It's just about here! This week I'll be attending the Willow Creek Association's Children's Ministry conference. I'm thankful for the opportunity to participate in the breakout sessions again this year. I'll be co-leading 3 sessions... 1) Multi-Site Issues for Children's Ministry (with Tony Escobar) 2) Leading Change (with David Weil and Angela Burke) 3) Aligning Ministries through the Big Idea (with Shawn Williams). I hope to get the chance to meet some of you there!
I've been reading and journaling through Ephesians and came across these verses a couple days ago...
"By God's grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News. Though I am the least deserving of all God's people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ. I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creater of all things, had kept secret from the beginning." Eph 3:7-9
I was struck by Paul's gratitude. He felt it an absolute privilege to be given the responsiblity of ministry (and keep in mind he was in jail as he wrote). I can hear Paul saying, "Can you believe I get to do this?!? How lucky am I!?!"
It makes me think about how often those of us in vocational ministry lose sight of the joy of our calling. I know we all go through hard times at work (although I've never ran into a fellow minister who had done jail time for helping people find their way back to God). But if we feel "burdened" or "put out" by our responsibilities then perhaps we've allowed joy to be stolen from us. Maybe we've forgotten what a privilege this is.
But I don't think this is just a word for vocational ministers. I have a friend who serves during all 4 services at our church. When he first started doing this 6 months ago I thought he was a bit crazy. After all, shouldn't he be concerned with "burning out?" Now of course we all need to have boundaries and times of rest in our lives. I know too well the dangers of taking on too much. But when I asked this friend the other night if he wanted to go down to serving just one Saturday night service instead of two he said, "Are you trying to take this away from me? I love being here. God has done so much for me and I just want to serve him as much as I can."
He is someone who gets the privilege of serving.
I love that after 13 years of vocational ministry I still feel deeply grateful that I get to serve the church for a living. If I ever feel this joy slipping, I take time to make a "gratitude" list in my journal. I write out all the things I'm thankful for...all the opportunities God is giving me that I love...all the reasons why I love doing what I'm doing. It is a privilege to serve.
Just read a post titled "Don't Be Afraid of Reproducing" on Dave Ferguson's blog (Dave is our Lead Pastor here at Community). He talks about how God blesses us when we reproduce and send people out to accomplish his mission. I've been thinking about this a lot the past few weeks. I have experienced God's grace so much in this recent launch.
See 6 months ago the Associate Kids' City Director at the campus I lead made the decision to become the Director at the new Plainfield Campus we launched this past weekend. I totally supported Cathy in this decision seeing it as the best next leadership step for her and also the best choice for Plainfield. But I have to admit, it also scared me to death. See Cathy had been a key leader at our Naperville-Yellow Box campus for years. She had 8 years of history at this campus and was far more connected with people there than I am (I've only been at this site for a year). Cathy carried the bulk of the work load of the campus even though I was the Director as I also juggled my responsibilities overseeing the ministry across all 8 campuses and the development of our curriculum products. How could I lose Cathy?
But I knew I wasn't losing Cathy. I was sending Cathy. Sending her to a new place to take the Jesus mission there. And I admit I felt a certain amount of satisfaction feeling like sending Cathy was a great statement for our reproducing church. No one is sacred. Nothing is more important than reproducing.
Still, I knew I was in trouble.
Yet God showed up as only God can. One day in early January as I was standing near our check-in table I noticed someone I'd never considered before. She was a proven leader in other areas of the church. She'd been with the church since it's beginning. And the thought popped in my head..."Maybe it is Sue?" That thought moved quickly out of my mouth and several conversations and weeks later Sue said "yes" and joined our Kids' City team at Naperville. She started on Cathy's last day at the campus. And I have no doubt she's going to be phenomenal in this role.
I haven't even mentioned this other piece... We sent somewhere around 20 people from the Naperville-Yellow Box Campus to serve in Kids' City at Plainfield. We were proactive about encouraging people to go. We wanted them to go. And how did God show up in this? In late January we had a recruiting weekend and as a result at least 25 people have joined our team. When Plainfield launched this past weekend, we had already replaced every contributor that we'd sent. God is faithful.
Now I'm not saying there won't be bumps in the road or challenges to overcome. But I know that God desires his church to expand and reach those who are far from him. If you are wrestling with your church's decision to go multi-site... Wondering how you will make it... Feeling yourself wanting to hoard your volunteers... Far more consumed by the challenges than the opportunities... Remember that God is faithful. Abandon your fears to him. Release with a joyful heart. And then get ready for him to show up in the chaos.
One of my dreams for Kids' City is that we will drive the reproduction of our church instead of reacting to it. I want to have so many ready leaders that we are chomping at the bit to start another site. Multi-site really is fun. Don't be afraid.
Another exciting day here at Community Christian Church! Today we launched our 9th Campus in Plainfield and saw 642 people come through the doors. I was so proud of the amazing staff and volunteer team that launched this campus. They were so well organized and ready to receive all the new families that poured through the doors. As we sang "You are Good" to close the second adult service, I was overwhelmed by what God is doing in Plainfield. Last week there wasn't a church in JFK Middle School. Today 642 people were celebrating God in this building...and several hundred of those are people who were not attending church anywhere the weekend before. I love knowing hundreds of people are going to find their way back to God because this new church opened today.
