(Read the prior Blog post first!)
Here's the whole thing... it's 30 minutes but well worth the watch!
The Old Testament in Song from Morning Star Church on Vimeo.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
An Entertaining Sunday...
I'm posting this here (even though it's Bridge 45 related) for those of you who only follow this blog. This Sunday, we asked Rocky (Worship pastor for children up through college, as well as co-leader of our college group) to teach the entire Old Testament to our fourth and fifth graders. We gave him an outline (Jared had already done all the research) and suggested he try and do it as a song... the results were amazing! Here's the short version--just the song. I'll post the entire teaching later for those of you who'd like to watch a VERY entertaining, educational, 30 minute teaching.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
God Works in Big Ways
My last post was about having to close our elementary class last Saturday. This week we had it open again, and our volunteer count quadrupled! We actually had to turn away a helper because otherwise we'd have too many volunteers and not enough kids! God blew me away with His provision. I'll have to remember this time of blessing as an encouragement next time we feel like there's no hope.
Another exciting thing is that the modular units for our adult classes are being installed as I write this, and our Bridge 45 unit will be delivered tomorrow! It'll still be a few weeks before it's usable, but it's encouraging to finally see some progress on our church grounds. If you'd like to know more about Bridge 45 (our new preteen ministry and the curriculum we're creating for it), or would like to see pictures of the install-process, check out my other blog here.
Another exciting thing is that the modular units for our adult classes are being installed as I write this, and our Bridge 45 unit will be delivered tomorrow! It'll still be a few weeks before it's usable, but it's encouraging to finally see some progress on our church grounds. If you'd like to know more about Bridge 45 (our new preteen ministry and the curriculum we're creating for it), or would like to see pictures of the install-process, check out my other blog here.
Friday, October 17, 2008
A Worshipping Family
This past Saturday we had to close our elementary class because of a lack of leaders. We've been leading up to it for a while, and finally I knew we couldn't sacrifice safety and quality any longer. We've asked for help many times, in a variety of ways. But for some reason, serving kindergarten-fifth graders must be very daunting. We posted a sign saying what was going on, and eagerly handed out boxes of crayons and paper to families as they passed through our lobby into the main sanctuary. (On a side note--I was very surprised that I didn't receive very many complaints, and even more surprised to see that no one turned around and left!)
I was able to sit in the service for the message, and loved looking around, seeing my 20-some elementary kiddos, busy coloring, leaning on their parents, entering and exiting for the restroom, but all in all, being very well behaved. But the most precious moment came when I entered the sanctuary for one of the last worship songs at the end, and could see my elementary kids standing throughout the room, with parents seated next to them. One second grader girl was in the back row, hands stretched to the ceiling with her head leaned back to look toward heaven. I know there must have been a smile on her face. Tears came to my eyes as I observed such innocent, passionate worship in our kids. They didn't care that they didn't know the songs. They didn't care that the majority of the people in the room were still seated. All they cared about was showing their Heavenly Father that they love Him.
What began as an evening of frustration over a lack of volunteers became a blessed night. And the next day, we had four people sign up to help during our Saturday services! And while that was encouraging, what I'll remember is that there is nothing more precious or beautiful than seeing a child worship.
I was able to sit in the service for the message, and loved looking around, seeing my 20-some elementary kiddos, busy coloring, leaning on their parents, entering and exiting for the restroom, but all in all, being very well behaved. But the most precious moment came when I entered the sanctuary for one of the last worship songs at the end, and could see my elementary kids standing throughout the room, with parents seated next to them. One second grader girl was in the back row, hands stretched to the ceiling with her head leaned back to look toward heaven. I know there must have been a smile on her face. Tears came to my eyes as I observed such innocent, passionate worship in our kids. They didn't care that they didn't know the songs. They didn't care that the majority of the people in the room were still seated. All they cared about was showing their Heavenly Father that they love Him.
What began as an evening of frustration over a lack of volunteers became a blessed night. And the next day, we had four people sign up to help during our Saturday services! And while that was encouraging, what I'll remember is that there is nothing more precious or beautiful than seeing a child worship.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Another thought from my Husband
Nolan, my husband, has been feeling the push to reach out to the students at Willamette University. Here's a note he posted on Facebook that I felt could apply to what we so often feel in ministry:
So last night I was struggling with a few things. I decided this morning that I would share a little of what God is showing me right now through one of those things.
I won’t go into great detail because all that needs to be known is that God is calling me to do some stuff. With all my heart, lately, I have been trying to listen to whatever He has to tell me and then do it. Well the latest task he has asked me to do is where the struggle comes.
