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Same action brings same results… I’ve found out these past 53 years on the earth you can’t keep doing things the same way you have always done them and get different results. For the last 12+ years I have been teaching a monthly audio leadership lesson that I call the children’s ministers leadership club or theClub for short. Every workshop, book chapter, magazine article and blog post I do has come from a club lesson. TheClub has been a blessing to me and the lifeblood of income and support for JWM. They have also blessed a lot of leaders. In January I made the Young Guns Program available to CM Leaders under 30 so they could get theClub lessons free. I’ve had a great response. But I feel led to do something crazy over the next 3 months I’m going to give my June, July, and August club lessons away free to anyone of any age who signs up for my newsletter on jimwideman.com. Call me crazy, call me generous, call me a nice middle age gentleman who looks a little like the guy on the chicken bucket. Hurry and sign up before June 15th so you won’t miss a single lesson. I’m excited to see the growth that will happen when you dare to expand how you think about leadership.
Now…”that’s the way I see it!”
So, you may have heard about MySpace. Or Facebook. Or Bebo. Or Friendster. Or Spaces. Or Blogger. And on, and on, and on the list could go. All of these sites fall under the title “social networking”.
We’re interested in seeing who among you uses these services. So let’s take a little poll (if you use more than one, let us know in the comments):
What, if any, social networking sites do you use (personally or for ministry)?
Many within the church today have chosen to totally shun social networking all together because it is “unsafe”. While that is a real possiblity (see this recent story), the truth is that culture is adopting these sites and bringing a new level of openness to the world. And while we as the church are sitting back, the world is moving on and the kids in our ministries don’t know how to use these sites safely.
Continue reading ‘MySpace, Facebook, and Bebo- Oh My!’
WE INTERRUPT YOUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING FOR THIS IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT:
Hello, this is Evan Doyle reporting for the Way We See It Blog. This morning in Kids Church while writing this blog post, I caused our media application to crash. We were watching a DVD, and it stopped. It never got started again, because I was tediously fast forwarding at just 2x the regular speed. The moral of this story: Don’t do other stuff on the computer during Kids Church. It’s a bad plan.
WE NOW RETURN YOU TO YOUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING.
The 10/40 window. We always hear about this area between 10 and 40 degrees north of the equator. It is reported to be the part of the world where the fewest people have heard the true Gospel. It is the focus of most missions.
But that’s not the 10/40 window I’m talking about. The one I’m talking about is right here at home. Perhaps right next door. It’s the $10K-$40K a year income bracket. The most, perhaps, unchurched income bracket in the entire United States. How is this, you ask? It’s simply how churches have been and continue to be run.
Continue reading ‘The 10/40 Window’
I attended a seninar the other day and was asked by the instructor to write my name on a piece of paper. Then she told me to change hands and make my signiture idenical with the oposite hand I write with all the time. (No one in the class was able to do thi by the way.) Then she made a wonderful point. She said “How hard would you work to master this task if I told you I’d give you a million dollars if you could do this?” Everyone saw her point. We work on things that we value and desire? What skills do you need to develop in your ministry. What changes do you need to make in yourself to be more effective. You might say “give me $1,000,000.00 and I’ll change it.” Being obedient to Christ, doing whatever we do unto him, and serving children and families are things that you can’t put a price on because they are priceless. So, what do you need to work on?
I never liked Little League when I was a kid. Coaches Pitch was fun. Little League was dreadful. It wasn’t my coach. It wasn’t my team. It wasn’t even the t-shirt. It was stepping up to bat.
Those of you who know me know that I am not athletic. It’s always been that way. I was always the kid that got put in left field. My problem with Little League was that I was afraid of the ball. That ball seemed to fly 100 MPH and it always seemed to come right at me. Because I was afraid of the ball I would step back from the plate. Because I stepped back from the plate I never hit the ball. That is why I gave up my Little League career in 4th grade.
One thing I have noticed about the kids in the community where I live is that they LOVE Little League. I see it every day during the summer because the baseball fields are adjacent to our church property. People practically idolize it. This is what bugs me about Little League. Red flags are shooting up all over the place and I feel obligated as a shepherd to do something about it.
Each summer when baseball starts it becomes #1 to so many of the families in my church. Parents let their kids miss AWANA, camp, and Vacation Bible School. Why? Because God forbid that Junior miss a practice or a game. Continue reading ‘What bugs me about Little League’
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After 30 years of serving on staff in the local church, 17 of those at the greatest church in the world (Church On The Move) under the greatest pastor in the world (Pastor Willie George) I am going full time with Jim Wideman Ministries. That’s right, you read correctly. My pastor is in agreement with this and I have his blessing. I’ll still base out of Tulsa and my family and I will still attend COTM. I believe this is God’s plan for my life and that I have a mandate from God to help other churches go to their next level of ministry. How am I going to do this? In 3 main ways:
1. Consulting- I’ve had the privilege of being exposed to every area of ministry in a local church in addition to leading one of America’s leading children’s ministries. I’m available for on-site consulting in any area you need help. Whether you want me to come in once or once a month, I want to help you gear up for growth and excellence. Special rates are available for multiple visits. If you need another perspective put me on your staff as a part-time employee.
2. Conferences & Training- I’m available to hold a Children’s Ministry Conference at your church as well as seminars on Time Management, Volunteer Recruiting, Leadership & Parenting.
3. Speaking at churches & conferences- Need a guest to challenge people to get involved, or to teach on the importance of children & the family. I’m available.
Contact me today at brojim@jimwideman.com or give my assistant Sheila a call @ (918) 477-2268 ext. 1. I’m now booking for the rest of 2007 & 2008 and I’d love to help you and your church.
Excited about the future,
Bro. Jim
