It's all about how you teach it!

In Clubhouse Live! (formerly elementary Kid's Church) we have had our fair share of struggles to get kids to pay attention.  It's that way everywhere, but it has been a larger than normal task for me as I have come to this church with new kids.  We're still learning about each other, and through various methods, I have been able to teach respect for God's Word, Worship, and Prayer.  Again, still getting there, but it's a marathon, not a sprint.

One way that most kids, (and especially my kids at AFA) love to hear the Bible Story told is through interactive skits.  Yesterday we used some kids as part of our story to tell about baby Moses.  The Bottom Line for the day was "Use Your Imagination to Think BIG!" The idea was that Moses' Mom, and his big sis Miriam thought BIG to come up with a solution to the problem of Pharaoh's decree that all baby boys would be killed.

Enter 5 student volunteers, and one willing Intern, and we had a great object lesson:

Somewhere under our intern, Cameron, is a laundry basket he was sitting "in."  :D  The green on his head are "reeds by the water" that our volunteer, Corbin, decided to put on Moses' head, rather than wave them by the water (whatever works!).

Last week, I taught a little differently.  I had some slides that we never used because we had technical difficulties all brought on by the fact that it was our first day in a new room with old equipment.  So what the kids ended up seeing was Pastor Aimee talking with no visuals, trying to make the Creation story sound really interesting.  What did I get?  A bunch of wiggly kids trying their best to focus, but not quite holding it together.

But yesterday, I had props, I used volunteers, and lots of humor and we ended up with an awesome story that drove home the bottom line beautifully.

It truly is a no-brainer, but a really good reminder to me that it's all about how you teach it!

Small World to The Clubhouse Remodel

Here are a few pictures of what we have done in Small World, which is now called "The Clubhouse." In addition to the pics here, we also moved our nursery into the kid's building, and painted our 4's & 5's room.  More pictures to come later, but here is a look at our Clubhouse Live! room, and our new Lobby/Check In area.

Lobby before (with the ceiling tiles already removed for painting)....

Lobby after (at our Open House)...

Meeting room, upstairs Small World, mostly used for adults (taped & ready for painting)...

At our Open House, our new Clubhouse Live! room....

It's difficult to capture the change on my phone's camera, because you can't feel the excitement, or see the looks on kids faces when they realize we have created a place just for them. Very soon in our morning services, we will show a video of the transformation from beginning to end.

The Latest

I can't believe it's been almost 3 months since I blogged.  However, I will not write a whole paragraph about what has stopped me.  I'm just going to give updates!

I would have to say that Jason and I, and our family are in the busiest season of our lives so far.  There are amazing things happening at our church, and at home 4 kids - one being an infant; well, it just keeps life interesting to say the least!

We have had lots of great things happening in our Children's Ministries at AFA.  Early in September we launched (or re-launched) Junior Bible Quiz.  I had a huge response from parents and kids that blew my socks off.  I waffled back and forth at starting it or not, knowing I did not have the time to add something.  BUT, God kept whispering to my spirit that His Word was more important than my agenda.  Last Saturday I was able to take some of those kids up to Portland to experience their first Tournament, and now they are stoked about the rest of the season!

On Sept. 25th we started Kid's Choir, and have begun practicing for our Christmas Musical in December.  I am so blessed to have leaders and an army of Choir Moms that are helping out.  It's going to be a great musical, and a fun way to teach our kids about ministry.

THE biggest change we have made in the recent days/weeks is the Grand Opening of "The Clubhouse" (formerly Small World).  The Clubhouse is our children's building where now for the first time EVER you can drop all of your kids, birth through 5th grade off on Sunday mornings in ONE place.  We have painted, re-carpeted, installed new flooring, moved counters, added counters, added decor, created new logos, put in a new security system, fired up the check in system, and a few minor things as well.  I am still recovering from the excitement of the weekend, and looking forward to settling in to our new home in the Clubhouse where Clubhouse Live!, Clubhouse Jr, and Baby Clubhouse will meet every Sunday.

I am seeing God do amazing things.  At the heart of it all, I believe God is calling all of our leadership to deepen our walk with Him, so that as we disciple our kids we do it with our lives, just not with our words.

I am looking forward to what lies ahead with great expectancy!