What I am struggling with is if I am the right person to be doing the task that God has called me to do. Am I cool enough to be liked? Am I smart enough to be listened to? Am I relatable enough to be their friend? Is my love for God strong enough to point to my Savior?
So my thoughts this morning turned to the simple story of David and Goliath. I thought about his calling and his action. He was just going about his business delivering lunch to his brothers when he was called. So what did David do when he was charged with the task of killing the giant? Did he call into question that he was not the popular choice to fight this battle? Did he question God because of how much confidence other (better) soldiers had in him? Did he go and research the best method of the day for killing giants? Did he come armed with the latest and greatest tools for battle? Did he consult great warriors just because he had never killed a man before? The answer to all of these is an obvious no. He went into the battle with nothing but a sling and some rocks. Although the rest of the people of the day were using swords and spears to kill people, he took his calling and moved forward with a handful of rocks.
So what am I learning from this? I don't need the best method. I don't need the approval of greater warriors than me.When God has called me to do something specific, I don't need to research the latest strategy and most effective methods. Sometimes God calls the armies of warriors and other times He calls someone who doesn't even own a sword. Sometimes God will ignore the best way to kill a man and rely on a sling and some rocks.
My prayer right now is that I am actually hearing the calling of God and that I have the trust and confidence that David had that day. I have many shortcomings and many faults but I am going to carry the sling that God has given me into the place I am being called. God has not called me to use the sword of the day, but sometimes God just wants the sling and a willing heart. It is my desire to start flinging some rocks all for His glory…
So last night I was struggling with a few things. I decided this morning that I would share a little of what God is showing me right now through one of those things.
I won’t go into great detail because all that needs to be known is that God is calling me to do some stuff. With all my heart, lately, I have been trying to listen to whatever He has to tell me and then do it. Well the latest task he has asked me to do is where the struggle comes.
What I am struggling with is if I am the right person to be doing the task that God has called me to do. Am I cool enough to be liked? Am I smart enough to be listened to? Am I relatable enough to be their friend? Is my love for God strong enough to point to my Savior?
So my thoughts this morning turned to the simple story of David and Goliath. I thought about his calling and his action. He was just going about his business delivering lunch to his brothers when he was called. So what did David do when he was charged with the task of killing the giant? Did he call into question that he was not the popular choice to fight this battle? Did he question God because of how much confidence other (better) soldiers had in him? Did he go and research the best method of the day for killing giants? Did he come armed with the latest and greatest tools for battle? Did he consult great warriors just because he had never killed a man before? The answer to all of these is an obvious no. He went into the battle with nothing but a sling and some rocks. Although the rest of the people of the day were using swords and spears to kill people, he took his calling and moved forward with a handful of rocks.
So what am I learning from this? I don't need the best method. I don't need the approval of greater warriors than me.When God has called me to do something specific, I don't need to research the latest strategy and most effective methods. Sometimes God calls the armies of warriors and other times He calls someone who doesn't even own a sword. Sometimes God will ignore the best way to kill a man and rely on a sling and some rocks.
My prayer right now is that I am actually hearing the calling of God and that I have the trust and confidence that David had that day. I have many shortcomings and many faults but I am going to carry the sling that God has given me into the place I am being called. God has not called me to use the sword of the day, but sometimes God just wants the sling and a willing heart. It is my desire to start flinging some rocks all for His glory…
Monday, September 29, 2008
Where do we Restructure?
My husband said something today that I totally agree with. "It seems that leaders of ministries love to restructure leadership but tend not to restructure those they are ministering to."
How often is this true? We see that something isn't working, or at least we aren't seeing the level of success that we'd hope for, so we change the way we do things from the top down. But really, we need to look further. Maybe the root of ineffectiveness in a ministry isn't in the person that leads or how they go about leading (although I will acknowledge that this can be the case), but the structure of what they're leading. We get so caught up in doing things the way that they've always been done that when it doesn't work, we look to ourselves. Do I need to improve my communication? How can I change my training methods? If only we didn't have to work with people...
While leaders do need to look inward on a regular basis to see where they need to improve, none of those adjustments will be effective unless we're willing to take a step further and look at who it is we're ministering to. Over time, people change. The culture changes. Our churches change. What may have worked 5 years ago probably won't today. Not because it wasn't a good method to begin with, but because the people the method was designed for no longer exist--they've matured, grown older, or maybe even moved on.
We found an area that needed to be restructured this year--our entire elementary department. As a whole, it was hurting. The kindergartners weren't understanding the lessons while the fifth graders were disengaging. And the problem didn't lie in our large group teachers or small group leaders. Nor was it in our training (after all, we had our best year yet of volunteer training!). The problem was in how our kids were structured. And by simply separating one age group from the other, new ministry doors were opened. I've heard comment after comment from parents about how much their new 4th & 5th graders are loving Bridge 45. I see kindergartners understand the lessons, while third graders are still involved.
