Deep Thoughts by Mr. G

As our church is looking to re-focus on our own children’s ministry. Here is some suggestions for volunteers. I. Enlist volunteers. See who is available. You don’t want just a warm body, but you do need people. So what are the qualifications? Here are some we use: A. Been a Christian for over 1 year. B. Been part of our church body for a year. C. Love God. D. Love children. E. If teaching must have ability to teach. (Sometimes we put people in a teaching role that is in the wrong seat on the wrong bus and has a spiritual gift to be used elsewhere) II. Encourage Volunteers. Celebrate what volunteers do. Send them notes. Tell them thank you. Point out the things they do. (Sometimes I know I don’t do this enough) III. Evaluate. Evaluate your volunteers. Are they happy? What tools do they need to be more effective? What worked well? What didn’t? How can we improve? In one of my ministries my volunteers were on a yearly contract. Once the year was up – they had th

Inspired by Marko's post Here are some I've made. 10. Church van. Speeding, minor dents … just doesn’t do justice to tell your leaders – the van is broken. There was one time I didn’t check the tires and we had a blowout while coming home from King’s Dominion. Safety is the key to the van. My last ministry – I made sure to have the van prepared before leaving on a trip. Getting the van stuck in a ditch wasn't fun either. 9. Poor Communication. I really think when I first got into youth ministry – I knew it all. I didn’t use the parents, or meet with them enough. Sometimes if I knew that it, it could have saved me some headaches. 8. Poor judgment. Afterall no one will know, right? Stupid pranks and issues leads to hurt feelings. Sometimes I hurt not only others’ feelings, but my own as well. 7. Messy games. Sure they were great and sounded good, but when one kid almost chokes (Chubby Bunny and Yes I played that) and another nearly hurls, (Think Human milkshake) tim

Found here Sometimes it is funny to just laugh at one's self. I want the best for the Bride of Christ. And unfortunately it isn't found in stuff, junk or otherwise. Just a blog I'm having fun with. Let's make the name Christian be for people, not things ... and uplift the Bride of Christ.

I wrote this over 3yrs ago but is a good reminder. 1. Your relationship with God is more important than your ministry. Take time to tend to your soul. 2. Your Family is important. Do not neglect your family. They are your number one ministry. 3. Learn to delegate responsibility. The more you equip - the less you do yourself. 4. Spend time alone. - Get a hobby. It will help your sanity. 5. Be a life long learner. Invest in resources, studies, online etc. 6. Choose your battles wisely. Not every hill is worth dying for. Learn conflict resolution and even have others take the heat off of you. 7. Build relationships that will last. 8. The Kingdom of God is Bigger than your one Church. Learn to network, get to know other churches, learn from them and vice versa. 9. Be a leader. Be responsible and be the leader God called you to be - don't try to be something you are not. 10. Be humble. Part of that is being authentic. Not everyone is buddy buddy with Doug Fi

This week I'm talking on 1 Corinthians 7 on the matters of marriage, divorce, and encouragement.

So my girls went to camp and learned these songs to dance to: Party in the USA We Rock and of course there was a guy who knew all the moves to this video And did this one as well. Not sure if the kids there knew about these videos or not. But were impressed. Great to see my kids enjoyed camp!

I recently was asked about this and here are some thoughts I had. Actually there are several ramifications of this issue. I. It isn't being built at Ground Zero. Let's get that straight first. I've been to Ground Zero just days after 9-11; and so know some of the area. II. I think if we get upset at this - what other things should we stop in the name of Religious Freedom - Let's not build churches certain places ... I think it takes us down a road I don't wish to see but am seeing like: when people say you're not allowed to pray in Jesus' name. III. Sure it is a spiritual battle - but why are we so surprised that sinners do what sinners do? IV. Muslims are not the enemy. Sorry - they're not. They are lost sinners that need Jesus as well. Would we be upset if this was an atheist's gathering place, how about wicca? How about? I know many things have been done harmful in the name of Islam - and various sects of Islam - much like Chri

Chances are you have come across a youth worker that has been hurt in ministry. (Not hurt your ministry or done something stupid - though there are plenty of those) I'm talking about ones that struggle everyday in the trenches or are let go. That is why I write some of the things I do to help. Example: Handling a Forced Exit and the whole thing about churches abusing youth workers post that Marko wrote. I think there is a week that doesn't go by that I don't hear about some youth worker let go, hurt by the church etc. Here are some Suggestions to help the Youth Worker that is hurting: I. Recognize it isn't the church that is hurting this person. It is individuals. The Church as a whole doesn't abuse youth workers. Individuals and congregations have. I had to learn this the hard way. It is to be I talked bad about the church; not recognizing that I was hurting the Bride of Christ. The Church that Jesus gave his life up for. II. Give a listening ear to th

The following are some articles I've come across the internet that have dealt with church, and ministry lately. HT to Doug and Davon. Biblical illiteracy is not the problem 10 Characteristics of Growing Churches The Upside of Tension Congregations Gone Wild

So with the whole Ilya Kovalchuk contract situation makes it interesting. Before another lock-out in the NHL . Which looks possible in 2012-13 (And you thought 2012 was just referencing the End Times?) Here is what I would do with these ridiculous Salaries. Which ones Luongo are being looked at. While they are at it; look at Hossa's, Pronger's, and Savard's. No one really should make more than the faces of the NHL. Who are they? Alex and Sid sorry but it is true. There might be other faces of the NHL (And we'll get into that) Here is my solution for the CBA, Salary Cap etc. I. Have a contract Cap.  10yrs. Max.  The years of ridiculous Salaries of  Alexia Yashin 10 yr. 87 Million dollars is over. Also Rick Dipietro's salary 15 years 67Million. II. Have a Franchise Tag for only 2 players on your team. This includes your Captain, and one player to be determined. With a Franchise tag - that player is guaranteed with Free Agency - 5-10yr. Extension.

I. Patience - to sometimes be patient and listen to others. Rome wasn't built in one day. II. Persistence - to endure the obstacles, and to carry on.  James 1 talks about perserving. It is the whole having the Big picture in mind. III. Passion. - having the desire, the ambition to achieve what must be done. In Paul's letter to Timothy, he talks about that elders must have a desire for the office (I Timothy 3:1) I see a lot of leaders that have passion, but don't want to endure the obstacles or are patient in ministry. Sometimes I think that some leaders would rather have things handed to them on a silver platter; rather than work for it and see the rewards that come with the work. Afterall, God is the one that gives the Increase ....

Duffy Robbins' original book has always been a great resource for youthworkers. Now that it is being updated and revised - such bring even more Joy. (IT is available after August 26th BTW) And there is a special bonus in it as well. One of my own articles is featured in this edition. How cool is that? Sure, I've been mentioned or published in other books: Making Sense of the Church and YM 3.0 but this is more than a quote here or there. My hope is it helps youth workers. So get your copy today.