to quote someone else: Fireworks & First Independence Day (John Adams)

"The day (Independence Day) will be the most memorable in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival...it ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade...bonfires and illuminations (fireworks) from one end of this continent to the other, from this day forward forevermore."

a quote in reference to the first Independence Day fireworks celebration in 1776 by then future President John Adams

Learned from Twitter: week ending July 4, 2009

Hope you are enjoying your 4th of July weekend. To help get you going this weekend, here are a few tidbits of information I learned this week on Twitter.

1. crowderband (David Crowder Band) let us know some specifics about the upcoming album. Mark your calendars.

"Church Music releases Sept 22. 17 tracks. 73 minutes. There you have it!"

2. Drpoulette (Dennis Poulette), along with a few others, shared a link to the article about the walkman review by a 13 year old. Its a great read. My favorite part is when he admits to not knowing there was a second side to the tape - classic.

"RT @boingboing 13 year old kid reviews a 30 year old Sony Walkman http://tinyurl.com/lgwu3g original story: http://bit.ly/SAZSX"

3. bigsmooth433430 (Matt Couch) has a student photography team. I want one! Better yet, I wish my group would have had one when I was in high school.

"Getting ready to meet with our student photography team for the first time. Pretty pumped about all the new ministries starting this summer"

4. nikomas (Nikomas) shares a link worth reading.

"Apostle Paul's bones tested and pass authenticity: http://www.google.com/hoste..."

5. YMX (Youth Ministry Exchange) provides the link to the story about the accident involving a youth minister, a youth coach and some teens during a day at the lake. If you haven't already, take some time to pray for those involved with this tragedy.

"News story about the youth trip accident that claimed 2 in MN http://is.gd/1j7gq"

6. steelehousemark (Mark Steele) is in control of the Tomato's words. Look out toddler world, the next VeggieTales movie is gonna be funny, at least I would expect it to be with Mark working on the script. (I am looking forward to this one.)

"Working on outline & script for the next VeggieTale. Oh tomato, you will say what I tell you to say."

What did you learn from Twitter this week?

Photo Friday: softball field at night

I really like the way baseball/softball fields look at night when its still light out and the lights come on.

Book Review: God's Little Princess Devotional Bible by Sheila Walsh

(This review is for all of you youth workers who have little girls at home. Or for anyone who works with children and might need a resource of ideas or a gift to give to parents)

As my daughter is getting ready to turn one, I am really starting to think about what resources are available to help me as a parent. I think I know what the boys need a lot better than I know what my little girl needs. So, when I saw God's Little Princess Devotional Bible, I was quick to pick it up. This devotional Bible is geared toward girls age 4-7 and I would say Walsh has done a good job writing for that age group. The Scriptures are taken from the International Children's bible, which means they are written so that little girls will understand the verses.

Along with the Scripture, this devotional Bible contains several other features. Everything from Scripture memory, tips on being beautiful on the inside, profiles of women in the Bible, Scripture promises, skits, songs to sing, teaching manners and values. Each feature is full of fun activities and questions to help your little princess grow. If you are looking for something to help you and your daughter spend time in the Bible together, God's Little Princess Devotional Bible will be a huge help.

There is only one problem I have with this book: the almost complete absence of dads within its pages. There are only four mentions of "dad" throughout the book, all in the combination of "mom and dad." (p. 213, 215, 284, 336) A few other times, parents are mentioned. But every other time there is a reference to a parent, it is always mom. And I understand the need for daughters to spend time with their mothers and the fact that during the day mothers are more likely to be home, but let's not neglect dads. If there was a mention at the beginning of the book stating it was going to focus on the mother/daughter relationship, then I would be fine with it. If you are a dad like me and want to use this devotional with your daughter, then you will need to adjust some of the wording.

My advice (rating) – go out and buy it (3.5 out of 5)

Trivia Wednesday #128: Movie at #1 for the most weekends

answer #127 - The Passion of the Christ (#12 - $370,782,930) (Finding Nemo, #15 - $339,714,978) (Which movie has grossed more domestically, The Passion of the Christ or Finding Nemo?)

question #128 - What movie has the most weekends at #1?

