Tag: children

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children cartoons children's ministry church cartoons

Birthday Expectations

Cartoon of boy and pastor

When a friend or family member has a birthday, there can be all sorts of expectations. Some want a very special day. Others want the most low key birthday possible. Then there are those that want a little attention, but not too much.

I have never seen a choir burst out in a spontaneous rendition of Happy Birthday, but I think that would be so awesome. Because I haven’t seen it before, the surprise would be priceless.

Kids love to be noticed on their birthday. When I created this cartoon, I thought of how children love to be the center of attention when it’s their day. There have been many times when a child has come up to me to announce his or her birthday. Then there are the introverted ones who have a friend relay the message. Most kids want to be acknowledged on their special day.

Today, I get to honor someone at my work with a birthday celebration. We’ll have a brief acknowledgement and a few cookies. I don’t think we’ll be singing Happy Birthday though. We are a creative group, but I don’t think any of us are musically creative. And it may be a little short notice to hire a choir.

What has been your favorite birthday memory? Share it in the comments below.

Cartoon of boy and pastor
Categories
motivation

Children and Investing for the Long Haul

Cartoon of an older man and a boy

This may be a little sappy this morning. After a fantastic weekend with my kids, they leave to go back to their homes on the other side of the country today. My wife and I will shed a few tears. We’ll laugh at a few memories and awkward moments we had this weekend. We’ll cherish the remaining time and long for when we will be together again this summer. 

It is good to be at this side of parenting and to see two children grow up to be vibrant, pleasant, fun adults. It makes those sleepless nights, diaper changes, endless questions, messy living rooms and the pain of enduring adolescent angst worth it.

My prayer for myself today is that I continue to remember what it was like to be a child and remember what it was like to parent young kids. There are invaluable lessons for all phases of life.

Cartoon of an older man and a boy

My prayer for you today is if you are going through a difficult time in your marriage, parenting or business, I encourage you to stick it out.

  • The grass is rarely greener on the other side of the fence.
  • What seems like a permanent problem will be here and gone in an instant.
  • Don’t confuse a problem with a person.
  • We all change. If we’re intentional and persevere, we’ll change for the better.
  • In business and in families, the long-term approach gives a much better return-on-investment than the short-term perspective.
  • Don’t let the urgent trample the important.
  • If you have to choose between business and family, choose family. They will be there to the end.

Keeping a long-term perspective promotes health and growth. It makes marriage and family totally worth it in the long haul.

Categories
motivation

Certainty Versus Infinity

Cartoon of two boys walking. One says, "Today at school I discovered there are an infinite number of ways to annoy a girl."

As a boy, I learned there were infinite ways to annoy a girl. Many times, my discovery would be purely unintentional.

One afternoon, I was riding the bus home from school. There was a girl in front of me with golden curls. At the time, my sister was too young to have curls that big. For some reason, I was fascinated by them. My second-grade, male mind had no idea the time it to create those perfect curls. I found them fascinating. I was like a moth to a flame.

Cartoon of two boys walking. One says, "Today at school I discovered there are an infinite number of ways to annoy a girl."

I found myself wanting to touch them as if I wanted to confirm they were real. I thought I could do so without her noticing. I was wrong! She turned around, glared at me, and scolded me for being so rude.

Part of me was crushed. I had no intention of pestering her. But the other part was satisfied with my scientific experiment. Yes, they were real. Those golden curls somehow defied gravity and spiraled into infinity, but they were real.

I like to think I live in a certain world. If I do A, B will naturally follow.

  • If I keep my head down and do my work, I will never get laid off
  • If I am a safe driver, I will never be in an accident
  • If I eat my veggies and exercise, I will be the first nearly immortal guy to compete with Methuselah.
  • If I am good and never do rude things like touch the golden curls of that third-grader on the bus, my life will go smoothly

The truth is, we have far less control than we would like to believe. Life is uncertain. There are infinite ways our lives could go today.

There are infinite ways our day can go wrong today. However, there are also infinite ways our day can go right today.

Instead of attempting to control everything, I will do my best to live a life of faith, hope, and love today. It may not make things any more certain, but it can allow me to trust that things will turn out all right no matter what curveball may come my way today.

Categories
Christmas creativity holiday motivation

Ugly Christmas Sweaters

Cartoon of two men. One has a red and green sweater. He says, "No, this isn't my Ugly Christmas Sweater. It's just my sweater!"

I love seeing kids grow up! Whether they are four-year-olds or fourth-graders, they follow a predictable path. in early elementary, most feel free to express themselves in art. They are most comfortable in their own skin and don’t mind sharing their opinions. It doesn’t matter whether it is socially acceptable or not. A four-year-old is going to tell it like it is in their eyes!

But a fourth-grader becomes very self-conscious. They don’t want to call attention to themselves. They want to fit in. They want to do the “cool” thing. A four-year-old may love to wear an ugly Christmas sweater. A fourth-grade will be mortified if he or any member of his family would do such an audacious thing that solicits attention.

Cartoon of two men. One has a red and green sweater. He says, "No, this isn't my Ugly Christmas Sweater. It's just my sweater!"
Featured in the December 2019 Church of God Newsletter

A four-year-old is bursting with creativity. Most fourth-graders will have nothing to do with it because true creativity makes you stand out. Yet, standing out is where the magic happens.

I hope you have a lot of fun this Christmas. Be the one who proudly wears the ugly Christmas sweater. Reach out to a friend or family member you haven’t heard from in a while. Don’t worry about whether someone thinks your sweater us gaudy or you’re too loud when singing your favorite Christmas carol. Just enjoy the time. You’ll find that it will allow most people around you to do the same.

Categories
motivation

What About the Next Generation?

This morning, I get to teach kids about treating everyone as  VIP. The bottom line is that we need to honor others by putting them first.

I am so thankful I’ve had the priviledge to teach kids over the decades. Yesterday, my wife and I saw one of our former kids in children’s ministry that is now an adult. It’s so gratifying to see kids you once taught now having kids and teaching them life lessons.

Never forget the next generation. It can be frustrating to teach kids when you wonder if they are listening. It can be easy to write off a hyper seven-year old. But you never know how much they are listening. You never know if the lesson they hear today, could be the one thing they remember twenty years later when they are going through a tough time.

Always invest in the next generation!