More of the Bible

God placed something heavy upon my heart on Sunday. It was a busier day than normal for me; I was doing an announcement in both of our morning Adult Services, had extra things to set up Sunday morning for Kid's Church, and had to do some games for the families at our afternoon church picnic. I was also going to teach Sunday School to the 5th graders too, until Jason took that off my plate. But in the midst of all that running around, God spoke something very specific to me during Worship in our 2nd service. Our kids need to be in the Word. Now, that's obvious I know, but guess what? Our kids are not reading their Bibles. They are not bringing them to church. So I quickly jotted down 5 things:

• I need to hold my Bible every time I speak to the kids in Kid's Church so they know that the Words I am saying come straight out of God's Word.
• I am going to give kids incentives for bringing their Bibles to church with them. Yes, for awhile they will bring it to get candy, but soon they will bring it because it's habit, and they want to.
• I need to get some Bibles for kids who don't have any.
• We are going to do "Sword Drills" (old school, I know) in Kid's Church to help kids learn how to find Scripture references in the Bible.
• I am going to put together a School Year Bible Reading Plan so that kids will establish a daily habit of reading. Yes, I will give prizes, but again - it will develop a good, lifelong habit.

The Word of God needs to be central in everything we do in Children's Ministry, and I'm committed to that, and encouraging kids to make it a lifelong habit - something that becomes second nature to them; something they cannot live without.

Teaching our Kids about Temptation

This weekend, Jason and I finally got around to watching Chronicles of Narnia, Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Obviously the themes in the Chronicles books and movies go way beyond entertainment; but I thought that the theme in this last movie was so obvious and compelling. Throughout the movie, there is a green mist, or fog that represents temptation for the characters to do something - seek beauty, fame, fortune...things that we all can relate to. It has caused me to think the last couple of days since I watched it - How does that apply to me, and how can I help my kids apply this?

My thought was, how often we discipline our kids for things that they have done as a result of a poor decision, or disobedience. This led to my next thought: If we took a little bit more time to teach our kids about what temptation actually looked like - would they be able to make better decisions, and turn from that kind of behavior? We all know our pal Jiminy Cricket, and have taught our kids about how we all have a conscience, but do we really teach them that they WILL be tempted, and how we can turn from that temptation? It could be anything - temptation to lie, steal, outright disobey....we often punish the behavior without going back to the root where it started - with temptation.

I know I am more motivated to talk these things out with my kids, and remind them that there is always that little window of opportunity to walk away from temptation and make the right choice.

Pastor Frank's message yesterday put an exclamation point on all of these thoughts - check it out at www.albanyfirstassembly.org

This Sunday in Kid's Church

We've been learning about Joshua in Kid's Church for the past several weeks, and this Sunday we'll be tackling the story of Jericho. As I have been reading through the story in Joshua 6, I was reminded that too often we settle with just telling the kids the story. I'm sure most of our kids can regurgitate the story of Jericho. I'm also sure that the story was meant for so much more than "Joshua fought the battle of Jericho, Jericho, Jericho....Joshua fought the battle of Jericho, and the walls came tumbling down..." There is so much more to this story!

This week in Kid's Church, I'll be telling the kids about Jericho, but then going a bit deeper so that they can learn and understand WHY God told us this story in His Word. A couple of those truths are...*"I can trust God's instructions!" and "Even when it doesn't make sense, I can trust God completely."

I pray that Sunday our Kid's walk away with a new perspective on this commonly taught story. We will probably make a lot of noise in the process!

*I use an awesome curriculum, High Voltage - www.highvoltage-kids.com

For the Mamas

Sometimes when life is busy, you have to be really intentional about slowing it down. The last 3 months are so have probably been some of the most stressful I have experienced. I'm not one to use the word "stress" flippantly, because I am able to handle quite a bit in life without getting "stressed out." One thing I have discovered lately though, is working full time with an infant opens me up to empathize with a whole new crop of people; namely, working moms. Of course I have been a full time working mom for a couple of years, but throwing a newborn into the mix is a whole new ball of wax!

I am very passionate about my "job." I put the work job in quotation marks because I still can hardly believe I get paid to do what I have aspired to do all my life; and that is be in full time ministry! However, lately, I can easily skip over the little things in life because I can easily measure success by if the kids are fed, bathed, clothed...if my to-do list at church is checked off, if the bill are paid, and if I can do all of this having slept at least 5 hours.

Last night I made the decision to not put Norah in the nursery. After a busy day of ministry, I decided to hold her during Worship. After Worship I took her out to feed her, then instead of checking her into the Nursery, intentionally held her in the foyer while Pastor Frank wrapped up his sermon. While I sat on the couch out there, I talked to Norah and got some big smiles. She gave me a couple of little coos, as if she was engaging me in conversation. That little bit of alone time with her was something I stopped and consciously chose to do, and am so glad I did: It refreshed my mama's heart.

I know that most of you Mom's, if you work, have much different jobs than I do. Or maybe you stay at home with your kids. Either way, you are busy. Remember to let yourself stop and catch your breath, and enjoy the things around you. Even if the thing you stop to enjoy is the very thing that keeps you super busy!