A prayer during communion

I was sitting by my boys (5 and 3), one on each side of me during service. Nothing unusual was happening, mostly the same routine for us during the service. Then came the Lord's Supper. This part of the service is always interesting for us, because it can be difficult to quietly concentrate on Christ's sacrifice when your child is asking you to get him a crayon or help read a book. Over the weeks/months, we have been trying to teach the boys what the Lord's Supper is about and why we partake each week.

Before I continue the story, you need to know that we pass the bread first and then pass the juice separately.

Well, on this Sunday, something unusual happened. On this Sunday, after I ate the bread I decided to go ahead and just pray silently. It's not the first time the boys have seen my wife or I do this. But, on this occasion, my oldest did something different. While I was praying, he started to ask me a question. I do not know what the question was about, because he stopped himself mid sentence. And without opening my eyes, I continued to pray. Then, less than a minute later I heard him quietly talking to himself (which is not that unusual). What was different was that he was not talking to himself, he was praying.

He began to pray and this is a paraphrase of what I remember him saying:

"God, thank you for dying on the cross for me, so that I can have eternal life and live with you in heaven. I'm glad you did."

Then, when the juice was being passed and I took it and then prayed, he did the same thing. He prayed pretty much the same prayer again.

After I was done praying, I opened my eyes and looked at him. He asked if I was praying, to which I said "yes." Then he told me that he was too. (I did not tell him that I heard him or was so proud of him - I'll save that for later). I told him that it was good to pray during the Lord's Supper and smiled.

My son understands the connection between the Lord's Supper and Christ's sacrificial death on the cross. I mean, he could have prayed about anything, but he chose to pray about Christ's death and eternal life. He prayed a simple, genuine prayer of thanks - a great reminder of the simplicity of what Christ did for us on the cross.

Learned from Twitter: Week ending June 27, 2009

This is the first full week of summer and for the youth worker that means not being in the office. That was noticed this week on Twitter, as many days were low on the tweeting by friends. I can only hope this means a lot of ministry was done with teenagers. Anyway, here are a few things I learned this week...

1. jenhowver (Jen Howver) shared an article on conducting surveys.

"an ingenious way to conduct a survey (& probably get a good grade on your research project!): http://bit.ly/xtxfV"

2. ellerytheband (Ellery) has been sharing thoughts on what is going on in the studio. A new album is coming. If you do not know Ellery, check out their music - its good.

"Several times through "Christopher," and a new idea w/ each try. Finally have an arrangement we're living with; feels good."

3. MarkMatlock (Mark Matlock) passed along an article on teens and sex. If you work with teenagers, you'll want to check out this article.

"Teens Just as Likely to Have Sex, But Less Likely to Use Contraception Than They Were A Few Years Ago http://tinyurl.com/m5mp8o"

4. outsideallday (Andy Brazelton) announced a brand new small group curriculum from Simply Youth Ministry. The Live curriculum is a downloadable 4 year curriculum that is easily customizable to fit your group. (I am honored to have been able to contribute a few of the lessons for this curriculum and hope they challenge students to live for God)

"Drum roll please...after several years in development, check out our brand new 4 year small group curriculum plan. http://budurl.com/bwaf"

5. FlowerInTheRain (Janelle Painter) passed along some sad truth about Apple and the iTunes App store. They are now allowing porn in their apps, which means I am disappointed in Apple.

"RT @kcampos: Porn is now allowed on the iTunes App Store, because 3.0 has age restriction ability. http://is.gd/1daEV // such a shame Apple"

What did you learn from Twitter this week?

Photo Friday: Rainbow

Rainbow, as seen from the car window.

Youth Ministry Story: Amusement Park Edition

(First, a confession: I do not like roller coasters. I will not willingly spend my off days waiting in lines to ride a 30 second coaster. But I do love going to theme parks with students.)

I thought I'd share a few stories from the many trips I have taken to amusement parks over the years. One from being in youth group and the other from being a youth minister.


