Articles Zone

Honestly and openly help kids deal with the fallout of the pandemic we face. 

When the time comes for a program to end, you should end it. However, there may be a program that is faltering that still has life in it and could still be effective for the kingdom. Here are some things that can be done to breath new life into a program that might be struggling.

See this vast study of church partnership with missions organizations and get practical ideas that you can apply in your ministry.

In these challenging economic times, children’s ministry budgets often get cut, sometimes eliminated. I read often online about ideas for fund raising and saving money. I’d like to take a different approach on this topic – while I AM sympathetic to leaders facing budget cuts and the challenges of ministering with less money, I’d like to pose a sincere question you are welcome to answer in the comments below -  my question is simply, “What do you need money FOR?”

Why I will NEVER make time for my family ever again!

Whether you love Mondays or dread them, here are ways to make the first workday of the week work for you. 

Should you expect respect from all kids? What about kids who have been through trauma? 

A nighttime ark walk that will have kids glowing with excitement.

It is not about what we do for God but about what God has done for us through Jesus.

This object lesson uses dice to demonstrate how we need Jesus in order to get to heaven!

When you look at a strong-willed child, do you ever think, "That's great leadership potential! All you have to do is nurture it!"

Don't let your props take the place of your message.

What is an object lesson? Here are several basic instructions that you need to know for giving one!

This review is considers the work of an Anglican writer, mining insights which might be helpful in other theological contexts, particularly in the evangelical setting.

You may be offended by this, but every Halloween, the same silly thing happens. This is the only night of the entire year when most of your neighbors and mine are going to come knocking on our doors. The only night.

Is your church caring for the single parents in your community?

Keep your class actively participating with these simple tips. 

Without clear boundaries, a pastor and their family suffer “boundary ambiguity” and become completely enmeshed in their parishioner’s lives and problems.

A book review of Out of the Basement: A Holistic Approach to Children’s Ministry by Diane C. Olson.

Last year I began a new initiative in my church which developed into a form of parent coaching. It is very loosely based on Karl Bastian’s VIP strategy, which can be found in the Leadership Lab 4, Partnering with Parents. This post suggests one possible scenario which can lead a family toward participating in parent coaching. Although it is fictitious and the names are not meant to represent any real person, I believe it is a plausible situation. In future posts I will explore in more detail the possible opportunities of parent coaching, as well as potential pitfalls.

Here's a great idea for a mother-daughter event that you can host at your church. 

This is a great Gospel Illusion and Object Lesson for Easter to show how Jesus was killed and rose three days later! It uses a paper and pen to visually demonstrate this important truth.

In this episode, Sean Sweet talks about 2 different things that can give anxiety when it comes to preteen ministry. First he talks about how to have percent meetings, and then he talks about Technology and how we can help parents understand what their kids are dealing with.

Do your kids understand the relentlessness of God?

What are YOU doing to celebrate your pastor this October?

 Pastor, Your Leadership Matters More Than You Think.

To avoid falling victim to the dark sides, each pastor must have the emotional maturity to recognize and confront their dark side.

There is one specific skill that is absolutely essential for every speaker to learn and to master in order for them to elevate their speaking to a whole new level. That skill is: Truth by Vibration!

Our kids live in a digital age. To say that times have changed since we were kids is a gross understatement. But how are we doing at keeping up with those changes? How can we stay ahead of the digital curve and keep our kids safe?

Remember all the men and women who have served our nation, some who even died serving the cause of freedom.

A fun spin on management techniques with simple suggestions that can help your children's ministry take a big step forward.

Some things are beyond our control. You have to start with what you have. You never get to start with what you wish you had.

A Super Bible School Activity for Learning the 10 Commandments

Glen Woods is well known as thoughtful practitioner of children's ministry. Here he offers his doctoral dissertation on family ministry especially as it relates to small church ministry. For those willing to dive into the topic seriously, they will find this engaging, challenging and thought provoking.  

Ask yourself: is there anything I am doing that is a hindrance to the gospel of Christ?

Are you prepared for special needs kids in your ministry? Here are 10 tips to help you!

Once your ministry is discipling mature believers who are evangelizing others, you then need to prepare your ministry for growth. Are you ready for growth?

What are you doing to help your team succeed? Leader, your role is to equip and prepare people to serve the work of the ministry.

Stop trying to do life without Jesus. 

Still a powerful teaching tool today, pretzels are the perfect object lesson/treat to share with your class that will teach them about prayer.  

Here are some key principles for managing difficult behaviors.

One thing that we cannot do is over-communicate! Here are some useful steps to use in your ministry to immediately improve in the area of communication.

Close the backdoor on your ministry and begin having people stick around in your church.

How do we protect our girls in a sex-saturated culture?

The following lesson is taken from a Proverbs series.  The children discover that we can have an attitude of generous giving when we remember that God has given us everything.

This Bible lesson plan on Psalm 63 is designed for a group of children of various ages. It would work well in children’s church or a multi-age Sunday School class. It deals with our spiritual thirst for God and will help children realize their need for a relationship with Him.

Take care of yourself so you can help take care of others.

Are you taking care of yourself? Or just your ministry?

All of this got me wondering, does it really make any difference? Perhaps the bigger issue is how we, who know Jesus, celebrate every day of our lives! In fact, instead of watching the world take Christ out of Christmas, what if we put Jesus into every holiday? Why not try celebrating a bit differently in 2013!

Kids have questions, naturally. One of the best ways to interact and lead them closer to God is by engaging with their questions.