New

I'm at a new church, with new kids, new ministries, and new parents. I have been thinking about what direction I want this blog to go in...for now, I'm just going to use it to talk about what is going on at Albany First, and of course throw in an experience from my family here and there. So, you ask, how is that different? It's not. Not at all actually. This is just my commitment to be a better blogger, or at least to actually blog. What a concept, huh?

If you are an Albany First parent, or just attend here and like to follow what's going on, I'll be talking a lot about what I feel God is telling me about where we are going to take our kids over the next months and years. I am so excited for what he is going to do in and through our kids!

And to my lovely family (grandma, aunts, cousins, etc) who follow just because you love me...I'll try to keep it interesting!

Season of change

The last couple of months have been a whirlwind. I don't think I really appreciated two months ago the magnitude of the journey we were about to embark on. Online I found a list of life's most stressful events, and you score yourself to find what your stress level is. Not surprisingly, the addition of Norah Grace, two moves, and new jobs for myself and Jason puts us in the Moderate to High Stress Level category.

But...this is life. All of these things that have taken place have been fantastic things. But fantastic things don't always come easy. Take, for instance, the birth of a baby. Such an amazing gift, but wow, sure doesn't come easy for us ladies. Then there is moving. Eek. Packing, moving, unpacking...having a newborn made that process doubly hard. But now we have a great house that our whole family fits nicely into, and the kids love. Lastly, new jobs. Again like giving birth, the end result is amazing, but you have to step across a threshold of insecurities. For me, those insecurities lie in the fact that I can be a little introverted. Meeting and getting to know new staff and a church full of new faces can be tough. But just a few short weeks later, I feel incredibly welcome, and very much a part of this new staff and church family.

I'm not sure why exactly God chose this timing to move us like He did. It sure would've been easier a few months ago, or maybe a few months from now. It doesn't make a lot of sense to me, but then again, that's what I love about God. He takes the situations that we deem impossible, and not only makes them possible, but makes them seem like just another normal day in the life of the Peter's.

On a side note...thank you for those of you who prayed for Norah the last 3 weeks. She had some trouble gaining weight in the beginning, but has overcome that and is starting to look nice and chubby.

Change

Change is hard. It tests us, it tests people around us. It stretches us. I'm not really talking about little changes...more like life altering, pray through it, sweat over it change.

Jason and I are embarking on such change. 2 big things are changing in our lives in the coming weeks. If you weren't at Bethel Church yesterday, you missed an announcement. Jason and I are following what we truly, without a doubt believe to be God's Will for us and our family: we are both taking positions at Albany First Assembly of God, in Albany OR. I will be on staff as Children's Pastor, and Jason will be doing a handful of things which include, some music, family ministry and senior ministry. The other big change, causes the first change to be even more overwhelming...I am due to have our 4th baby here in the next couple of weeks. Because of this, my last day in the office at Bethel will be March 31st...making this Sunday, March 27th my last Sunday.

Whew. Talk about a whirlwind. I wish I could go into all of the details of how we got from point A, just 4 short weeks ago, to point B; preparing for a move. What I will say is how amazing it is when you pray and God clearly, without a doubt answers you, and after that answer comes obedience and after that obedience, comes amazing peace.

Like any other pregnant lady about to deliver, I have had sleepless nights for the last couple weeks or so. This last week as plans have solidified, and reality has dawned on me, I have spent the wee hours of the morning as I toss and turn thinking, planning, stressing, worrying...how will I get everything done? How is everyone going to react to this news? Can I care for a newborn and pack up a house? How are Madelyn, Elyse and JJ going to handle it? I have been pondering all of these things, and I have to say a wall of peace hit like a wave yesterday once the word was out; once people hugged and loved on us and said they knew we were doing the right thing; once I remembered that God had been in this from the start. I took a deep breath (which is also hard right now with nearly 7 lbs of baby competing for my lung capacity), thanked Jesus again for walking through the water with me, and trusted him that big and little details will slowly but surely fall into place.

If you have kiddos in KidzBlast, I want you to know I had a great talk with your kids yesterday. Towards the end of the morning we all sat on the floor, and I explained to them how God called me to ministry when I was 11, and how he is asking me now to follow Him. I let them ask questions, and boy, did they have some doozies. We made it through it, and even though my heart is very heavy leaving these amazing kids, I know that they get it. They know God, and just as I have been trusting Him these last few weeks, they trust Him even now.

So there you have it. Big changes for the Peters. Good changes...God changes.

Big Weekend Coming Up

Starting Friday night, March 4th we are kicking off a huge weekend at Bethel Church in our Children's Ministries. I am a part of a local Children's Ministry Network here in the Rogue Valley that meets every month for lunch, prayer, encouragement and training. For the last several months, we as a group have been planning a conference to encourage and equip all of the awesome people who minister to kids in the area and beyond. For this conference we are bringing in Karl Bastian, the "Kidologist." Karl founded Kidology.org, a website that resources children's workers, and has tons of experience with kids. This conference will be at Bethel and along with Karl's main sessions we have several other great workshops to choose from.