Story #1 - Repeat
The first story comes from my days of high school. It was my junior year, I believe, and we were on our way to Cedar Point for our annual trip. This trip involved a caravan of a few cars, vans and the church van. Three of my friends and I were in a van with a couple adults and we had a blast. I say "we" had a blast, that "we" would not include the adults and here is why. During the few hour ride to Cedar Point, my friends and I had a tape (yes, a cassette tape) that we asked the driver to put in the tape deck. I do not even remember the name of the album, but I do remember listening to it a few times.

Well, a few times is not quite right. And in fact, I do not think we made it through the entire tape. Instead we listened to one song over and over. I think we listened to it like 28 times. We thought it was the funniest thing to hear it over and over. (note of thanks to adults who endure this kind of behavior during trips - your suffering through this type of pain is a huge part of youth ministry making a difference in a student's life. I will forever be grateful to the adults who willingly listened to and rewound the tape that many times) I do not even remember much about the rest of that day, but this car experience will forever be ingrained in my brain. It is one of my favorite moments from youth group.

(I'd love to hear if Doug and Jeremy remember this trip)


Story #2 - Roller Coaster Wimps
The second story comes from my last trip to Six Flags with my first youth group. It was during a tough summer for me, I knew it was my last summer and the students did not. During this trip, there was one student who shared my "dislike" of roller coasters. So, we spent the day together and it was such a great time. We rode this "kid" ride (one of those indoors, "scary" rides) at least three times in a row.

We walked around, looking in the gift shops and watching people do silly stuff. Toward the end of the day, we went to the water park (newly opened) and hung out. We had no change of clothes, but we kept walking under the waterfall. (common sense reminder: if you have on a leather belt and you allow it to get wet and remain wet for hours, you have essentially ruined your belt. Just thought you'd like to know) Though we did not go on a single roller coaster, we had a blast. And I got to spend some quality time with a student. A lot more time than I would have on a normal day.





What is your favorite amusement park story?

New Poll: Favorite Amusement/Theme Park

This week seems to be "Amusement Park Week" on this blog, so I added a poll on the topic.

What is your favorite amusement/theme park?

• Cedar Point
• Six Flags
• Holiday World
• Coney Island
• Kings Island
• Knotts Berry Farm
• Disney
  
• None of these

If you answer "none of these" on the poll, please leave your answer as a comment on this post. I'd love to hear the reasons you like your park, too. Is it clean, close location, cheaper, great rides, awesome water park, amazing shows.

Trivia Wednesday #127: The Passion of the Christ & Finding Nemo

answer #126 - #2 (What number is "The Dark Knight" on the all-time domestic gross list?)

question #127 - Which movie has grossed more domestically, The Passion of the Christ or Finding Nemo?

Youth groups & amusement parks

During the summer, it is common for youth groups to take a day or two and go to an amusement park. Some youth workers look forward to this trip and some endure it. But, whatever you personally feel about amusement parks, I want to offer a few helpful tips to make the day go smoother.


1. buddy system
This is the old standard way to keep someone from being left out or getting lost by themselves. But at the amusement park, it is even more important. I like to modify this system while at the amusement park - it has to be an even numbered group of buddies. It can be 2, 4 or 6 - but it has to be even. When you go on a ride and there are five people, one person is most likely going to get left out (and have to ride alone).

2. meeting points/times
Throughout the day, have check in points. Depending on your group and the park you are at, you might only need one or you might need a couple. An easy way to handle this is to have everyone in the group eat together (#6 below). You can have several adults set out around the park at meeting points, so a student does not have to walk a mile just to check in.

3. utilize cell phones
Since most students (at least one in each group) will have a cell phone with them on the trip, you can use it as your check-in system. Have the students call an adult during a certain window of time and let them know their location. If there is any problem, you can also use your cell phone to track down any student rather quickly.

And in the rare case (because I know this never happens) some of your students are late getting to the meeting point at the end of the day, just call them and "remind" them they need to run!

