Help the people that are losing their job and if they have to move I hope they have a good house. Emma - age 8
I pray
. . . for my auntie to make the right decisions.
. . . for my sister that she will be nice to me
. . . for my dog that died
. . . for my dog that ran away
. . . for uncle Doug, his wife passed away
. . . for my new bed
Monday, August 24, 2009
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
What Kids are Saying
. . .other night we were eating dinner and talking about Westwinds. My husband and I were both saying how happy we are that Seth has gotten started in such a great kids' program at the church. We told him that he was a Westwinds Kids, which repeated over and over again much in the fashion of a two year old!
Then he looked at me and said, "When Mommy grows up, will you be a Westwinds' kid?" We got a good laugh out of that!
Then he looked at me and said, "When Mommy grows up, will you be a Westwinds' kid?" We got a good laugh out of that!
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Thoughts on Volunteering
The following data was from a broad research study, not specifically at WW. But research reveals some things that we need to look at.
Over a course of a year one third of the volunteers recruited do not return for a second year. Here are five reasons people quit volunteering:
1. Ministry area is not well organized – do you have a process or plan that helps you be organized so that when things are busy you can simply follow the process you have already laid out?
2. Serving in the ministry area is not a good use of their time – do you help your team members know how important their role is in the lives of the kids? Do they understand how they are being changed as they serve? Do they see the value of what they are doing?
3. Serving in the ministry area is not a good use of talents, skills and expertise - do you know your volunteers? Do you know what talents, skills, desires or expertise they have? Sometimes people are not serving in the right area. By building a relationship with your team, you can find out their level of satisification. We want to help people serve where they are best suited to be and sometimes that means we lose a person in our area but the Kingdom work is carried on.
4. Role and responsibilities are not clearly defined - do your volunteers know what is expected of them? Has that been clearly and consistently communicated with them? Do you know and understand your personal “job description” that you have agreed to fulfill on the wwKids ministry team?
5. Volunteers receive no thanks for their contributions - do you recognize and acknowledge your team members contributions? A thank you, a quick call to say “I appreciate you,” or share a story with me about how one of your volunteers, something I can share with overall church leadership.
As I look at these 5 reasons, I realize that they are all connected to communications. Good communications would eliminate most of these problem areas. Maybe you haven’t done well in the past on number 1 but do a great job with number 5. Wherever you are, I am sure that you can improve – as can I! This information is to encourage and to help us all be intentional about what we focus on! All of us are growing in our leadership abilities.
Over a course of a year one third of the volunteers recruited do not return for a second year. Here are five reasons people quit volunteering:
1. Ministry area is not well organized – do you have a process or plan that helps you be organized so that when things are busy you can simply follow the process you have already laid out?
2. Serving in the ministry area is not a good use of their time – do you help your team members know how important their role is in the lives of the kids? Do they understand how they are being changed as they serve? Do they see the value of what they are doing?
3. Serving in the ministry area is not a good use of talents, skills and expertise - do you know your volunteers? Do you know what talents, skills, desires or expertise they have? Sometimes people are not serving in the right area. By building a relationship with your team, you can find out their level of satisification. We want to help people serve where they are best suited to be and sometimes that means we lose a person in our area but the Kingdom work is carried on.
4. Role and responsibilities are not clearly defined - do your volunteers know what is expected of them? Has that been clearly and consistently communicated with them? Do you know and understand your personal “job description” that you have agreed to fulfill on the wwKids ministry team?
5. Volunteers receive no thanks for their contributions - do you recognize and acknowledge your team members contributions? A thank you, a quick call to say “I appreciate you,” or share a story with me about how one of your volunteers, something I can share with overall church leadership.
As I look at these 5 reasons, I realize that they are all connected to communications. Good communications would eliminate most of these problem areas. Maybe you haven’t done well in the past on number 1 but do a great job with number 5. Wherever you are, I am sure that you can improve – as can I! This information is to encourage and to help us all be intentional about what we focus on! All of us are growing in our leadership abilities.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
What Kids are Learning
In the K6 Experience Studios in June we taught about the Holy Spirit. While playing with a parachute we talked about how Jesus said that the Spirit is kind of like the wind. Then I asked the kids, "In what ways are the wind and the Holy Spirit alike?"