Here are some pictures from Kids' City at Plainfield. We stole the idea from one of our NewThing Affiliate Churches, 242 Community in Brighton, Michigan, to transform a cafeteria into this fun white environment for our infants through kindergarteners. The set up was great (and is saving us lots of money in room rentals!).
Great job, Cathy Cuny! Cathy (pictured left) is the Kids' City Campus Director at this new campus. Years ago Cathy began serving in Kids' City at the Welcome Table. Eventually she became a Small Group Leader, then a Coach. 3 years ago she joined the staff in a 5-hour-a-week Service Coordinator role. 2 years ago she became the Associate Campus Director at our Naperville-Yellow Box location. And today she launched a new campus! Next to seeing those new families pour through the door, the greatest joy for me was watching Cathy take this next step in her leadership journey. I love watching people develop into greater levels of leadership influence and responsibility!
Congratulations to everyone on the Plainfield team!
I started reading Deadly Viper, the newest book by Mike Foster and Jud Wilhite. Already I can tell it is going to be good. It's the type of book that every church leader needs to read from time to time to scare you silly into making sure your character doesn't lapse. Plus it has great artwork that makes it fun to read. I loved this quote they referenced in chapter 1:
"True friends stab you in the front." --Oscar Wilde
The more influence I gain in ministry, the more I value those people in my life who will tell it to me straight. Well, not the "I complain about everything" kind of people. Definitely not the e-mail stabbers. But the "I love you so much I'm going to stand here right in front of you and tell you the truth because I want what's best for you" kind of friend. Don't get me wrong, I may not enjoy it in the moment, but I feel its value. I have a few friends in my life who make me feel cherished but also are not afraid to say the hard word. Of course their ability to stab me relies on my willingness to open myself up to the wound. To put myself in a vulnerable position. I'm not always good at this. But when I do I know the result is something productive and maturing. Even if there is a little blood.
I've been pondering this little book by Seth Godin lately. It's called The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick). Seth points out that sometimes we quit the right things too quickly. And on the flip side sometimes we don't quit the wrong things fast enough. In an age where we all refer to ourselves as "too busy" and feel we have "too much" on our plates and that our resources are "too limited," I think it is worth asking the questions posed in this book. Are we making the right decisions in "the Dip"...sticking with the things we can be best in the world at and quitting the things that are "Cul-de-Sacs?" Here are some of the quotes I'm reflecting on:
When Jack Welch remade GE, the most fabled decision he made was this: If we can't be #1 or #2 in an industry, we must get out. Why sell a billion-dollar division that's making a profit quite happily while ranking #4 in market share? Easy. Because it distracts management attention. It sucks resources and capital and focus and energy. And most of all, it teaches people in the organization that it's okay not to be the best in the world. Jack quit the dead ends. By doing so, he freed resources to get his other businesses through the Dip.
What does your community need your kids' ministry to be "best in the world" at? What do you need to quit in order to focus more energy, focus, and resources in that area?
A woodpecker can tap twenty times on a thousand trees and get nowhere, but stay busy. Or he can tap twenty thousand times on one tree and get dinner.
Is your busyness focused or scattered?
The Dip is actually your greates ally because it makes the project worthwhile...but wait, that's not enough. Not only do you need to find a Dip that you can conquer but you also need to quit all the Cul-de-Sacs that you're currently idling your way through. You must quit the projects and investments and endeavors that don't offer you the same opportunity. It's difficult, but it's vitally important.
If you could only do one thing in your kids' ministry...one program, one initiative, one project...what would you do?
If quitting is going to be a strategic decision that enables you to make smart choices in the marketplace, then you should outline your quitting strategy before the discomfort sets in. Just as a smart venture capitalist pressures the board of directors to have a plan in case they run out of money, every individual and every organization that wants to use quitting as a competative tool ought to have a plan about when it's time to quit.
Do you have a quitting strategy? When you try a new project or program, do you have a set of criteria that will help you determine whether you need to push through the Dip or quit?
You and your organization have the power to change everything...How dare you squander that resource by spreading it too thin. How dare you settle for mediocre just because you're busy coping with too many things on your agenda, racing against the clock to get it all done. The lesson is simple: If you've got as much as you've got, use it. Use it to become the best in the world, to change the game, to set the agenda for everyone else. You can only do that by marshaling all of your resources to get through the biggest possible Dip. In order to get through that Dip, you'll need to quit everything else. If it's not going to put a dent in the world, quit. Right now. Quit and use that void to find the energy to assault the Dip that matters. Go ahead, make something happen. We're waiting!
I get a lot of requests for our role descriptions so I finally took the time to upload them on the site. To the right under "KC Role Descriptions" you will find a role description for every staff and volunteer role in Kids' City (except mine, I guess!). I must really love you guys because this was tedious Typepad work! :) Enjoy!
