Effective Children's Ministry

Sometimes it is the simplest games that surprise us with the enthusiasm and delight of the kids. Even teens can get a kick out of some of them.

GrowingKidsMinistry.com have several blog posts about games for groups. Why not hop over to their blog? 
There are even videos of two of the games being played (by teens!) and a link to a PDF Activity guide which details many more games. With a little thought, you can select ones suitable for your age group and have a whale of a time!

The first part of Minute to Win it for Church groups

The second part of  Minute to Win it for Church groups

Among a list of prophets and teachers in the church at Antioch (Acts 13:1) is mentioned Manaen.

I have read this book many times over the years, but this year, for the first time, I am reading from the New Living Translation. Here I saw what I had never registered before, that Manaen was a “childhood companion of King Herod Antipas”.

This man had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch , the one who had John the Baptist executed.

The thought occurred to me: “What was it that made the difference in those two men’s response to God?” According to James Orr, the Greek in Acts 13:1 suggests they were “foster-brothers”, brought up in the same environment. Yet Herod became so evil and Manaen evidently trusted God for salvation and later became a trusted and esteemed leader in the church. Even his name is gracious; it means “consoler”.

That made me sit up with a jolt – something made a difference to the outcome in the two men’s lives. With God’s help, we must make a positive difference in the lives of the kids we reach and teach.

It is an awesome responsibility – because we might just as easily make a difference the other way. What if we allowed ourselves:

• A dismissive response to a child’s interruption (“Later!”)  
• A sullen expression (“Why can’t we organize the activity the way I wanted?”)
• An over-competitive edge in the group games (“My team’s going to win this one, come what may!”)
• A careless attitude to preparation (It’s 11.30pm Saturday night. I’ve just got time to read over the curriculum for tomorrow.”)
• An angry response to difficult behaviour from a child. (“That’s it! I’ve had enough of you! Out!”)

Catherine and I knew and respected an old Christian leader. We still often quote one of his favourite comments: “You can be a blessing or you can be a blot. But you can never be a blank.”
What impact am I making on the children in my care? Am I turning them off from Christianity and Christ, or am I making it easier for them to see the beauty of Christ and the delight of the Christian life?

It might be through: 

• One fun day, with kid-friendly wholesome activities and a chance for the kids to see us as “real ordinary” people.
• One VBS, where the gospel message is consistently taught in such a way that kids are immersed in the message yet don’t feel spiritual indigestion!
• One smile, one look in the eyes that says: “I’m so glad you are here today. I do appreciate you.”
• One Sunday school lesson, well-prepared and clearly applied to young lives. (Come to think of it – maybe it will be through the lesson that, though well-prepared, was diverted by the Holy Spirit along an unexpected line, but the teacher was in touch with God and knew to go with the flow and respond to the child who asked a vital question or expressed a need.)

Any one or all of these might make that difference in drawing a child nearer to Christ. One connection we make with a child, by whatever means, might be the moment that tips the balance and sets them off on a personal pursuit of God that leads them to the Saviour.

With the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit, we can make that difference that turns a young life towards God and points that kid to the One who can change him or her from the inside out. We may never see the type of adult they become. But we can trust God to save them, keep them and help them to live for him.

In a previous post we spoke about the dangers and advantages of group games.

Now for some great ideas for group games. You will find them at the Ministry-to-children.com forum. If you are looking for some tried-and-tested games ideas, check it out the big list here.

Or how about this one involving bowls of M&Ms and a scooter!!

Are there any large group games you have found to work with minimum danger (!) and maximum fun? If you have, feel free to comment below.

Life circumstances have recently got in the way of Catherine and I uploading our own material for you to download. But from time to time we can point you in the direction of some other helpful sites.

With summer fun days and other events these days, help with group games is always welcome.
Youthministry.com have some great posts to stimulate your own thoughts and also to get you started with tried and tested group games.

Here’s one about how games can enhance your ministry.

And another about how to avoid common mistakes when playing games with your kids. The writer tells us that these are the ones which can derail our effectiveness.

This post does not really highlight a children’s evangelism resource, but I am flagging up a page you may be glad to bookmark.

The blog post  I am referring to is  seminar notes and a wealth of resources from Steven Kryger at communic8jesus.com.

We need to hear again the 13 key points that Steven lists.

Identify and communicate your values

Model these values

Introduce your children to technology

Understand the mediums

Use anti-virus, anti-spyware and anti-malware software

Use accountability software and filters

Know what your children are doing

Keep communication lines open

Be proactive in teaching your children

Develop a set of family rules

Encourage them to visit safe places online

Pray for your children, and children everywhere

Be gracious when they stuff up

After these very practical guidelines Steven offers tested solutions which may be of help to you or parents you know.

There are links to online resources for parents, also for those who teach children and teens. There are also links to accountability and filtering software. A section on pornography rounds off a thorough and thoughtful post. That link once again…

How To Protect Our Children Online

It is always a blessing and inspiration to hear or read of other people’s ideas. We have been signed up to the e-newsletter of ChildrensMinistry.com for some time.
There is a quality and consistency about the tips and ideas their writers share.
This month’s e-news contains a link to a great selection of summer arts and crafts.  As the subject line in the email said : “Nine new ideas that’ll spark kids’ God-given creativity all summer long “.

