What About Me

Couldn't have said it any better than Perry did in his post "What About Me?"

How is the above attitude different from most churches today? If we want to SERIOUSLY impact the world we live in–I believe it MUST be done through dynamic youth and children’s ministry…and in order to do that we MUST spend money on them…and if we are spending money of them then that means that some of the things we would love to see as adults in the church…well…we go without them! We inconvenience ourselves. We go without! All in an effort to reach a generation that needs Jesus more than any generation that has ever existed.

Make sure you go read the entire post there.

Tim also has made a few comments about this before, here and here.

Student Ministry Org Chart

Just finished recreating our student ministry organizational chart. For those out there that need something like this. Here is the free download. Use it and abuse it.

Sample Youth Ministry Organizational Chart

My Celebrity Look-a-Like

Chris Day did it...so I thought I would throw mine out at you. The link to do it is at myheritage.com



Thanks for the link Chris.

How again does this fit in with my blog...well really.....it doesn't....just thought it was cool to show you how I looked like Colin Farrell.

Blank Series Synopsis

To be a resource to everyone out there. Here is a link to a blank message series synopsis you can utilize to help in your planning of a series.

Free Download - Blank Message Series Synopsis

I find having the system in place makes it easier to plug things in as you are developing your series.

This is an update to some earlier posts that may also help in your message/series development:

Message Prep System
Creating Momentum Through Message Series
Series Synopsis

Using Blogging In Ministry Part 2

In part one of this two part topic we talked about the five different types of people who will read your blog. After blogging now for over one year I thought it would be useful to give four practical tips for those who want to start blogging.

• Know who you are going to write for and why. I would suggest write down what you want the purpose of your blog to be and then stay within that. I have made the mistake of writing about so many things. As you narrow down your focus it will help in the direction of your blogging.
• It is important that you begin to find your voice in blogging. It is much like communicating in general. Many first time communicators emulate a style of preacher or teacher whom they like. Blogging is very similar. Many people write in a style that is similar to someone they follow. Find your voice. Of those people who will read your blog who are you going to write to? And above all things…just be you.
• With the different types of people that will read a blog, my suggestion is stay short. Many people, especially from the outside of your church, probably subscribe to more than one blog. In doing so they can’t spend a lot of time reading a blog that is long. For me, those posts that are really long I just skim through and if they are consistently long I drop from my subscriptions. One good way to keep my attention throughout the blog is to give me your goods in your first sentence if you’re going to be long. That will drive me to read for the details or go on. Many time those that look long I will bail even before the first sentence.
• Use tools that will help your blogging. Google has many tools that a blogger can use that will help you be successful. Google analytics, a free resource will help you know the statistics of your blog. Blogger is a great and easy blogging platform for someone beginning. Another resource you need to use is feedburner. Church Communications Pro has a great series called Blogging For Pastors 101 which is great for pastors or anyone who is beginning blogging.

Using Blogging In Ministry Part 1

As we continue to look at technology in ministry, blogging is one great tool that can help you in many ways. We will focus on some of the beginning basics of utilizing this tool.

When it comes to blogging, there are several types of people who view your blog. With the variety of blogs there are, people will fit into about every one of these categories. I do try to stay out of the last one though.

• Those people from inside your church and who are tied in to what you are doing.
• Those outside your church that want to know more about you.
• Church leaders and people across the country who want to know the in’s and out’s of what you are doing and be inspired by what you write.
• Family and or friends who want to keep up with you.
• Those that will read with the intent to criticize.

In Part 2 we will look at some beginning tips for bloggers.

Using Graphic Design in Ministry

Today, as we continue talking about technology in ministry, I want to highlight graphic design. We use graphic design in three primary ways in our ministry.

• Simple weekly promo graphics to upload to websites and use in videos. This is our latest.
• Series graphics for announcements in bulletins, powerpoints, handouts, videos.
• Announcement graphics for events.

Other ways include:
Logo's, t-shirt designs, handouts, and printed materials.

What are some other ways you use graphics?

Creating Momentum Through Message Series

One area we are passionate about is communicating. When ministering to people there are many things we can do to garner momentum in growing our churches and ministries.

Tony Morgan had a great post as well as an article in Outreach Magazine that communicates some great points on Message Series. I'll let you read an excerpt and elaborate in a future post.

Here are the points that stood out to me in the article:

• Schedule your series to last more than six weeks. A series will probably lose momentum after six weeks. People consider a new series as an opportunity to invite their friends, but the longer the series drags on, the less likely those they invite will come.
• Pack your church calendar so full that inviting friends to worship isn’t a priority. The more activities and ministries you provide, not to mention meetings you schedule, the less you’ll focus on your weekend services. Ask yourself: What is our primary way for reaching people who don't attend church? If the answer is your weekend service, focus on making that effective by doing less of something else.
• Teach too much in each message. Too many points can confuse not only your listeners, but you as well. Pick one point and stick to it. And remember ... brevity is your friend.
• Teach the truth without life application. For the most part, people don't need more knowledge, but rather to learn how to put their existing knowledge into action. They know Jesus died for them, but what does this mean for them when their alarm goes off on Monday morning?
• Don't tease the coming series with appropriate promotions. Launching a series without letting people know it’s coming does no good. How will your members invite people ahead of time? Promote what you’ll be talking about and why they should care enough to attend.
• Don't sweat the details. A good series involves more than just developing a message. When a team of experts comes together to plan out the messages—the art elements, the promotions and the rest of the service experience—there’s a much better chance the series will succeed in both offering biblical truth and reaching more people for Christ.

Writing In Abundance

I feel like I am making up for a week off of writing all in two days.

My Videos On Youtube

This week while talking about technology in ministry two of my videos on youtube have eclipsed the 1,000 mark. Now seeing how the top viewed video on youtube (I just watched it again. Way to funny.) at the time of this post has been watched 47,800,540 times that is like a drop in the bucket. But never the less it is a milestone in my book.

Check them out:
Heroes Promo (This was the promo for our April series. It actually got to 1,000 in a shorter time than the other)
Just To Be With You (We used this clip in our Inked - Marked by God series. This hit 1,000 first.)