Flashback Friday: My Favorite Online Reads (Week of January 12, 2015)

This Week’s Favorite Online Reads

Here’s a sampling of some of the online reads I enjoyed this week:

{MINISTRY/LEADERSHIP}

10 Questions Children’s Ministry Leaders Should Be Asking by Dale Hudson

4 Sources That Will Spur Your Creativity In Children’s Ministry by Courtney Wilson

It All Comes Down to What You Do Daily by John Maxwell

{ORGANIZATION}

12 Time Management Tips Every Children’s Ministry Leaders Needs to Know by Dale Hudson

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I hope you enjoy reading these articles as much as I did.

Did you read something this week that inspired or encouraged you? Share it with me so I might check it out, too!

Six Ways to Reconnect in the New Year

Children (and leaders!) at your church are settling back into a routine now that the new year is underway.  As a kidmin leader or volunteer, you know the importance of bridging the gap and helping kids reconnect with you and each other.  That’s why my friends at Orange invited me to share helpful tips to do just that.  Please check out my guest post on their Lead Small website here.

Keep the conversation going by leaving me a comment below!  How do you help kids in your ministry reconnect after the holidays?  

{Book Review} “Children’s Games From Around the World”

One of the things that makes our Children’s Ministry unique is that we offer a missions-emphasis program for our preschoolers, elementary-age children and preteens.  Second Sunday for the World, offered on the second Sunday of each month October – June, exposes children to other cultures, introduces them to church-supported missionaries, and allows them to pray for people around the world. They learn to have God’s heart for the world by serving others locally and globally.

I always keep an eye out for missions resources for children.  Many of my ideas come from Pinterest.  (You can check out my KidMin Missions board here.)

My friend Steven Knight has compiled a new resource that I was thrilled to take a look at.  Children’s Games from Around the World provides 23 fun games from 22 different countries.  These games are great complements to Sunday lessons, VBS, and missions programs.

About the book:
 
-eBook
-45 pages
-includes interesting facts about each country
 
What I Liked:

I love that many of the games are active – they get the children up and moving.  This is especially important to our ministry because we have an abundance of boys who like to throw balls (and each other occasionally!), run and jump.  I also love that the countries are listed alphabetically in the table of contents, making finding a game for a particular place fairly easy.

Each game’s directions are clearly laid out, so it’s easy to follow, even spur-of-the moment if needed.  I was also grateful to see that several interesting facts follow each country’s game.  The games can be fun & informative!

What I Think Was Missing:

It would have been great if each country could have been identified by its flag or location on a map (again, educating the children).  Some had identification; some did not.  It also would’ve been helpful if each game was categorized as “high energy” or “low energy”.  That information is useful to me when selecting a game.  Lastly, a list of needed supplies would make selecting and prepping for a game super easy.  This is also something that I take into consideration when selecting a game.

My Recommendation:

This resource is a good one to have in your arsenal.  If you’re like me, you’ll refer to it regularly.  For a limited time, Steven is offering this downloadable eBook free of charge to everyone who subscribes to his blog, KidMin Tools.  I encourage you to check it out!

Free Registration to the New Children’s Ministry Conference!

I opened my inbox this morning and saw an email from my friend Michael Chanley, who is offering a phenomenal opportunity for Children’s Ministry leaders to attend the brand new Children’s Ministry Conference, which will take place in Louisville, KY on April 15-17, 2015.

Here are the details from Michael’s email:

I’ve never been so excited to write an email! 
Before Jesus sent out his twelve disciples in Matthew 10, he said to them, “Freely you have received, freely give.” Well, I like to think this principal of generosity was not just for the twelve he sent out. I believe it is also for all of us who follow Him. I’m excited because we have received freely; so, we get an opportunity to give freely!
Last week we sent out an email to let everyone know our early rates had been extended until the end of the year. Now, thanks to the generosity of our sponsors, we have been able to create a code to permit a limited number of people to join us for free. Yep, while supplies last, absolutely 100% of registration costs will be covered!
Free! Free! FREE! Merry Christmas!!!
The challenge I would like to present to YOU is simple:
Will you help us get these free registrations 
to the right people? 
We want this blessing to go to serve churches in need. It’s not an unlimited offer; so, please, if your church will cover your expenses then we ask you to not use this limited code. If you can’t afford to cover your own travel and lodging, please let someone else take advantage of this opportunity. However, if your church is going through a hard season, your budget has been exhausted or you are under-resourced, this is definitely for you… just act quickly before the free passes are all gone!
Send this message to someone in ministry who might not otherwise be able to get training. Let’s play this blessing forward and, together, serve more churches!
Pray about it… make sure you can be there… then, use this registration code: MATT_TEN8B to get in free… oh… and please let someone else know!
Thanks and Merry Christmas!
Michael Chanley
Executive Director and President of CMConnect Global
Founder of CMConnect