Setting Down The Clipboard

A few years ago, a lady who attended our church would always engage me in conversation. She had a very sweet demeanor and would always ask about my family: my parents, siblings, nephews with special needs. She seemed to always remember what was going on in their lives.

She thought about children’s ministry often and would want to volunteer, but it never seemed to work out. She brought in donations here and there, and one particular Sunday brought me three cans of infant formula. I passed them on as I could, but one remaining can sat in my office with a handwritten note from her on top.

Then one day I got an e-mail saying she had a stroke. Within a week she passed away. For a long time I couldn’t bring myself to throw away the expired can of formula.

It seemed like every time this woman wanted to engage me in conversation, it was—in my mind—the worst possible time. I had things to do; I had kids to take care of; I had classrooms to get ready. And for some reason, I always had this thought in the back of my head when talking to her: I have things to do. I could be doing something else, something more important.

I don’t actually use a clipboard on a regular basis. I’m not sure if you do, but whether it is a clipboard, a to-do list, or a smartphone with calendar reminders, some sort of agenda gets us leaders through each day. Being a task-oriented person, you will rarely find “casually talking with a church member” written on my to-do list.

This is the reality for many of us task-oriented leaders. Having a to-do list to tackle can, at times, seem more important than listening to someone. Accomplishing our agenda for the day can trump investing in another’s life. We struggle with sticking to our schedules and our time tables and forget about connecting with the very people we are called to serve.

As Jesus and his disciples were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed him. Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was going by, they shouted, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!”

The crowd rebuked them and told them to be quiet, but they shouted all the louder, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!”

Jesus stopped and called them. “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.

“Lord,” they answered, “we want our sight.”

Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight and followed him (Matthew 20:29–34, emphasis mine).

Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.

When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly (Luke 19:1–6, emphasis mine).

This is my prayer for myself and for each one of us. That we, like Jesus, would stop. That we would look up from our clipboards, to-do lists, and phones to really see others as Christ sees them.

That can of expired formula sat in my office for many months. It served as a gentle, daily reminder for me to see others as Jesus sees them: deeply loved, deeply valued, and deeply worthy of being seen.

Breaking Up With Your Curriculum: When It's Time to Call It Quits

Our church began to pray and dream about what God may have for us regarding the future of children’s ministry. We were feeling tension in a few areas, and it seemed as though evaluating our curriculum was a good place to start. As we compared our current curriculum with three recommended options, it was evident that a change was on the horizon. When weighing the contributing factors, three emerged as pivotal to our decision to make a change:

It’s Not You, It’s Me 
This could mean a number of things. In our case, there were three senior pastor transitions (including an interim), an exodus of young families from the church, and an influx of new families with new needs coming into the church—all within a three-year period! Our children’s ministry dropped from about 60 kids to around 35. The size, scope, vision, and direction of our senior leadership changed. We were looking for something different. We needed a curriculum that introduced the possibility of multi-generational discipleship. It wasn’t anything our previous curriculum did wrong, it was simply that our needs as a church had changed.

Action step: Assess the current needs of your church. Has anything changed that would necessitate a change in curriculum?

My Friends and Family Don’t Approve 
Curriculum is a resource for teachers and parents. If it no longer serves their needs or assists them in their ministries, it’s time to “put it out to pasture.” Our teachers were sorting through 50 pages of material to teach from 4 pages. The digital curriculum was taking three times as long for our volunteers to download and print; and a printed curriculum wasn’t an option. The take-home pages were frustrating our parents each week. They practically had to bring another bag to carry home their child’s classwork!

Action step: Take the time to listen to your teachers and parents. Is the curriculum still serving its intended purpose as a useful, time saving tool?

The God Card 
As children’s leaders, our personal relationship with Christ is key to our ability to lead. By keeping our eyes focused on Him, our ears attuned to His voice, and our hearts open to His instruction, we place ourselves in a posture to move as He leads. In our case, I sensed God calling us to something more. I felt a deep desire for kids to know His story. I wanted them to see evidence of Jesus throughout the pages of the Bible and to be able to identify not only people who God used to write His story but also how they fit into Christ’s redemptive work. I yearned for our young families to grow in their knowledge of God’s big story and, as a family, become part of His plan and help complete the Great Commission. This was the call God placed on my heart, and our current curriculum wasn’t the best fit for accomplishing it.

Action step: Prayerfully ask yourself—and the Father—if you, as a leader, are keeping your eyes focused on Christ, your ears attuned to His voice, and your heart open to His guidance for you and your church family.


As we began evaluating the new curriculums offered, one in particular stood out as a good fit for our church. Not only did it help resolve the tension we were feeling as leaders, but it also aligned well with the mission, beliefs, and purpose of cmalliancekids. While it was hard to say goodbye to our old curriculum—which had served us well in years past—we as teachers, parents, and church leaders shared a fresh excitement about where God was taking us and how this new curriculum could help get us there. It took time and intentionality to make the shift, but we are moving forward and following God’s leading into this new partnership!

Kingdom Builders

The first Sunday of the New Year I was excited to connect with kids and parents who had been out of town over the holidays. As I stood in the church hallway that morning, a mom approached me.

“I forgot to tell you with all the craziness of the holidays that a couple weeks ago Jeremiah asked Jesus into his heart,” the mom said to me.

“He did? Awesome!” I replied.

 “Actually, it was very much at the urging of his big sister here,” she said, as her eight-year-old daughter Allyson looked up at me. “Yes, she was very concerned about him going to ‘the hell’ as she calls it.”

“Well, it’s true,” Allyson chimed in. “What if he died in a fire or something?”

The mom went on to explain to me that over a couple weeks her children had many lengthy conversations in which Allyson explained to Jeremiah the gospel.

 

Our Greatest Need

Each Sunday in December, we at Perrysburg (Ohio) Alliance Church studied compassion in our elementary class. We learned that God fulfilled our greatest need by sending His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins. We then challenged one another to share this good news with others.

Allyson did exactly that by sharing the salvation message with her younger brother. She shared God’s desire that none would perish but all would come to know Him (John 3:16).

After making Jesus Lord of his life, Jeremiah wanted to share the good news too. As he attended karate class that day, he told his karate instructor he had asked Jesus into his heart. Her response? “Oh. Okay.”

“Mom, do you think she has Jesus in her heart?” Jeremiah asked as they left class.

His mom sweetly replied, “Well, Jer, based on her response, I would say probably not.”

“I should tell her about Jesus,” Jeremiah stated.

God is able and willing to use His children to reach the world. May the Alliance family never forget it, and may we walk in that truth today and every day as we serve His little ones.