The article outlines some simple, inexpensive but fun crafts, where the kids can express their own creativity.

Check it out here.  While you are there, why not browse the site. If  you like what you see, you could sign up for the e-news yourself.
Go to this page http://www.childrensministry.com/magazine/ then scroll down a bit. You will find an orange “E-newsletter sign up” place.

FUN! We use the word all the time in kids’ ministry.  We want our kids to have a fun time, doing fun activities.  This is because when they are happy and absorbed, they will learn more quickly and remember more effectively. And, of course, they will want to come back next week.

Never wanting to over use any word, I was looking recently for alternatives. But somehow they didn’t seem to work the same! Congenial, amusing, diverting, jolly – none of them seems to hit the nail completely on the head. And none of them would be clearly understood by children.

I came to the conclusion that “fun” is a word kids understand very well. They may not be able to define it, but they surely know when they are enjoying it!

Naturally, there will be solemn times as we teach our clubs and classes. There will be rules and responsibilities for the children. But if the overwhelming thought they have as they leave our care is not  “What a fun time I’ve had!” can we expect them to return of their own accord?

A fun time means :

• A pleasant, friendly atmosphere where each child knows he or she is  welcomed, appreciated and valued.
• Activities which engage their interests and gives them space to stretch their creativity and hone their skills.
• Children learning something without necessarily feeling it was an effort.
• No boredom, but a varied program with some surprises.
• Friendship and fellowship at a spiritual as well as a natural level.

What would you add to the list? How would you define “fun”.

What suggestions would you have for ensuring that the time the children spend in your care is a fun time?  We’d love to know your thoughts! So feel free to add a comment below.

A great source of tried and tested ideas is the ChildrensMinistry.com online magazine.  You can sign up for their email newsletter and get loads of helpful and relevant information.

This week they flagged up a group  game for 6-12 year olds. Octopus is fun to play, especially as when a child is “out” he is also “in”.

Here’s how it works:

What to do: Create two home bases on either end of a large play area. Choose someone to be the Octopus. Have all the other children start on one home base. Once kids leave home base, they have to get to the other base before getting tagged by the Octopus. When kids are tagged, they join hands with the Octopus. The Octopus works together to catch other kids.

Once an Octopus has six people, it breaks in two. Play until all children have been tagged.

For this and other great ideas, visit ChildrensMinistry.com

Have you discovered a helpful site with resources and ideas for children’s ministry. Why not let us know by adding a comment below?

Catherine and I have always felt that there is incalculable benefit in listening to kids and hearing about their interests, worries and joys. So it was with great interest that I read an excellent article by Wayne Stocks (aka Dad in the Middle). He  asks the question : “Does Quality Time Always Have to Be Spiritual Time?”

In his article for Ministry-to-Children.com, Wayne writes about the value of talking and listening to kids, whether or not you speak of the gospel.

• What sort of things do kids like to talk about?
• Is ordinary, “non-spiritual”  conversation of spiritual value?
• Should we always try to weave in the gospel?

In an account of a recent real-life experience, Wayne answers these questions in a practical way. If you would like to see how relationships can be built and opportunities to bring healing into young lives can be grasped, you can read Wayne’s article here.

Thanks to Iconshock.com for the great images, used with permission throughout this game.

Some of the most popular items that are downloaded from our site at the free PowerPoint review games.

Maybe it is being on our allotment garden and seeing all the wee insects and creepy crawlies that inspired this summery game.

It works in the same manner as the Burger Bar PowerPoint review game. There are two presentation files to download. Once these are saved into the same folder on your computer, you can hop between one and the other using the special ladybug button. One is the “playing board” with the insects hidden beneath the numbered cards. The other is the score board where the bugs are checked off the list.

The teams have to answer your questions to earn the right to choose a number and reveal the tiny bug below. The aim of the game is to collect one each of the 5 creatures . Easier said than done!

Don’t be put off by what appears at first to be a complex PowerPoint. Once you have opened up the file and had a “play” yourself, you will see how easy it is and how much fun it will be for your children.

If you are not used to downloading files over the internet the following steps may be helpful:

1) Make a new folder somewhere on your computer where you will be able to easily find it again. Name it, for example, “Bug_Hunt”.

2) RIGHT-click on one of the links below and when prompted, SAVE it to the folder you have just made.

3) Do the same with the other PowerPoint (.ppt)  file. Remember: You MUST have BOTH these files in the same folder for the game to work properly.

4) To view the game, open up first the file (Bug_Collecting_part1.ppt). Full instructions are on slides 3 and 4. OR, you could open the Word document and read the instructions there.

As always, if you have any problems, feel free to contact us -
contact[at]effectivechildrensministry[dot]org

Download 1.  Main Game board PowerPoint

Download 2.  Score chart PowerPoint

Remember!  You must download both the above files to be able to fully enjoy the game.

Download Instructions (Word document)