If you've been praying for this to end, thank you for that. I've tried & kept finding more to say but I'm slowing way down. Haven't had any comments or feedback for a very very very long time. Intentionally didn't start any new books this year because I'd be tied to this for another year (or more). Over the Easter season, I tried looking at and listening for kids in the lectionary but that's something you can do yourself if you're interested. Five years ago, I think this blog helped some people connect. Now there are lots of bloggers networking about "postmodern" ministry to children.
Although there are some inexpensive activity ideas woven in here and there but it's more pondering than activity ideas. I hope you'll find some new thinking tools here. If you're reading a book, if you're looking at the scriptures, consider doing it with a couple of coworkers or parents or both.
What do we want to do? We want our kids to love Jesus, to love God - Father, Son, Holy Spirit. We want them to learn to love people. We want to give kids life long faith tools and teach them how to use them. We want to teach them how to learn from God's words & actions & stories. We want to teach them how to see God working in their day to day lives and how to interact with Him and stay faithful (because God is faithful) through the good, the bad, and the ugly. We want to kindle and feed the desire to press on to know God for who He is. We want to constantly affirm to them that no matter how old they are they play an integral part in their faith community and the greater world - in God's world. We want them to do what God says and we want to be examples to them - God's representatives, God's ambassadors, the way Jesus was to His world.
There's no end to books & blogs & thoughts & opinions. If you have Father/Son/Holy Spirit, His Word, a faith community and you're able to use/give all that God's given you as an individual you've got it all. If I find something interesting I'll post it but otherwise, I have nothing more to say.
So sorry - your blog is in my favourites list & I always look eagerly to see if you are reflecting on a book, or a thought, or a passage. Thank you for stimulating my thinking over the years. I'm not going to give up - I shall continue hoping you post!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mary, for all your encouragement & support! When I start a book it takes SO long to read it. I'm also not in the business or volunteering anymore so I feel like a bit of a loose cannon.
ReplyDeleteWhen I started, there seemed to be only one resource about kids for new church planters trying to break out of the mold. I thought, what a wonderful opportunity to ask why we do what we do the way that we do it. Does it really get us where we think we're going? It was an opportunity to revisit God's attitude towards children. My young pastors, weary of all my questions, sent me off to blog. Now, 5 yrs later there are lots of people blogging from the trenches about post-modern children's ministry much more qualified than I. There are websites & blog networks everywhere - more visual, more action oriented than this. There are even influential scholarly educated people pondering and asking really good questions.
In some ways, my thinking has changed dramatically over the last 10 years. In other ways maybe God just keeps drawing me around in a great big circle around Himself. At least he hasn't dropped the lead. What did Solomon say? There's nothing new under the sun...of making books there is no end... much study wearies the body... But then, Solomon could be a bit of a killjoy, lol! Just a little weary, I guess. But thanks, Mary!
My youngest (after 5 years) who happens to be in Wales playing w/hot metal (she's 21) said, "Mom I found your blog! But what...you're not going to blog anymore?" What can I say . . . then someone came looking for activities for Acts 14 ...