And now that we've restructured those we've ministered to, I can start looking at improving other details of our ministry--without feeling like nothing works!
How often is this true? We see that something isn't working, or at least we aren't seeing the level of success that we'd hope for, so we change the way we do things from the top down. But really, we need to look further. Maybe the root of ineffectiveness in a ministry isn't in the person that leads or how they go about leading (although I will acknowledge that this can be the case), but the structure of what they're leading. We get so caught up in doing things the way that they've always been done that when it doesn't work, we look to ourselves. Do I need to improve my communication? How can I change my training methods? If only we didn't have to work with people...
While leaders do need to look inward on a regular basis to see where they need to improve, none of those adjustments will be effective unless we're willing to take a step further and look at who it is we're ministering to. Over time, people change. The culture changes. Our churches change. What may have worked 5 years ago probably won't today. Not because it wasn't a good method to begin with, but because the people the method was designed for no longer exist--they've matured, grown older, or maybe even moved on.
We found an area that needed to be restructured this year--our entire elementary department. As a whole, it was hurting. The kindergartners weren't understanding the lessons while the fifth graders were disengaging. And the problem didn't lie in our large group teachers or small group leaders. Nor was it in our training (after all, we had our best year yet of volunteer training!). The problem was in how our kids were structured. And by simply separating one age group from the other, new ministry doors were opened. I've heard comment after comment from parents about how much their new 4th & 5th graders are loving Bridge 45. I see kindergartners understand the lessons, while third graders are still involved.
And now that we've restructured those we've ministered to, I can start looking at improving other details of our ministry--without feeling like nothing works!
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Teaching about Teaching
I was invited to teach a class called "Teaching the Bible," at Corban College this week. I graduated from Corban in 2004 (back when it was still Western Baptist College), and Teaching the Bible was one of my favorite classes! It was an incredible experience to go back to the school that made such an impact on my life and teach on what I'm so passionate about. My assignment was to teach the class about teaching methods to first through fifth graders. It was a blast! I had the students up and down participating in each element. I will say, though, I do prefer to teach the little ones more! I thought I'd share what I taught.
I opened with an activity (thanks to an idea listed on Kidology) where we used a 14 food string to represent each hour in a child's week. Sections were marked for how a child spends each of those hours, with only 1.5 inches for church. I used this to help show the students how short our time is, so we need to make it as impactful as possible.
Then I covered our mission statement and values to show how we keep ourselves on track at Morning Star.
After that I got into how we need to know what a child can understand spiritually at different age levels. This portion came from an article from Today's Children's Ministry by Marlene LeFever.
Bible Truths for Kindergarten & First Graders
-Jesus loves everyone and that’s why He came to earth.
-I know who God is, what He’s like, and what He’s done for me.
-I can talk to God whenever and wherever I want.
-I know people in Bible times loved God and served Him, and I know how I can love and serve Him today.
Bible Truths for Second & Third Graders
-The Bible is God’s truth for me.
-Jesus’ death and resurrection makes a difference to me.
-The Ten Commandments are hard to obey. I need Jesus’ help.
-The world is a big place, and God is working all over the world.
Bible Truths for Fourth & Fifth Grades
-The Bible defines right and wrong
-Salvation is for me and all people who trust Jesus.
-The Bible is the big picture of God working with His people, and I’m part of that picture.
Then, because it's important to not just know who you're teaching, but also who they will become, we looked at
Bible Truths for 11-14 Year Olds
-Being a Christian is a part of who I am and the choices I make reflect that identity.
-God’s Word is filled with people just like me who were faced with difficult circumstances. I can look to the Bible for solutions to problems I face.
-God wants me to serve Him by serving others through missions trips and ministries.
And, since we now know who it is we're teaching, we need to know how they work. As I introduced each learning style (which you can read more about here) I gave interactive examples of how you might incorporate these in the teaching, first in a K-3rd grade way, then in a 4th/5th grade way. We used the story of David and Goliath for each one to show how many different ways a Bible story can be taught.
Auditory Learners
-Not just hearing, speaking
-Group discussion
-Interactive teaching
For K-3 we had a lot of story telling/kids repeat back elements from the story, question and answer, etc.
For 4/5 one student read the passage out loud then they were given potential small group discussion questions.
Visual Learners
-Not just looking, participating
-Doodling
-Highlighting, drawing pictures, writing notes
For K-3 we did a modified "Art Attack" where three students helped draw the picture as I read it. One person drew every reference to people, another drew objects, and the third drew action. The pictures were hilarious!
For 4/5 we talked about how you could hand out papers to each student so they have the option to take notes, doodle or draw pictures of what is being taught.
