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Why we wrote our own curriculum?

28 Comments / March 14, 2011

I want to start this post by saying I do not know everthing there is about curriculum production, and I in no way am thinking of one curriculum company as I write this post. My goal in this post is to hopefully create a diolog, or even to get us as children’s pastors to ask […]

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Dealing with Doubt

4 Comments / March 14, 2011

Great article over at thrivingfamily.com on helping your kids deal with doubt. Pulled this Keller quote from the article Tim Keller offers an important observation: A faith without some doubts is like a human body without any antibodies in it. People who blithely go through life too busy or indifferent to ask hard questions about

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YouTube Friday: Sesame Street

Photos From Facebook Family Fun Night

What is a Facebook Evangelist?

1 Comment / March 9, 2011

Well to be honest I am still hashing it out myself. Here is what I have so far. It really is to big a job for one person so there will be three layers. 1. Personal Access 2. Fan Page Access 3. Relay Team 1. Personal Access – This person will have access to my

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FMD and Me.

2 Comments / March 9, 2011

I had the opportunity to do an episode of FMD and Me with the ever talented Dan Lee-Archer of “The Thursday Blog”. It was a blast if you have the time take a listen Listen to internet radio with CMConnect on Blog Talk Radio So hide your kids, hide your wife, hide your husbands too

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How can you increase your Ministries presence on Facebook?

3 Comments / March 9, 2011

One way that I plan on doing this is by doing events for the family based around the community of Facebook. The first event that we did was called “Facebook Family Fun Night” What is Facebook Family Fun Night? Well the origin of my idea came from Kendra and her team at North Point Church.

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How to use Facebook to connect with families.

16 Comments / March 8, 2011

One of the problems in the information age is that there are so many ways for receive and give information. I find it frustrating that you send text messages, make flyers, phone calls, emails, twitter and facebook and you miss 20% of your families. Often my best ideas were stared from something I have seen or heard somewhere else.

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Is Kidmin Ameri-centric?

31 Comments / March 7, 2011

I got involved in this interesting conversation with a few children’s pastors online the other day and the topic of children’s ministry being Americentric came up. Basically why are there not more voices and resources coming from other parts of the globe. There were a few theories that were tossed around many of them being about American Imperialism –

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31 responses to “Is Kidmin Ameri-centric?”

Barbara Graves

March 7, 2011

Sam, you nailed it. And thanks. After hearing conversations like those, I was afraid that I'm living in too small a world or being too naive! My biggest concern most weeks is will the object lesson I'm planning for Sunday really help my kids understand how awesome God is and that He can help them live awesome lives for him Monday through Saturday, too, not whether we are forcing our culture on other places.

Great thoughts. As always.

Reply
1. samluce
  
  March 7, 2011
  
  Barbara you are awesome thanks so much for your encouragement and wisdom. Looking forward to coming down to your neck of the woods in April.
  
  Reply
Henry Zonio

March 7, 2011

Well said, Sam. It was great having you in on the conversation at WMNCM.
It's our dream and desire to begin breaking down barriers to a more global conversation around Children's ministry. It's cool just thinking of the possibilities of widening our understanding and practice and learnings of Children's ministry!

Reply
1. samluce
  
  March 7, 2011
  
  Henry, I agree. I think one of the reasons we can come off as Americentric is because we can be selfish and only focus on what we are doing. I appreciate the fact that you guys are trying to shine the spotlight on kidmin leaders from all over.
  
  Reply
Wayne Stocks

March 7, 2011

Amen! Christ is what unites us. Christ is what makes us one church and one family no matter how we "do church" or what language we speak. Unless he is the center of the discussion, the vision, the mission and all that we do, the barriers will not be overcome.

In terms of volunteers, I think this is another situation which needs to be rectified both in this country and around the world. I understand the lack of time (I really do :)), but we need to develop more resources, more communities, more forums where volunteers will want to participate and network. More importantly, we need to find ways to make it easier for them to get involved and less intimidating. Imagine how much better our children's ministries could be if it were not just the children's pastor networking and learning but everyone at every level of the children's ministry be edified and fed by the children's ministry community.