A second grader said, "You know how the middle of a hurricane is really calm, but at the same time, the outside is really blowing hard and knocking down trees? Well, the Holy Spirit can do calm things and really big powerful things at the same time!"
And ALL of the groups came up with up "you can't see the wind, but it is still very powerful, and you can see what it does." The kids seem like they are starting to understand that our culture doesn't recognize the real-ness of the God they cannot see, but He is just as real as their friends and their favorite famous people.
AND...He is way more powerful than any of them! I think that they feel excited and secure when we talk about this. God bless them! They are so precious! What an honor to be one of the people who get to watch the kids begin to realize the best news they will ever hear!
A second grader said, "You know how the middle of a hurricane is really calm, but at the same time, the outside is really blowing hard and knocking down trees? Well, the Holy Spirit can do calm things and really big powerful things at the same time!"
And ALL of the groups came up with up "you can't see the wind, but it is still very powerful, and you can see what it does." The kids seem like they are starting to understand that our culture doesn't recognize the real-ness of the God they cannot see, but He is just as real as their friends and their favorite famous people.
AND...He is way more powerful than any of them! I think that they feel excited and secure when we talk about this. God bless them! They are so precious! What an honor to be one of the people who get to watch the kids begin to realize the best news they will ever hear!
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Leader Quest Part 2:
During Leader Quest, the coach talked about Nehemiah who was first a servant and then a leader. Coach challenged the kids’ understanding of leadership. Leadership is not so much a position or title but rather an attitude that reflects respect, responsibility and discipline within themselves. Coach challenged the kids to think about ways that each of them could “serve” their family members.
Coach left the kids with five ideas that would change their lives:
1. Don’t think too highly of yourself or your importance
2. Don’t disrespect your parents
3. To be on time, is to be late
4. Give away your money freely
5. Dream and set goals. Each day pray, “Lord, want do you want from me today?”
I believe that each person who attended Leader Quest learned and experienced what they needed as the Holy Spirit tailors His work individually to our specific needs. Now as our kids move further into their leadership/faith journey, let us prayer together. . .“being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1.6
Coach left the kids with five ideas that would change their lives:
1. Don’t think too highly of yourself or your importance
2. Don’t disrespect your parents
3. To be on time, is to be late
4. Give away your money freely
5. Dream and set goals. Each day pray, “Lord, want do you want from me today?”
I believe that each person who attended Leader Quest learned and experienced what they needed as the Holy Spirit tailors His work individually to our specific needs. Now as our kids move further into their leadership/faith journey, let us prayer together. . .“being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1.6
Friday, June 26, 2009
Leader Quest - 5/6th grade Leadership Adventure
Bethany Timmons and I brought 9 kids – 2 girls and 7 boys to the Idea Factory in Troy, Ohio for 3 days of leadership development last week. Leader Quest is a 3-day of adventure, hands on learning experience where kids study hard, work hard, play hard and sleep hard. My friend Mike Nygren has done over 450 of these types of trainings and is brilliant. Everything he does looks nonchalant yet is very intentional. For example, he took us all out to the local diner, divided the kids up into small groups of 3 with a team leader and observed how well they behaved in a public setting. There were some mixed results! He observed to see who would step up to clean up after a meal and who goes off to play. Mike knows that kids can do awesome things and make a difference in their homes and community.
It’s impossible to describe the process of “de-jerking.” I don’t say that disrespectfully. We all have the potential to be jerks at various times and we are. It is amazing to watch the kids step up and into the expectations that Mike laid out.
If you go to a basketball camp don’t you expect the coach to invest in you and help you become a better ball player? He’s going to build a team to win and he’s going to work you hard to get the best from you. That’s how Mike approaches leadership. You can trust him to tell you the truth – both positive and negative. He’ll tell you when you are missing the mark but he is quick to praise and encourage, so you can grow as a leader.
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