Lives Filled with Glorious Joy!

If you ask people, they will likely say they want to be happy and they make the choices they make so they can be happy. Sometimes, even oftentimes, Christians say the same thing. Yet, happiness depends on circumstances, so no one can be happy all the time as there are things in life which make us happy and things which make us sad. It does not make sense to make one of your "driving principles" to do whatever it is which makes you happy.

God gives us so much more than happiness because He gives us joy! Joy, is completely different from happiness as joy is a gift from God and we can have it no matter what the circumstances we are dealing with in our lives! And not just "joy", but "glorious joy"! Take a look at I Peter 1:3-9 . . . 

Thank Your Volunteers with Christmas Heart Ornaments!

Christmas is just around the corner and as I was browsing Pinterest I found an idea for a sweet smelling ornament which would make a simple, yet sweet-smelling ornament to give volunteers! It just uses applesauce and cinnamon - the reason it is sweet-smelling - and a little time to make dozens of heart ornaments!

Interview the Children!

My grandson Josiah is five years old, so today when he was at my house I asked him what he would like to do in Sunday school if he got to pick what the kids did. He said he would like to hear Bible stories about animals, then make animal puppets and put on a puppet show of the Bible story! There is potential in what he would like to do! 

Do you ever take time to ask children what they would like to do in Sunday school? Children may have ideas which just are not do-able, but they are likely to have ideas which could be done - or at least tweaked and made to work!

Book Review & Give-Away - Billy Graham; Prophet with Honor

There are few names you can say which are known by nearly everyone around the world. Billy Graham is one such name. Billy Graham's ministry as an evangelist began in 1947 and in the years since then he has traveled to more than 185 countries and has preached to hundreds of millions of people in live crusades, over the radio and on television. Millions of people have made decisions for Jesus because of the ministry of Billy Graham. In this new book, Prophet with Honor, children have the opportunity to learn about who Billy Graham is and how God used him.

A Correct View of God & Grace Makes a Difference!

I've been writing about our view of God and modeling grace to the children and families in our ministries. It is essential for us to have a correct view of God and for us to be people who model grace because what we believe shows itself in what we do and our actions really do speak louder than our words. If we want the children in our ministries to have a correct view of God; we have to have a correct view of Him. If we want the children in our ministries to grow up to be people who show grace to others in the way they talk and act; we need to be people who do this. The best programs and plans mean nothing if we do not have a correct view of God and model grace to others. This includes modeling grace to our volunteers.

As you begin a new school year of ministry, take time to evaluate how your view of God impacts your volunteers. Consider the following . . . 

Do We Teach and Model Grace?

What are we teaching the children in our ministries? I mean, really. What are we really teaching them? Beyond teaching the Bible lessons, do we focus on teaching children all the "do's" and "do nots" in the Bible? Do our actions and attitudes teach children they better do and do not certain things? What are they really learning from us?

VBS - Evaluate - Follow-up & Plan!

If you had a VBS ministry in the summer, now is a great time to sit down and evaluate, follow-up and plan.  It is far too easy to just present ministry without ever taking the time to evaluate, follow-up and plan, so if you haven't already done so, sit down and do it now! Consider the following . . . 

Precious Princess Bible Doodle Book - I'm Giving One Away!

If you have families in your ministry with young daughters who are looking for a resource they could use with her to help her understand what it means to have God as their Father, take a look at the Precious Princess Bible Doodle Book!

Our View of God Has to be Lived

Yesterday I wrote about our, "view of God". I said, "Your view of God will be passed on to those in your ministry . . . to your volunteers and to the children and families in your church and community. It really does matter how You see God because the way You see Him will greatly impact how effective you are in ministry."

This is true. The way we see God will impact those around us and will impact how effective we are in our ministries because what we believe effects our actions and our actions do speak louder than our words.  Consider the following . . . 

I Have a Winner!

I'm happy to announce Virginia (from St. Paul, MN) is the winner in my Beginner's Bible books give-away! (You'll find the review at this link) Thank you Virginia for reading About the Children's Department (please message me your address by September 30, 2013 so I can have it sent to you) and thank you Zonderkidz for sending these books for me to review and for making more available for me to give away!

What is Your View of God?

What is your view of God? I mean, really. How do you see God? Not just what is it you know about Him from your study of the Bible, but how do you really see God? Do you see Him as Someone Who is, "out to get you"? As Someone Who is, "distant"? Someone Who, "requires much and Who does not want you to be happy"?

Your view of God will be passed on to those in your ministry . . . to your volunteers and to the children and families in your church and community. It really does matter how You see God because the way You see Him will greatly impact how effective you are in ministry.

So, Who is God? Consider the following . . .