4. wear bright colored, matching shirts
This is a great way to recognize someone from your group at a distance. It is not enough to wear matching white shirts with your logo on front - a large majority of people at the park that day will probably have on white shirts. Choose a color that most people do not have (think lime green or neon pink) and make a fun shirt for the summer. Have the students wear it to your events.

5. leave no one out
If you have a student who does not like to ride roller coasters, do not leave them out of the fun. Make sure they still have a group to hang out with, and this does not include them waiting for their friends to ride all of the rides. Have an adult spend the day with them if no one else wants to "miss the coasters." Make sure no one misses out on the fun, even if it is not the same fun as the rest of the group.

6. eat together
Since you will not see most of the students throughout the day, take time to each a meal together. This can be a "check-in" time (#2 above) or just a time to enjoy some company. Ask what rides are good, which ones are being worked on, which lines are short or long, and which rides are not worth your time. I do not recommend making the students stay for a certain amount of time, just let them eat and return to the park (with their group, of course).


What do you do when your group goes to the amusement park? What is your favorite amusement park?

When the extra mile is no longer extra

Recently I wrote about the need to go the extra mile in youth ministry. Youth ministries need to do things that are above and beyond what people expect. We need to have great "customer service."

But what do you do when your "extra mile" becomes common? There will come a point when people begin to expect something above and beyond. And if they do not get that, then they become upset and frustrated. Think about your experiences with businesses going the extra mile. The first few times it happened, you were thrilled. You told all of your friends about the great service you received, recommending that they visit the business. Then one time you experience great service without the extra mile addition. You leave thinking the service was good, but not up to the service you have come to expect.

It is like the usual increase in gas prices. Once they go up, they rarely go down. People begin to expect a certain level of service and if that level decreases then they are not happy.

How can a youth ministry keep the "extra mile" from becoming common?

Part of the answer comes in understanding that you cannot keep something from becoming common. The longer you do something, the more it becomes part of who you are, and the more it is expected. If you want to keep something from becoming common within your ministry, only do it once. For example, if you add a new program to honor your graduating seniors, that program is special (over the top). But after the second year, people expect it the next year and if you do not do it they are mad. This new senior recognition program is tradition and you can't change it without making someone mad.

The other option, which I think a lot of ministries do, is to continually try to "one up" their last program. Each year, you add something new, make something bigger and add more "flash" to your already existing programs. The fear is that if you do not continue to improve (which means make it more appealing and fun) then the students will not come back. I believe this mentality will eventually damage your ministry, because you will not be able to keep up with yourself. The students will only go to church to get something out of it and will become disengaged when they stop being impressed.

So, what else can your youth ministry do? Here are a few thoughts...

1. Modify events each year.
Each year you hold your annual freshmen bbq, do something different. Do not always having relay races or play ultimate frisbee. One year you could do a game show theme and the next make it a old school/vintage flashback party. Plan the same event each year, but make the specifics of the event different.

2. Rotate events.
This works well with fun events during the summer. One year take the group to a theme park, but the next go to laser tag. It will also work with your mission trip or week-long conference. Rotate between mission locations (ie. hours away to within your city). Take the students to a different week-long conference each year (or rotate between a few you trust). This will keep the events from becoming "common" and becoming easier for the students to become familiar with the surroundings.

3. Evaluate each year.
It is important to evaluate your events every year. What is effective one year, may not be needed the next or will be replaced with another event. If you just keep moving last year's calendar onto this year's calendar without evaluating, you will begin to forget what it means to listen for God's leading. You might need to adjust an entire part of your ministry because the person with the passion has graduated or moved. Your students might need to be given more leadership or "spiritual meat" and your ministry is not ready for that. When you evaluate on a regular basis, you do not allow yourself to coast.

4. Do not be concerned with impressing the students.
Finally, it is not the job of the youth ministry to impress the students. When your goal is to "one-up" yourself, you are only trying to impress people (the students, parents, church leadership, other ministers) and that stems from pride. STOP trying to be the "cool youth ministry" and start listening to God's voice leading you. The students will benefit more from having a ministry that stretches them and challenges them to grow than one that is fun to attend.