Archive for 'Missions'
Why I’m a missions snob
Posted on 28. Mar, 2011 by Kenny.
I am what I am and I’m not ashamed. If you ask me, “So Kenny, what do you think about missions,” be prepared for some very strong opinions. You’ll certainly get more than you bargained for. Yes, I’m very idealistic. True. However, I think that my opinions aren’t totally grounded in my idealism. I’m a very logical person and when I see something that makes a lot of sense and other people just don’t see the whole picture, I can get very passionate about these ideas. This is the reason for my snobbery.
Here’s the deal. The needs in our world are great. I’m not denying that. There are needs on every corner of the globe. Kids are starving, people are being enslaved and hospitals need to be built.… Read the rest
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CMO:GO – Mission resources for kidmin
Posted on 28. Mar, 2011 by Kenny.
Over the years I have written quite a few posts about missions in general, missional resources for kidmin and practical ideas for getting kids excited and passionate about international missions. You can always use the handy search bar on the right to find such posts, but when writing the “Kids on Mission” article for K, I decided to gather all the posts I’ve written about missions and put them in one place where things are easier to find. That places is CMO:GO which is simply childrensministryonline.com/go. This site has always been about resourcing kidmin leaders and if content is too hard to find, then I’m not serving kidmin well. So, if you’re looking for ideas on missions, check out childrensministryonline.com/go.… Read the rest
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Missions Week
Posted on 28. Mar, 2011 by Kenny.
If you’ve read my blog for any length of time, you’ve noticed that I’m fairly passionate about missions. What you may not know about me is that if I didn’t go into kids ministry 15 years ago, there is not doubt that I would be working among unreached people’s today. About 15 years ago I was at a crossroads. For years, I felt a strong call toward working with kids and I was actively pursuing that call. However, after working for a missions organization for a year before starting college and recognizing the overwhelming need in international missions, specifically to the unreached parts of the world, I surrendered my call to kids to God. I told him that if he could use my gifts to reach the unreached, then I was willing.… Read the rest
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The other end of the shoebox
Posted on 16. Mar, 2011 by Kenny.
I’d like to ask you to pray for my friends Joel and Heidi Hayslip. They are full time missionaries to Burkina Faso, West Africa. My wife and I have been supporting them for 6-7 years. They’re doing amazing work in one of the most unreached regions in the world. For years they raised money to provide a Christmas-like experience, giving thousands of kids their very first Christmas present while telling them about Jesus for the very first time. It was a small operation that saw thousands of men, women and children come to know Jesus in this mostly muslim nation.
Fortunately though, they’ve recently partnered with Operation Christmas Child of Samaritan’s Purse. Here’s the beauty of how this works. Samaritan’s Purse over the years has sent tens of thousands of gifts to kids in Burkina Faso without a strong presentation of the gospel (I think they would include written materials in the shoeboxes).… Read the rest
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Ensenada reflections
Posted on 24. Jan, 2011 by Kenny.
The day after arriving home from our trip to Ensenada Mexico, I sent an email to the entire team. That meant sending it to all the volunteers and parents to make sure that everyone got it. I wanted to encourage everyone as well as tell everyone a story I’d forgotten to say on our last day in Mexico.
Pretty quickly I began getting replies for parents, volunteers and even some kids. Here they are. Many brought back great memories of this incredible experience.
Here’s an email from a parent who came on the trip.
Here’s an email from a parent who sent their son on the trip.
Here’s an email from one of the kids who came on the trip.… Read the rest
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Sample Forms: Fundraiser Letter
Posted on 24. Jan, 2011 by Kenny.
One of the most effective ways to raise money for a mission trip is a letter. Have families leverage personal relationships to raise funds for the trip. between parents, grandparents, teachers, friends, aunts and uncles, raising the money won’t be that hard. Here is a sample letter that my wife put together from a kids perspective. The kids could then take this letter and make it personal.
Click here to download the fundraising letter.
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Sample Forms: Facts and Information
Posted on 24. Jan, 2011 by Kenny.
At the first meeting I had with parents, I provided a facts and information sheet like the one included here. It told all the dates of meeting, deadlines for deposits and costs for the trip, passports and other items. Every trip is different, but use this as a template for your families.
Click here to download the Facts and Information form.
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Sample Forms: Mission Overview
Posted on 24. Jan, 2011 by Kenny.
When I held my first meeting with parents about Surge, I gave every parent an overview. Essentially, what we hoped to achieve and what they could expect. Looking back on it now, we didn’t do many of the things I mentioned on the overview, but we certainly accomplished what we set out to do.
Click here to download the overview.
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Sample Forms: Packing List
Posted on 24. Jan, 2011 by Kenny.
We gave every participant a packing list. We needed kids to only take the essentials and for there to be no question on what they could or could not bring. This packing list allowed parents to literally check things off the list as they picked things up at the store and packed their bags. Feel free to use as a template for your own list.
Click here to download the packing list.
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Sample Forms: Permission Slip
Posted on 24. Jan, 2011 by Kenny.
This wasn’t just a duplication of the liability release. This permission slip was an important document. It is what gave the trip leadership authorization to take kids across the boarder and such. It was for parents who sent their kids on the trip alone or possibly a parents who couldn’t travel (think worst case scenario) and I needed to get the child across the boarder quickly. If questioned, this permission slip, that was signed by the parent and notarized gave me permission to take their child across the boarder, and because every child had a passport, we could link permission slips to each child. We also had copies of birth certificates which officially linked the parents who signed the permission slip to the kids we had passorts for.… Read the rest
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