I remember going to my first Colts game in the RCA Dome as a kid. It was actually called the Hoosier Dome back then. That place seemed huge! Around 60,000 people could fit inside that stadium to watch a bunch of guys in uniforms throw pig’s skin to each other.

Last week the RCA Dome was imploded to make room for an expanded convention center here in Indianapolis. I watched it on TV and it was amazing. 875 explosive devices brought the 60,000 seat stadium to it’s knees. What took years and a ton of money ($82 million) to build was destroyed in a matter of seconds.

A college prof of mine once told me that “the bigger they are, they harder they fall”. He wasn’t talking about football stadiums. He was talking about leaders. You and I need to be reminded that we can fall. The devil loves it when Christian leaders go down.

We must commit ourselves to integrity in every area of our life. We need to walk humbly with our God every day and keep on the straight and narrow. In 2009, I am praying that you will stand tall for the Lord Jesus Christ and His work.

It took about 20 seconds to reduce a landmark piece of the Indianapolis skyline to a broken pile of rubble. It only takes 20 seconds for you to go down too. Do whatever it takes to avoid the fall and finish the course that God has placed before you.

Tonight was the Christmas cantata at my home church, Liberty Baptist.  Our music pastor, Chas Singer, and our choir did amazingly as always.  As I sat there this evening, listening to the words they sang so beautifully, some things hit me.  I wanted to share some of those with you.

1.  Imagine being Mary and Joseph, lying in the stable looking the living, breathing Son of God right in the face.  Imagine the task of parenting a perfect child for the next 30 years!  (Most parents probably wouldn’t complain.)  He’d be courageous, relentless, and brave.  He’d love a world of sin.  Nothing we could do would keep us from the intimate love he would give.  He overcomes it all.  This is our God.  These are some of the ideas from the song, “This is Our God” that our choir shared tonight.  Remember that you serve a living Savior.  He came as a baby for you.  Even when you’re burned out, you have the knowledge of His unspeakable gift to you to drive you on.  That’s a crazy thought.  Here’s some of the highlights of the lyrics from this song:

Who is this child asleep in the manger?
Tender and mild, this intimate Stranger?
Recklessly, wildly loving a dangerous world
Who is this light invading our darkness…

This is our God, living and breathing
Call Him courageous, relentless, and brave
This is our God, loving and reaching… Continue reading ‘Lessons from the Christmas Cantata’

So, out of the three of us, I have the unique position of never having been to an Orange conference, and not yet planning to go to one.  (Unless, of course, someone volunteered to take me!)  So rather than talking about what I like about Orange, and what I look forward to, I’m going to talk more about some of the pluses and minuses of Orange, as I see it.

1.  Great speakers and music.  Orange has always done a great job of getting and keeping the best minds in children’s ministry, and the greatest musical talent.  If you want to be encouraged, uplifted, and worship, you can’t beat the group the team at reThink has brought together.  It’s an amazing conference in this area- one of the best in the industry.

2.  Spread out.  One of the most common complaints I hear about Orange is just how many people are in one place.  Orange may need to consider doing two sites in the future- help reduce overcrowding a little.  They’ve started on this already by moving to a larger venue, but it’s still something to look out for.

3.  Keep the loose schedule.  One of Orange’s strengths is how loose their schedule is.  You’ve got plenty of time to take some time to refresh and recharge, check out Atlanta, and whatever you want.  You won’t feel rushed through the day, without feeling like you’ve got too much free time.

4.  Diversify their interests.  Orange was started primarily to be a family ministry conference, and they’ve done really well as such.  But in order to be even more successful than they are now, they’re going to have to start diversifying a little of what they talk about.  The conference needs to be more open to other forms of ministry, rather than just one.  They must still keep what makes them them, without excluding everyone else.

So those are my thoughts about Orange.  What do you think?