Thanks for the great article Sam. This is definitely a conversation that needs to be had!

Reply
Jason Martin

March 7, 2011

repost of my comment form cmconnect.org:

I dare go a step further and say we are often white-suburban-centric

Reply
Barbara Graves

March 7, 2011

Sam, you nailed it. And thanks. After hearing conversations like those, I was afraid that I’m living in too small a world or being too naive! My biggest concern most weeks is will the object lesson I’m planning for Sunday really help my kids understand how awesome God is and that He can help them live awesome lives for him Monday through Saturday, too, not whether we are forcing our culture on other places.

Great thoughts. As always.

Reply
1. samluce
  
  March 7, 2011
  
  Barbara you are awesome thanks so much for your encouragement and wisdom. Looking forward to coming down to your neck of the woods in April.
  
  Reply
Henry Zonio

March 7, 2011

Well said, Sam. It was great having you in on the conversation at WMNCM.
It’s our dream and desire to begin breaking down barriers to a more global conversation around Children’s ministry. It’s cool just thinking of the possibilities of widening our understanding and practice and learnings of Children’s ministry!

Reply
1. samluce
  
  March 7, 2011
  
  Henry, I agree. I think one of the reasons we can come off as Americentric is because we can be selfish and only focus on what we are doing. I appreciate the fact that you guys are trying to shine the spotlight on kidmin leaders from all over.
  
  Reply
Wayne Stocks

March 7, 2011

Amen! Christ is what unites us. Christ is what makes us one church and one family no matter how we "do church" or what language we speak. Unless he is the center of the discussion, the vision, the mission and all that we do, the barriers will not be overcome.

In terms of volunteers, I think this is another situation which needs to be rectified both in this country and around the world. I understand the lack of time (I really do :)), but we need to develop more resources, more communities, more forums where volunteers will want to participate and network. More importantly, we need to find ways to make it easier for them to get involved and less intimidating. Imagine how much better our children's ministries could be if it were not just the children's pastor networking and learning but everyone at every level of the children's ministry be edified and fed by the children's ministry community.

Thanks for the great article Sam. This is definitely a conversation that needs to be had!

Reply
jeffmcclung

March 7, 2011

Great post man!

I especially liked #3. I think a lot of us get too tied to our way of doing things that we don't make/take the time to stop and evaluate how effective it really is. Every good program is simply a tool. Nothing more, nothing less. Every tool needs to be sharpened to maintain it's effectiveness. There's come's a time in every tool's/program's life when it's just not effective anymore and needs to be "thrown away".

Killing a beloved program can feel like putting Fido to sleep and making the kids watch to some members of your church. It's not always easy, but sometimes it's necessary.

Just my 2 cents anyway.

SIDE NOTE: If anyone reading this has a dog named Fido, please don't take this comment as a sign from God to put him down. It was just a metaphor.

Reply
rbcphotogirl

March 7, 2011

love it. great reminder as we go into planning stages for our summer programs, wow that sounds so americentric – what i mean by that is… while i'm planning all the cool stuff i'm planning for kids to do this summer together, i'm going to make sure my "evangelistic" filter is firmly in place… and that i'm fully aware of the implications of each and every minute i have when them all…

Reply
Greg Baird

March 7, 2011

Thanks for the post, Sam. These are all good points and I think things that can be addressed to a degree. I would have to say, though, that I've come to believe that the primary difference between ministry to children in the US vs. most of the rest of the world is the value placed on the lives of children. Having grown up on the mission field and then over the past 10 years had the privilege of doing CM training in Russia, the Philippines and South Africa/Swaziland (as well as Australia), my sense is that children simply are not valued in most parts of the world as they are here in the US. That's not to say they are not loved by any means, but in most non-western societies children are not the priority in culture and in the church as they are in the Western world. This, combined with what you mentioned, plus the overall lack of resources overseas (physical tools such as curriculum and also training), contribute to how things are. We DO need to focus on Jesus & the message of the Gospel, but I would also encourage us as a whole to continue to lead in the area of Children's Ministry. That's one reason why I so love what Gordon West does through Kidz At Heart <a href="http://(http://kidzatheart.org)” target=”_blank”>(http://kidzatheart.org). He trains children's ministry leaders overseas, but within the context of their own culture. As part of this, he doesn't provide "American" curriculum & resources (because they can't get or afford them) but rather focuses on teaching them to reach kids for Christ using what they already have and in manners that are relevant to their culture.
Thanks again, Sam…challenging thoughts!
Greg

