Flip the Script
Greetings from Orlando, Florida! I am currently at the annual CPC (Children’s Pastors Conference) taking in a lot of great ideas, resources, and energy from people who also serve in children’s ministry all over the country. It has been a wonderful and eventful week so far, and although my heart is sad that it’s the last day my legs are rejoicing!
During my time here I was gven a free book called Flip the Script by Chuck Peters. Chuck is the Director of Lifeway Kids and I had the privilege of meeting with him during a one-on-one coaching session at last year’s CPC. What Chuck and his team have done through this book is take a hard look at the statistics surrounding the issue of connecting the Gospel to children and youth in our current culture. Research is showing that with each generation fewer and fewer people are attending church or identifying as Christians. Many churches are stuck using the same script they used years ago when the culture and climate was much different than it was today.
Imagine a football coach using the same game plan against every single opponent, or never making half-time adjustments. That coach wouldn’t last very long. As a coach you have to adapt your game plan to your opponent. While the fundamentals of being successful on the field never change (positive mindset, hard work, focus, etc.) the way you approach one opponent is not the same way you approach the next opponent. We are living in an age in which the opponent has changed. And as such new strategies that engage kids and students needs to adapt as well.
As I continue to be reinvigorated at this conference and ideas about how to reach the next generation are being presented, I pray that we as a church will answer the call to reach a generation that is the most un-churched population in the history of our country. It will take new ideas, it will take hard work, and may even take us getting out of out comfort zone. But we have an awesome God that continually wants to love on this generation as much as any before it. The numbers should give us pause, but they should not cause us to lose hope. There is nothing that can fully hide God’s love for His children. There was once a day two millenniums ago in which the church was the minority in its community. That did not hinder or slow down the Spirit’s work. Through those faithful churches God’s Spirit changed the entire world. And He can do it again. Let us be about God’s work advancing His Kingdom in our Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Amen, and amen!
It's Still Christmas
It’s still Christmas Time
The lights are down, the trees are put up (yes my wife insists on putting up more than one tree), and the house is almost back to normal. While I am thrilled to be done with Christmas decorations, I’m fully aware that I’m doing this wrong. Christmas isn’t over, at least not yet. Today is the official last day of Christmas. I know what you’re thinking, but remember the song with the most ridiculous Christmas gifts, the 12 Days of Christmas. It’s not just a silly song about birds and impractical gifts. Well, I take that back. It really is just a silly song but the one thing it gets right is that there are actually 12 days of Christmas. Advent, what we sometimes think of Christmas time, is really a time of expectation leading up to Christmas, and then the church calendar does something a bit odd. On Christmas Day we enter Christmas time, and then we’re in Christmas time for 12 days before we hit Epiphany on January 6. (And oddly enough, Epiphany is also the day of Epiphany and starts the season of Epiphany that runs until we start Lent on Ash Wednesday).
Despite what Amazon and other retailers might make you think, the 12 days of Christmas really isn’t a made up thing just to sell more junk to consumers. A lot of people believe that this 12 day period represents the time it took the magi to get to Jesus. Like most things Christmas related, it’s completely wrong. Realistically Jesus was probably closer to two years old by the time the wisemen got to him (the main context clue is where Herod orders all kids two and under to be killed) but there are various other indications to support that conclusion. But the real reason it’s wrong is because Christmastide (the 12 days of Christmas) was created in 567 at the Council of Tours to bring together the East and West churches who celebrated Christmas as either Dec. 25 or Jan 6.
So technically speaking, you should leave you Christmas tree up until Jan 6th. Practically speaking, put it away whenever you want to. We don’t celebrate the feasts of saints that traditionally go along with it, we definitely don’t give flocks of birds as gifts, and as Methodists we are on the fringe of observing the traditional high church holy days yet not really going deep into all the traditions. Just know, that I will never complain about Christmas decorations being put away.
Christmas Activities
We love Christmas time here at the preschool. We all look forward to celebrating the holidays with our students, family, and friends. This can be such a magical time of year. We can’t get enough of all the holiday cheer, love, and excitement in the atmosphere.
Today I’m going to share with you a few fun Christmas activities that some of us like to do as part of our pre-Christmas celebrations.
Make Cookies
This is one December activity you can do with friends or with kids. Start with simple sugar cookies, and festive gingerbread shapes, set out colorful icing, sprinkles, and candy, and spend an afternoon decorating.
Give away old toys
Toys are another fantastic thing to donate during the holidays. Think of all the trucks, stuffed animals, dolls, and sports equipment you and your family no longer use. If they're still in good condition, it's probably time to give them a second life—and there's someone out there who will really appreciate them.
Volunteer at a local organization
Make the time to spend a few hours on a weekend serving meals, organizing donations, or cleaning up at a local charity. Call or look online to see whether organizations—shelters, soup kitchens, are taking volunteers. Many are open and need extra helping hands, even more so during the holidays.
Admire neighborhood lights and decorations
Does your block go all-out with Christmas decorations? Is there a designated street or place in town that does light shows? Yes (NUMC Does). Make a night out with your family enjoying all the lights and shows. Bring along your favorite snacks and enjoy the shows.