Kinesthetic Learners
-Need to stay in constant motion
-Hand motions
-Non-specific movements
For K-3 the kids were given three different actions to do when referenced in the story--hitting your legs with your hands for running, turning your arm in circles in the air for the sling, and victory arm movements for triumph.
For 4/5 we marched in place while saying, "The battle is the Lord's" in different ways--like we really mean it, like we're going to battle, so the kids next door hear us, etc.
Analytic
-Always need to know more
-Focus on specifics
-How, why, where?
For both age groups we looked a the specifics that are listed in regards to story--how many stones David got, where he got them, what they were like, why he didn't wear Saul's armor, etc.
Global Learner
-Skip the details, go for the action
-Think about the details relevant to the big picture
-Let them help tell the story
Several students helped act out the big elements of the story--the tallest guy in the class was put on a chair and played Goliath, the shortest girl was David, and three people each represented the Philistines and the Israelites. They had to act out the story as it was told.
Over all, it was a lot of fun, and a great reminder to me of what all needs to be thought about as we plan lessons and write curriculum.
I opened with an activity (thanks to an idea listed on Kidology) where we used a 14 food string to represent each hour in a child's week. Sections were marked for how a child spends each of those hours, with only 1.5 inches for church. I used this to help show the students how short our time is, so we need to make it as impactful as possible.
Then I covered our mission statement and values to show how we keep ourselves on track at Morning Star.
After that I got into how we need to know what a child can understand spiritually at different age levels. This portion came from an article from Today's Children's Ministry by Marlene LeFever.
Bible Truths for Kindergarten & First Graders
-Jesus loves everyone and that’s why He came to earth.
-I know who God is, what He’s like, and what He’s done for me.
-I can talk to God whenever and wherever I want.
-I know people in Bible times loved God and served Him, and I know how I can love and serve Him today.
Bible Truths for Second & Third Graders
-The Bible is God’s truth for me.
-Jesus’ death and resurrection makes a difference to me.
-The Ten Commandments are hard to obey. I need Jesus’ help.
-The world is a big place, and God is working all over the world.
Bible Truths for Fourth & Fifth Grades
-The Bible defines right and wrong
-Salvation is for me and all people who trust Jesus.
-The Bible is the big picture of God working with His people, and I’m part of that picture.
Then, because it's important to not just know who you're teaching, but also who they will become, we looked at
Bible Truths for 11-14 Year Olds
-Being a Christian is a part of who I am and the choices I make reflect that identity.
-God’s Word is filled with people just like me who were faced with difficult circumstances. I can look to the Bible for solutions to problems I face.
-God wants me to serve Him by serving others through missions trips and ministries.
And, since we now know who it is we're teaching, we need to know how they work. As I introduced each learning style (which you can read more about here) I gave interactive examples of how you might incorporate these in the teaching, first in a K-3rd grade way, then in a 4th/5th grade way. We used the story of David and Goliath for each one to show how many different ways a Bible story can be taught.
Auditory Learners
-Not just hearing, speaking
-Group discussion
-Interactive teaching
For K-3 we had a lot of story telling/kids repeat back elements from the story, question and answer, etc.
For 4/5 one student read the passage out loud then they were given potential small group discussion questions.
Visual Learners
-Not just looking, participating
-Doodling
-Highlighting, drawing pictures, writing notes
For K-3 we did a modified "Art Attack" where three students helped draw the picture as I read it. One person drew every reference to people, another drew objects, and the third drew action. The pictures were hilarious!
For 4/5 we talked about how you could hand out papers to each student so they have the option to take notes, doodle or draw pictures of what is being taught.
Kinesthetic Learners
-Need to stay in constant motion
-Hand motions
-Non-specific movements
For K-3 the kids were given three different actions to do when referenced in the story--hitting your legs with your hands for running, turning your arm in circles in the air for the sling, and victory arm movements for triumph.
For 4/5 we marched in place while saying, "The battle is the Lord's" in different ways--like we really mean it, like we're going to battle, so the kids next door hear us, etc.
Analytic
-Always need to know more
-Focus on specifics
-How, why, where?
For both age groups we looked a the specifics that are listed in regards to story--how many stones David got, where he got them, what they were like, why he didn't wear Saul's armor, etc.
Global Learner
-Skip the details, go for the action
-Think about the details relevant to the big picture
-Let them help tell the story
Several students helped act out the big elements of the story--the tallest guy in the class was put on a chair and played Goliath, the shortest girl was David, and three people each represented the Philistines and the Israelites. They had to act out the story as it was told.
Over all, it was a lot of fun, and a great reminder to me of what all needs to be thought about as we plan lessons and write curriculum.
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