Reply
1. samluce
  
  March 7, 2011
  
  Greg great comment. I love all that you added. I do think we need to lead and create resources that help people in other countries. My thought was that if we focus more on the universal truths than we currently do I think those resources we create will be more applicable to kidmin's in every country. Great additions to the conversation. Thanks for the link to kidz at heart.
  
  Reply
Jason Martin

March 7, 2011

repost of my comment form cmconnect.org:

I dare go a step further and say we are often white-suburban-centric

Reply
jeffmcclung

March 7, 2011

Great post man!

I especially liked #3. I think a lot of us get too tied to our way of doing things that we don't make/take the time to stop and evaluate how effective it really is. Every good program is simply a tool. Nothing more, nothing less. Every tool needs to be sharpened to maintain it's effectiveness. There's come's a time in every tool's/program's life when it's just not effective anymore and needs to be "thrown away".

Killing a beloved program can feel like putting Fido to sleep and making the kids watch to some members of your church. It's not always easy, but sometimes it's necessary.

Just my 2 cents anyway.

SIDE NOTE: If anyone reading this has a dog named Fido, please don't take this comment as a sign from God to put him down. It was just a metaphor.

Reply
rbcphotogirl

March 7, 2011

love it. great reminder as we go into planning stages for our summer programs, wow that sounds so americentric – what i mean by that is… while i'm planning all the cool stuff i'm planning for kids to do this summer together, i'm going to make sure my "evangelistic" filter is firmly in place… and that i'm fully aware of the implications of each and every minute i have when them all…

Reply
Greg Baird

March 7, 2011

Thanks for the post, Sam. These are all good points and I think things that can be addressed to a degree. I would have to say, though, that I've come to believe that the primary difference between ministry to children in the US vs. most of the rest of the world is the value placed on the lives of children. Having grown up on the mission field and then over the past 10 years had the privilege of doing CM training in Russia, the Philippines and South Africa/Swaziland (as well as Australia), my sense is that children simply are not valued in most parts of the world as they are here in the US. That's not to say they are not loved by any means, but in most non-western societies children are not the priority in culture and in the church as they are in the Western world. This, combined with what you mentioned, plus the overall lack of resources overseas (physical tools such as curriculum and also training), contribute to how things are. We DO need to focus on Jesus & the message of the Gospel, but I would also encourage us as a whole to continue to lead in the area of Children's Ministry. That's one reason why I so love what Gordon West does through Kidz At Heart <a href="http:// (http://kidzatheart.org)” rel=”nofollow”> <a href="http://(http://kidzatheart.org)” target=”_blank”>(http://kidzatheart.org). He trains children's ministry leaders overseas, but within the context of their own culture. As part of this, he doesn't provide "American" curriculum & resources (because they can't get or afford them) but rather focuses on teaching them to reach kids for Christ using what they already have and in manners that are relevant to their culture.
Thanks again, Sam…challenging thoughts!
Greg

Reply
1. samluce
  
  March 7, 2011
  
  Greg great comment. I love all that you added. I do think we need to lead and create resources that help people in other countries. My thought was that if we focus more on the universal truths than we currently do I think those resources we create will be more applicable to kidmin's in every country. Great additions to the conversation. Thanks for the link to kidz at heart.
  