I am so excited about being a part of this year’s Orange Conference! And now that I know Ryan will be there I’m even more excited. Orange is different from most children’s ministry conferences because it’s not another children’s ministry conference. It’s a place to rethink the same ways to do ministry to children and to include the entire family. Orange is an event to celebrate a movement! A movement that includes every single person on staff to be part of a movement to touch the next generation. I loved the worship, evey main speaker understood the purpose and essence of orange. Another thing that makes it different from other conferences is that the workshops are not done by exibitors, or curriculum company employees they are done by people who actually not only do ministry but who are knocking it out of the park in some of America’s most effective churches and ministries. Last year I took one of my youth pastors with me. It was wonderful to be able to go to an event that both children’s and youth ministers can attend together. Many churches had their whole staff there even their senior pastors. There where so many people there and so many folks where wanting to spend time as a team it was a little hard to network. It’s something I will plan ahead to be able to connect with others better. There are not tons of vendors everything I purchased I think I got from the Orange Store. This year I’m bringing more of my team and looking for opportunities for them to connect with others who do the same thing as them in other big churches in smaller towns. I love Reggie and the rethink folks, I appreciate their heart for the family and how they are able to rally and assemble the children, youth, college, and family ministers of forward thinking churches all in one place. Last year I came away with not only new ideas but with a new heart to do more to work together with the family and the other ministries within my church. Yancy has spoken at Orange more times than me! She has been at all three, not all sure what all she’s doing this year but hope to attend one of her sessions. Should you attend Orange? Only if you want your eyes opened to what’s next. I’m going to learn, I’m also going to hear from God. I’m going to listen with an open heart and mind of what I need to rethink. I can’t wait to see what God does in me and in my team. I’ve have attended a ton of conferences in my lifetime. Orange is not predictable it’s not this year’s edition of last years conference, it’s brand new thinking for a brand new way to do church to a new generation. It’s not just yellow and red hanging out in the same space it’s about the two coming together to do something different, something new, something Orange. I hope to see you there!

I’m looking forward to attending my first Orange conference this April. The Orange Conference is brought to you by Reggie Joiner and his team at the ReThink Group. Reggie has written two awesome articles for me this year that we’ve published in K! Magazine.

I planned on attending Orange last year (K! Magazine was a partner) but at the last minute decided that I couldn’t swing it because of church obligations. Bummer. I sent one of our team members in my place.

K! Magazine is an Orange partner again this year and I’m looking forward to attending the conference for the first time. Although I’ve yet to attend Orange personally, here are some cool things I’m hearing from people about Orange.

1. Orange is edgy and culturally-current.
2. It’s cheap (as low as $219 if you sign up early enough).
3. It’s a conference for the entire team – senior pastor, youth pastor, children’s pastor, etc.
4. The focus of the conference is equipping parents to be the primary spiritual leaders in the lives of their kids.
5. The general session speakers always knock the ball out of the park.

I’m looking forward to watching Orange in the years to come. Will Orange fizzle out when pastors jump off the family ministry bus and focus on something new? I don’t think so. If family ministry becomes a thing of the past (which I don’t think will happen any time soon) the ReThink Group will always challenge the church to change and innovate. That’s the way I see it.

Yesterday we sent an email blast from KidzMatter. In the opening paragraph, I said, “Serving in the church can be lonely and discouraging.” A good friend of mine in my church emailed me and asked me what I meant by that. Here’s part of my reply to his email:

From the feedback that I get (and from what I have personally experienced) here’s why I think so many pastors are lonely and discouraged:

1. Most pastors don’t have close friends in the church (I recently read a statistic on this and the number of pastors who feel they have no close friends in the church is incredible).

2. Pastors give their life for the cause of helping people grow spiritually and impact the world yet so many people think it’s a game and don’t take it seriously.

3. You always have people that focus on issues and preferences instead of the big things that can really make an impact.

Continue reading ‘The ministry is tough sometimes’

“Then those ’sheep’ are going to say, ‘Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? And when did we ever see you sick or in prison and come to you?’ Then the King will say, ‘I’m telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me.’” (Matthew 25:37-40, MSG)

On November 30, a limousine was parked in front of Princeton Pike Church of God in Hamilton, Ohio.  No one knew why.  A week later, the members of the church learned something about that limousine: 9 celebrities had been inside that limousine.  Not the celebrities we would think of.  Not at all.  But they were celebrities in the eyes of the King.  That limousine had carried 9 homeless men to church that Sunday morning.  It just so happens that the owner of a limo service attends that church.  On November 30, he went out into the streets and found 9 homeless men and brought them to church.  7 of the 9 came to know Christ personally that Sunday morning.  That’s what I call a bus ministry!

To most limo owners, that would seem like craziness.  You don’t normally let dirty, smelly homeless men ride in your limo for free.  But that man saw something more important than their physical state: their spiritual state.  In his mind, they weren’t homeless.  They were sinners in desperate need of a Savior.