But before we get to the conference....Friday night the 4th we are hosting a Family Experience with Karl, where the whole family can come for some great stories, magic and fun. It is going to be a great night and is FREE! (7pm in the Worship Center)

Then on Sunday Karl will be our special guest in KidzBlast. We're having a huge party after service, that will include a climbing wall, jump house, cotton candy, wii tournament, and lots of other great stuff. If the kids bring friends and we have at least 100 kids there, I'll get a pie in the face.

Weekends like this don't come along very often so I encourage you to get everything you can out of what we have planned!

Growing as a Parent

Jason and I have been teaching a Parenting Class on Wednesday nights. It's been a great class, with thought provoking teaching by Dr. Kevin Lehman, and really practical discussion among the entire group. Tonight is week four, and I was just thinking this morning about what I have personally learned and applied from this class.

I try often to be reading some sort of parenting book or be looking for a resource that will not only be helpful to me as I parent my own kids, but to you as well as you parent yours. So my question to you today is, what are you doing to grow as a parent? What intentional steps are you taking to not only raise your kids well, but to raise fully devoted followers of Christ?

If you need a resource suggestion, let me know...I have a lot of them!

The Read & Share Bible

Recently, Thomas Nelson publishers sent me a Bible to review - and one to give away. At the end of this post I will tell you how you can enter to the extra copy, so stay with me!

I love Bibles that get younger kids excited about reading God's Word. Admittedly, JJ (our three year old) carries around a Bible that was sort of "cast off" by one of the girls when they got a new Bible last Christmas. It is big, bulky, and nothing that I would sit and read to a three year old for any extended period of time. The Read and Share Bible is something totally different though, because it is written for little ones. It takes 200 of the best loved Bible stories, and the author, Gwen Ellis has retold these stories in a way that will captivate young hearts and minds.

It groups these stories in categories such as "Abraham's Family," "David," "Jonah," and "Jesus' Life." There are 37 of these groupings, covering the entire Bible, highlighting stories that are easy for little ones to understand and remember.

This Bible is colorfully illustrated, helping preschoolers make that connection has they hear the story and see the pictures unfold.

As a Children's Pastor, it is so important to me that children understand the importance of God's Word in their daily lives. It is never too early to introduce these stories to your kids, and tools like the Read and Share Bible are a perfect way to get your youngest Christ Followers in the Bible daily.

If you would like more information on the Read and Share Bible, go to here. You will find an excerpt of this Bible on the Read and Share tab.

Okay, so whether you have a little one in your life you can share this Bible with, or you just like to win free stuff...here is how you can win a free copy of the Read and Share Bible. Leave a comment on this post and tell me what your favorite Bible Story is. If you are reading this on Facebook go here to leave a comment. You can also enter yourself by Tweeting about this post. If you don't have a twitter account, maybe today is the day to start one! You can leave as many comments as you would like as long as you are telling me about a different Bible Story you love each time, and Tweet once a day. On Friday (January 21st) at Noon, I will put these names into a "virtual" hat and pick a winner. Go for it!

A New Year, A New Bible Reading Plan

I am so pleased by how well our kids and families responded to our Bible Reading Plan for the year 2010. Last year at this time, we introduced a plan that would have every participant reading through the entire New Testament in a year. Dozens started, many stayed on track, and some finished.

The reality of parenting kids, teaching kids, and even pastoring kids is that they need incentives to get things done. That's why we give monetary allowances, trips to Dairy Queen, and use sticker charts. We know as adults that it's a million times easier to get our kids to follow through if we give them something to strive for.

I launched the plan by telling the kids that they could bring back their plans signed by Mom or Dad every other month for a prize. This ranged from things like a Subway Kids Pack, to a bag of fireworks near the 4th of July. Those prizes were just the beginning though, because this Sunday, January 9th I will be taking several kids to lunch in a limo.

To get kids to complete a goal is always satisfying, and I'm thankful for the parents who helped their children follow through. The most valuable thing here, however is the fact that all of these kids, whether they read part or all of the New Testament, spent time in the Word of God.

For the year 2011, we are taking a different approach. We are using a different plan, that will have kids reading all over the Bible. The amount they read will depend on their age, and if Mom and Dad are following the Life Journal reading plan available at Bethel (Wayne Cordeiro) Parents and Kids will be reading in sync with one another. Yes, there will be prizes, and yes, I will continue to remind kids of that fact. But more than that, I am looking forward to getting even more kids excited about reading the Word of God everyday.