Parenting Seminar #6 – Technology

In our final Parenting Seminar, Scott Burnett from Integrity Computer Concepts brings his passion and expertise in protecting children in a technological world. This session is action-packed with tons of practical, hands-on tools. Scott opens our eyes to the protection pathways and applications to keep our kids safer in their use of technology. Our hope and prayer is that every bit of information brings you and your children a step closer to using technology wisely. … [Read more...]

Hidden in Plain Sight

I went on a hike the other day. It was a familiar trial that I have hiked before. From time to time you can see deer in certain spots along the trail. I stopped at one of those spots and looked around, but I did not see any deer. I decided to sit down in this little area off the trail and just be still. All of a sudden, I could see several deer through the trees. They were motionless just as I was now. Then it hit me. The deer had been there the entire time, but the combination of their … [Read more...]

Watching Others Do What You Do

This past weekend, the Saddleback Kids team from our San Clemente campus came to the main campus in Lake Forest to observe and connect with other volunteers who do what they do. We gathered together after the service for dinner and some training with the team. It was very interesting. I had several people say this to me…“I’ve never thought about doing it like that before.” It is a simple fact, getting out of your regular ministry environment and watching someone else do what you do is … [Read more...]

GUEST POST – Are They Getting It?

Preparation for the weekend is quite a process. You think of fun games, really dig into the message, pray over it and then bring it on the weekend. But once the lesson is over, you wonder: did the children get it? Did the children truly understand the truth of the message? Did the children not just hear knowledge, but did they receive the power of the gospel? Do they know that the message of the gospel will impact their life? I have battled with these questions over and over many times. … [Read more...]

Making Learning Fun!

How can we make learning fun? How can we help children understand concepts on their own? These questions have floated around in my mind for many years. My goal has been to help children learn Biblical concepts in an educational and fun way! The reason I feel so passionate about this subject is because I believe that the message of salvation is the most important concept people will ever hear. How can we as ministers help children truly understand this concept? One day I happened upon … [Read more...]

Strategies for Easter—Part 4

Here we go with more thoughts on Easter. As you read these thoughts, keep in mind these are just my thoughts. They are not based on scripture and they are totally debatable. I just want to share with you some ideas that have been forged in the fire of experience. So here we go with thought number 4.   Your Weekend Service at Easter Should, In Some Way, Reflect a Typical Weekend Service The big idea here is not to make your services or weekend experience SO special and different … [Read more...]

Strategies for Easter—Part 3

More Easter thoughts with part 3 of “A Strategy for Easter.” Don’t Try To Do Everything On One Day The reality is this…you only have so much energy to work with. You have to be smart about how you spend that energy. It is possible to “over plan” your services. Yes, we should have really cool activities going on for our kids, and yes, it should be special. But if you and your volunteers are stressed over the five object lessons, two egg hunts, a dunking booth, dramatic presentation and a … [Read more...]

Great Minds Don’t Think Alike

I have come across some sayings that don’t make much sense when you really think about it. Here’s one: “No one goes there anymore…it’s too crowded.” Ok, then how is it crowded if no one goes there? Here’s another one: “Be still my beating heart.” Umm, I’m not a medical professional, but I think that’s a bad thing. Check this one out: “Great minds think alike.” We have all heard this saying and I’m not going to spend a great deal of time dissecting the phrase. We get it. But it does raise the … [Read more...]

Limitations are My Friend

You would think that the dream scenario for an artist is to be told you have an unlimited budget, all the time you need and you have freedom to create whatever you want. That sounds like fun but the reality is, too much freedom is actually limiting. Orson Welles said, “The enemy of art is the absence of limitations.” So how in the world can limitations help me? We are actually built to operate with boundaries. The boundaries are not necessarily barriers; in fact, they focus our energies and … [Read more...]

I wish I were creative

I read a story recently of an artist who worked for Hallmark Cards. He traveled to many schools as a guest speaker to talk about his work. He would introduce himself as an artist and then ask the students, “How many of you are artists?” In Kindergarten and first grade almost every hand went up immediately. In the second grade classroom, about three-quarters of the class would typically raise their hands. When he asked the third grade only a few would respond. By the time he asked the … [Read more...]