Decorate gingerbread
Gingerbread houses are a holiday favorite the whole family can do. Our family and the Neely’s get together every year for this awesome tradition. Our kids range from 8 to 20 years old. This is still one of their favorite past times during this time.
Watch holiday movies
It's time for the seasonal movies that make you happiest. There are so many options available now for all ages to enjoy.
Go to a NUMC Christmas Eve service
Jesus is the reason for the season. Celebrate his birth by worshiping with us at one of our Christmas Eve services. We have two this year, a family-friendly service at 5:00 (You can wear your pajamas) and then a second service at 6:30.
Finding Joy
As we enter into the 3rd week of Advent I am reflecting on the theme of “joy” this week. If you’re like me that word is a tough one to hear during this time of the year. As we get ready to do all of our Christmas traditions, many of us will only be doing it with a façade. There are folks reading this now that are hurting because of relationships that have gone awry, memories of loved ones that are no longer with us to celebrate the season… hardships that make it hard to find joy this time of year. Many of us feel broken, and “joy” seems like a million miles away.
You may have heard the saying that joy is different than “happiness” - in the way a frame of mind is different from an emotion. We can certainly feel joyful, but as I read more about what scripture has to say on the matter, I find that joy is more of a characteristic of a faithful life to God.
In Hebrew, the word for joy doesn’t just describe a state of well-being, but it is also an expression. It is tied to something much deeper than an emotion that comes and goes. In scripture, joy is deeply rooted - and often synonymous with - a right relationship with God. It is an outpouring of the deep commitment we have in Christ. So, when you think of it this way, joy is not something that comes first. Joy is a result of the effort we put into our walk with God. It is not necessarily something that we “feel” first and then act on. The Christian life is about being faithful first and finding joy in the aftermath.
In Scripture we find that despite the hardships the Israelites faced, or the barriers the early church had to overcome, God’s people rejoiced when they were at their best with God. As a result, joy was fruit that they reaped. Joy did not come from self-seeking pleasure or earthly riches. Joy was also found in the anticipation of Christ’s Second Coming. It is something that we look forward to because we know how it all ends. Jesus assures his disciples that their sorrow at his departure will ultimately turn to joy (John 16:16, 20).
I don’t really know if this will help anyone or not. If you’re like me, when you’re smack dab in the middle of a crisis it is hard to remember all the things Christ has done and has yet to do. I can get really consumed by the moment and can’t see the forest for the trees. But to be quite honest, there is no true and easy way to get out of seasonal depression or hardships. We must endure them at times. But might I make a suggestion for us to practice this year? I include myself because I’m going to do it with you. When the depression hits and when the joy feels so far away, I want us to worship God. In that moment, let’s stop what we’re doing and put on our favorite worship song, read our favorite Bible verse out loud, or just thank God for one thing He has done for us in the past and reflect on the promises that He has given us for the future.
Let’s act on God first and find joy in the end of that tunnel together.
How to Survive the Holidays as a Grinch
Avoid the Christmas section at Walmart at all costs. Better yet, avoid all holiday shopping hot spots. If you need something from the pet section and a can of spray paint, walk the long way around the entire store. It also has an added benefit of burning off the calories of the Christmas treats you’ve been stress eating.
Find the things that you do like. Scented pine cones are the only Christmas decoration that I like. I still don’t understand how pine cones became a decoration to begin with (or why you would want to bring dead trees/plants into a perfectly clean house, but I digress), but when my wife inevitably brings home a bag or two of those pine cones every year, I get a 5 second moment of glee when I can pull the bag to my face and get a big whiff of cinnamon.
Don’t fake it. It is ok to not love Christmas time. Not only do the holidays bring on huge amounts of stress, but they can also bring with them painful memories or feelings of grief or loss. Don’t add the stress and energy drain by putting on a happy face for everyone else. I promise you are not the only person struggling this time of year, and by being honest about your own struggles you might empower someone else to confront their own obstacles.
Embrace your inner Grinch. I have a secret desire to dress up as the Grinch every year we do Breakfast with Santa. I could go around squashing Christmas cheer just by doing Grinchy things and it would actually be fun for me and the kids. Throw one strand of lights on the roof with a cutout of a Grinch stealing them, PERFECT. Play wiffle ball with Christmas ornaments, wrap horrible gifts poorly, find the perfect Grinch meme to respond to all Christmas texts and emails. Find your own way to have fun.
Remember the reason for the season. I hate that phrase and that it’s usage has become cliche, but I’m going to use it anyway in the grinchiest way possible. Jesus wasn’t really born on Christmas Day. We celebrate Christmas because early Christians appropriated pagan celebrations of the winter solstice like Saturnalia and made it about Jesus. Now we celebrate Christmas with trees, garlands, and other greeneries, we spend exorbitant amounts of money on gifts that we don’t really need, and try to squeeze in a candlelit service if it works with our schedule. As weird as it sounds, maybe it’s time we re-appropriate Christmas. Just like early Christians took a pagan holiday and made it about Jesus, maybe it’s time we work on the redemptive aspects of our secularized Christmas and make it truly about Jesus again.