The Indiana State Fair, officially “The Great Indiana State Fair”. (Yes, I know it’s cheesy, but every state has a State Fair. And Indiana’s is by far the coolest.) On August 9, I was at the Indiana State Fair. It almost hit 100 Fahrenheit (that’s 38 celsius for our overseas friends) that day, and it was downright oppressive. We were there to see Jeremy Camp and Casting Crowns at 7:30 that night. Before the concert, we had a ton of fun. If you ever get a chance, visit our awesome state fair (I would say most awesomest state fair like ever, but that might get me arrested by the grammar police), and swing by KidzMatter on your way through.

But that is all beside the point. Here’s some good ministry insights gleaned, from all things, the State Fair:

1. The amazing power of “groupthink”- Have you ever been to a concert, and everyone starts clapping or sits down simultaneously? It’s an amazing thing that happens at a concert. With a smaller group, it doesn’t work. Then there are the times that one or two people out of a thousand will start clapping or screaming, and everyone is suddenly staring at them. Humans are creatures designed to work best in groups. That’s why Adam needed Eve to begin with. How can your ministry harness this “groupthink” power?
2. Comfort- Humans, as a whole, like comfort. A few hours in the heat without fans or A/C, and we think Armageddon is coming. We miss the state fair trolley (which costs 50¢ for all day riding, and one comes around every minute or so), and we are just freaking out. It’s not like there’s another one 60 seconds behind it. Culture has become accustomed to comfort. I know even I fall into the sin of whining all too often. Fight comfort among your kids.
3. People love experiences- Apple users will know what I mean by this. Whether it’s the cool stores, the awesome packaging, the friendly employees, the little touches like the free Apple decals in every box, or whatever, Apple has created an experiential environment. Then there’s the “Indy 500 Experience” that was at the State Fair. Let’s just say “Experience” wasn’t quite the right term. More like “We took a couple of video games, old racing gear, and a ticket booth and hoped that the term ‘experience’ would make it sound really impressive.” While “experience” can make anything sound impressive, that doesn’t mean it is. What can you do to make your ministry an all-around great experience, and actually live up to the term?
4. God loves dorks, not cool people- This is Mark Hall’s (the lead singer for Casting Crowns) way of repeating the age-old Scriptural adage “God accepts the humble, but refuses the proud.” He encourages his listeners to “be dorky for Jesus”. I would encourage you to get his book Lifestories. He discusses his dyslexia and ADD in depth in this book, and talks a lot about the stories behind his songs. Are you dorky?
5. The Altar and the Door- The name of Casting Crowns’ newest album, releasing August 28. The idea behind the entire CD is the concept that we have “holes in our head”, that our decisions leak out of somewhere between the altar up front and the door in the back. Ensure that the kids leaving your ministry for the youth group this time of year have “leak-proof seals”!

So those are just some thoughts. That’s the way I see it.