illuminate events
- Several people I’ve known for years through twitter and blogs
- A handful of people I’d never met or connected with until this competition
- Almost half of the participants, I’ve not yet met in person
Already I’m seeing great encouragement happening among a group of people who share a common passion, yet why we banded together has little to do with our primary passion. I think that over the next 13 weeks, some great relationships are going to develop and grow.
So, should I ask the question? What does networking in Kidmin look like in your life and ministry. Have you connected with others who know you, speak into your life and encourage you as a person as well as your ministry? If your answer is no… then what are you waiting for?
Continue Reading