I'm pretty passionate about teaching our kids to be wise financial stewards. We celebrate "giving back to God" every week as a part of our large group experience. See I think money is probably the biggest cultural obstacle to discipleship for American Christians. Sure there are lots of other things different ones of us struggle with, but money tends to be something all of us struggle with on some level. What if we can teach kids to be wise stewards before they even have a significant financial income? Could that set a pattern of generosity in their lives? Could it help them avoid the pitfalls of this discipleship struggle?
Like I said, I'm pretty passionate about teaching our kids to be wise financial stewards. That's why stories like this one from Jen Ripsch, our Yorkville Kids' City Campus Director, make me smile:
Had a big moment of generosity this past Sunday during the giving back to God moment in Kids' City that I thought I'd share...The story actually begins on Saturday at my son's birthday party that we had at Chuck E. Cheese. One of the girls, who is 9, was standing in front of the token machine with money in her hand, just staring at the machine. She was there for a minute or so when I went up to her to ask her what was the matter, also telling her that I had tokens for her and the other kids. She said she was trying to decide if cashing in the money for tokens was a good idea or if the money could be put to use better somewhere else. At that point I thought she was thinking about buying herself something with her money, not for what came next. I asked her where she got the money from and she said from doing chores around the house and from Christmas. She forgot her purse there when they left and made her parents call me to ask me to pick it up and bring it to her on Sunday.On Sunday during the giving back to God time, she stood up and went to give a $10 for the offering, saying she wanted it to be split in half over two projects [Note: We usually have our Kids' City offering go to tangible "projects" to help the kids understand how their giving is making a difference]. As she stood over the offering box, she said that that wasn't enough, so she took out a $20, asking if anyone had change so that there would be two $10's. She inspired the KC Tech and the Communicator to also give money to the cause since she inspired them, as well as her father, who is the leader in that room (he was the KC leader on the video at the end of service who "mistakenly" signed up for KC). I can only imagine how proud he much feel about his daughter's generosity. They ended up gathering $50 between the three of them for our offering this week. She feels really good about her decision to give the money to kids who are less fortunate. That's generosity at its best!
This may be my favorite recruiting video showing a leader's testimony that we've ever made...
I'm a bit of a history buff. Not the kind of person that could answer a lot of questions on Jeopardy, but the kind that likes to read or watch programs about historical things and visit historical places. I just finished a photographic book on Hull House, the famous settlement house started in the late 1800s here in Chicago (remember your high school history class?). Hull House residents sought to address the needs of the urban poor by living among them and offering services and opportunities that could transform the neighborhood. It was started by two upper middle-class women, Jane Addams and Ellen Gates Starr although it is clear that Addams quickly became the leader of the settlement. At its height, Hull House's complex filled up an entire city block on the West side of Chicago. Now all that remains are two buildings...the original residence that Addams and Starr occupied and the staff dining hall.
I went there on Sunday. There is a small museum housed in these two buildings and I thought it would be interesting to go see it.
Just in case you are wondering if I forgot the topic of this blog, let me tell you why I'm bringing all this up. Hull House became quite a large endeavor in its heyday. But one thing struck me as I read about its historical path. When Jane Addams died in 1935, the settlement was thrown into a leadership crisis. Leadership bounced between a couple of people but from the accounts I read it sounds like no one really knew how to head into the future after Addams was gone.
Now I am certainly not criticizing a historical figure who made an incredible impact on both the national and international stage, but it did strike me as odd that there was no succession plan. No one was prepared with a clear understanding of what was to come next. Addams was 75 years old when she died. And I think she died of cancer so my guess is there was some length to her illness. Had no one thought to make a plan?
Every once in a while I wonder what would happen if I were hit by a bus. What would happen to Kids' City? Who have I prepared to step up and take the reins? I think multi-site has both advantages and disadvantages for the senior leader in creating succession plans.
Advantage: Multi-site forces you to learn how to create a leadership development culture. Every time you start a site, there is an entire new leadership vacuum that needs to be filled. We must always be about the business of raising up new leaders to send out to these new campuses or churches because we can't be everywhere at once. Hopefully in this process of raising up and sending out, we are developing someone who could step into our place should the unfortunately bus accident occur.
Disadvantage: Our teams are spread out and focused on their individual pieces of the missional puzzle. By nature my role is to oversee the whole and make sure all these individual pieces are aligned and all the systems are working correctly. Every year we go through a talent review process and one of the questions that gets asked is, "Who is your apprentice?" It troubles me that I don't have a real answer to that question. So many on our Kids' City staff are in part time roles (anywhere from 5 hours/wk to 20 hours/wk). I struggle with figuring out how to bring someone alongside me in my Director role to work on the "big picture" with me. Especially because it seems their part-time hours need to be focused on their particular campus location.
Sometimes this leaves me feeling like the bottle neck for the bigger picture. I'm feeling the limits of this in communication, decision making, capacity for initiatives...
But what scares me about it is the succession plan. I have no plans to go anywhere and prayerfully God will keep me from stepping off the curb in front of a moving vehicle until we figure this out, but who am I preparing to replace me when I'm gone? What is my succession plan?
Do you have one? Would love to hear any thoughts that you have on this topic especially if you are the senior leader of your kids' ministry and your multi-site church has spread to at least 4 or 5 sites.
