Categories
children's ministry cartoons motivation

Why We Need Others to Make Progress

If it wasn’t for my wife, I would probably be that crazy uncle in my cartoon. The shirt that Crazy Uncle Carl wears reminds me of a hot pink shirt I had in the eighties. And those striped, neon green pants? Well, I may not have had them, but I would have bought them in a heartbeat! The lampshade would have attracted my design “sensibilities” as well.

If my wife didn’t come along at just the right time, my wardrobe may have remained stuck in the eighties and the course of history would have changed forever.

When our relationship started getting serious, she began purging my wardrobe. The obnoxious colors, old t-shirts and corduroy pants had to go. On the outside, I wasn’t very happy. But I knew she had good fashion sense and she was saving me from a life of being that crazy, single uncle.

We all have blind spots. If you think hot pink and neon green go together, your blind spot may be quite large. We need each other to make progress. We also need others to help us see where we are weak and to show us how we can make progress.

Cartoon of a guy dressed in bright, gaudy clothes and wearing a lampshade. A boy says to his dad, "Does our family ministry include Crazy Uncle Carl?"
Previously published in “Kidzmatter” Magazine
Categories
children's ministry

Why I am in Children’s Ministry: A Video Interview

This is a bittersweet time for me. My church has a monthly video about volunteers who serve in children’s and youth ministry. They interviewed me about my role in children’s ministry. Here’s the video:

Within the video, I explain the strange story of The Yellow Kevins. Thanks to the wit of a kindergartner and fourth-grader, I got to draw a jaundice version of myself.

I also explain what has kept me going in children’s ministry for over twenty-five years. I have loved working with the kids. But I found the bigger reason in a passage found in Psalm 78.

It is a bittersweet moment because my wife will be exiting Salemkids, the children’s ministry, at our church, to pursue what God is calling her to next. It is an exciting, scary and meaningful journey all wrapped up. We’ll see what the next chapter holds.

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!

Categories
motivation

To Get Your Point Across, Get Silly!

The other day, I was leading a group of elementary kids in a lesson. That day’s game was to do a silly human trick. I demonstrated by doing a seal impression.

No, I wasn’t a Navy Seal. I honked like a sea lion while the elementary coordinator bounced a beach ball off my nose. Then the worship leader sprayed the kids with some water. You know how those seals splash around. How else are you going to show the monthly theme of courage? By doing something silly in front of a room full of kids, of course!

Seriously, too many times kids and adults get set in our ways. We think our current belief is the only option. during those times, it takes a creative presentation to make others think differently. Now I’m not suggesting you imitate a sea lion in the board room. Then again, maybe something absurd and silly like that is just the thing to get a group thinking in a different way.

Categories
church cartoons motivation

Church at a Premium

www.dropbox.com/s/2hyvgr8j6r1l2fl/Spear 4146.jpg

My grandfather was a minister. My dad made his career in insurance. You can imagine the discussions they would have about faith, the church and liability!

I’ve been at both the child side and the counselor side of church camps. I’ve seen boys perform feats of skill that defy gravity and all logic. It is a wonder the ambulance wasn’t on twenty-four standby at the camp!

So now that summer is waning, let us rejoice that the kids are back in school and insurance adjusters for churches and church camps can breathe a sigh of relief.

I drew this cartoon for the August, 2019 CHOGnews Newsletter.