Continue reading ‘Sinners in Desperate Need’

So, I started going to CPC when I was 14.  That’s a little different than most people.  In the course of 4 years, I’ve attended 7 CPC’s.  In 2009, I’m going to both Nashville and San Diego.  I’ve been a Audio/Video Conference Assistant at one location as well.  So trust me, I know CPC like the back of my hand.  I love going to CPC, and always have an amazing time.  So here’s what I love about CPC:

1.   The Resource Center.  Honestly, I think that the Resource Center is one of the best places to find that great new resource to help you out throughout the next year that’s coming.  I’m a very online person, but I still love just being able to browse around and connect with people while I’m shopping for new resources.  You can probe and prod the resource providers about their products more in depth as well.  And of course, CPC’s Resource Center is instantly made better because KidzMatter is there!  But in all seriousness, CPC has one of the best resource centers of any of the conferences I’ve been to personally.

2.  First-Timer’s Orientation.  This seems like a really small thing, yes.  But my first year at CPC, this orientation was invaluable.  Rather than feeling like a fish suddenly taken from a fish bowl into the ocean, I had guidance and help to guide me along my way.

3.  The General Sessions.  For me personally, the General Sessions are the highlight of my CPC days.  You get to come in, enjoy a great meal, network, then be entertained, encouraged, and enlightened.  You will never be able to leave a General Session in just a blah kind of mood.  I personally have enjoyed getting to hear greats such as Max Lucado, John Ortberg, George Barna, and many more during a general session at CPC.

4.  The locations.  Personally, one of my favorite pre/post-conference things to do is to explore what’s around the conference.  In Orlando, there was an amazing theme park staring you down the entire week.  You just had to go!  In San Diego, there is an amazing mall just across the street from the Town and Country Resort.  It has a Wetzel Pretzel.  ’Nuff said.  Nashville is surrounded by the amazing Gaylord Opryland Resort.  You’ve got to schedule some time into your CPC just for some fun! Continue reading ‘7 Children’s Pastor’s Conferences and counting!’

I recently learned that For Kids Only relaunched their website and they have a new blog. This is a very cool organization led by my friend, Johanna Townsend. I met Johanna at Children’s Pastors’ Conference. She has a great heart for children’s ministry.

For Kids Only has a great grant program and help lots of ministries that work with at-risk kids. Maybe they can help you with something God has placed on your heart. You should check out their new site.

Like Ryan I enjoy attending CPC. It’s been fun to watch how it has changed over the years. I was invited to the first one in 1980 but was having Yancy. I attended the second one, and most all of the early years in Denver, in fact that’s where I was when the Challenger blew up. I really enjoyed the format of the early years. The meal times weren’t sponsored they where pure “network and share what you are doing with others” times. I took away as much from those meal times as I did the workshops. Maybe more. In my opinion, it’s the best conference in America to network with others! Some of the best friends I have on this earth I met at CPC. It’s amazing how the different cities that it’s held in also affects the personallity of the conference. I perfer certain cities over others, I can’t help it and the city choices have affected my attending. Also taking a break has made me appreciate the conference more. I’m excited about it being in Nashville again. I always feel like people networked more in Nashville and some of the other cities than they did in Orlando. (It seemed like people were off to Disney rather than hang out) Some years I haven’t been able to attend and I’ve missed it. The addition of the precons were a huge addition. I enjoy teaching those more than anything. (Except the years I’ve been a keynote speaker in an evening session.) This year Ryan and I are teaching a precon together in Nashville. We’re not teaching one in San Diego and I’m going to miss it. Each year I walk away with a new favorite thing about the conference. Most of the time it’s the wonderful people that CPC attracts that’s my favorite part. If you’re going to either one I’d love to meet you come by the exibit area and hang out with us. Yancy and I will be sharing a booth space right next to Ryan and the Kidzmatter & K! gang. If you want to make the most of the conference start now connecting with those you want to spend time with, pick their brain or learn what they are doing. I’ve already started booking my meal times and after hours times with speakers, exibitors and conference attendees. I call it the ultimate CPC experience “The conference within the conference.” CPC is not the only conference I attend but I will forever be grateful for the impact it’s had and still has on my life and ministry! That’s the way I see it.