  Reply
Greg Baird

March 7, 2011

Thanks for the post, Sam. These are all good points and I think things that can be addressed to a degree. I would have to say, though, that I've come to believe that the primary difference between ministry to children in the US vs. most of the rest of the world is the value placed on the lives of children. Having grown up on the mission field and then over the past 10 years had the privilege of doing CM training in Russia, the Philippines and South Africa/Swaziland (as well as Australia), my sense is that children simply are not valued in most parts of the world as they are here in the US. That's not to say they are not loved by any means, but in most non-western societies children are not the priority in culture and in the church as they are in the Western world. This, combined with what you mentioned, plus the overall lack of resources overseas (physical tools such as curriculum and also training), contribute to how things are. We DO need to focus on Jesus & the message of the Gospel, but I would also encourage us as a whole to continue to lead in the area of Children's Ministry. That's one reason why I so love what Gordon West does through Kidz At Heart (http://kidzatheart.org). He trains children's ministry leaders overseas, but within the context of their own culture. As part of this, he doesn't provide "American" curriculum & resources (because they can't get or afford them) but rather focuses on teaching them to reach kids for Christ using what they already have and in manners that are relevant to their culture.
Thanks again, Sam…challenging thoughts!
Greg

Reply
Kendra Golden

March 7, 2011

I've had some great conversations with some children's ministry workers from Australia about this. The English thing is a part of it for sure, but even within English-speaking countries, they shared some vocabulary and cultural differences that made curriculum materials feel obviously American instead of just globally English-speaking. I really think that in the globally connected culture that kids are growing up in, it will even improve our effectiveness with American kids for us to create curriculum and environments that include global elements in some ways. I would love for the next generation of kidmins to grow up seeing how they are a part of His one Church.

Reply
1. samluce
  
  March 7, 2011
  
  Kendra love it. Missions trips did this for me. I remember when I was 13 and went on my first missions trip totally opened my eyes to the world beyond me. Great point Kendra thanks for the comment.
  
  Reply
Kendra Golden

March 7, 2011

I've had some great conversations with some children's ministry workers from Australia about this. The English thing is a part of it for sure, but even within English-speaking countries, they shared some vocabulary and cultural differences that made curriculum materials feel obviously American instead of just globally English-speaking. I really think that in the globally connected culture that kids are growing up in, it will even improve our effectiveness with American kids for us to create curriculum and environments that include global elements in some ways. I would love for the next generation of kidmins to grow up seeing how they are a part of His one Church.

Reply
1. samluce
  
  March 7, 2011
  
  Kendra love it. Missions trips did this for me. I remember when I was 13 and went on my first missions trip totally opened my eyes to the world beyond me. Great point Kendra thanks for the comment.
  
  Reply
Tamera Kraft

November 2, 2013

Interesting debate. I’ll bring one more thing to the table. Many missionaries in other countries focus on ministering to children first because they know if they reach this generation, it will impact the next.

Reply
1. samluce
  
  November 2, 2013
  
  Tamera thanks for your comment. For clarification are you saying we should focus on kids more as people oversees do?
  
  Reply
Gary Lindsay

November 2, 2013

Sam,

I love your point of view.
I think while there are not voices at our table in the US from the rest of the world, does not mean there are not voices at the table. I see ministries in first and third world countries doing a great job of networking and learning together.
You are right that we are americentric in America and most ministries who send people for training here from abroad end up leaving with an American mind set of how ministry programs should be done. (It wasn’t until I came to the USA that I knew what the letters VBS meant).
We can learn a lot from the rest of the world, especially in how most of them are small churches with completely lay led volunteer ministries that are doing some incredible things. They start with the bible and the gospel instead of curriculum. So, yes, great points on what we should learn from the rest of the world in terms of Children’s ministry.
Great Post as always.

Reply
1. samluce
  
  November 2, 2013
  
  Thanks Gary appreciate your voice. Particularly on this point having been on both sides of the issue.
  
  Reply
Andrew Muzychuk

November 2, 2013

Good points. If I have to add something….In my opinion (since I been on “both sides”) if there are something that “American church” can learn from other countries, it is being more community base church, where people not just meeting on Sundays but living life together. Some big churches overseas, who copied American mega church model, grew big, but are lacking a real friendship among members

Reply
1. samluce
  
  November 2, 2013
  
  Andrew great thoughts. I agree. There is much we can learn from the broader church. Community is one such thing.
  
  Reply