LifeWay

Kids Ministry

Dedicated to helping Kids Ministry leaders in their mission of making disciples

Kids Ministry, Leadership, Missions

World Bean Game

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The World Bean Game is an activity designed to provide kids an experience that makes the challenges of global hunger and the need for missions more tangible.  Download the free PDF with game background, setup instructions, and rules for the kids.

This game was used at CentriKid Camps in 2007 during an evening “party” activity—but we still get requests for the instructions and content from church leaders, and it was over a decade ago since we used the game at camp.

QUICK DESCRIPTION:

Players must purchase supplies for their basic needs. By distributing different numbers of beans to players from different groups, you’ll create a situation where some players have plenty and many who don’t have nearly enough.

GOALS / OUTCOMES

After the game, plan for time to discuss the experience. You’ll see some kids who are competitive and frustrated by the experience, but hopefully, all kids realize the physical needs that exist around the world and opportunities missionaries have to help meet physical needs and share the gospel.

Ask questions like:

  • Was the game fair?
  • What made the game easy or difficult?
  • Was it easy to recognize the missionaries?
  • What if everyone had the same amount of beans?

SUPPLIES NEEDED

Supplies are pretty simple, but setup takes a little bit of preparation. You’ll need lots of beans, baggies for each player to hold their beans, and some cards and signs for gameplay.  Everything you need for the game from background explanations, setup instructions, supplies, and rules for the kids can be found in the free PDF download of World Bean Game.

Surprisingly the clean-up after the game is not too crazy because kids are working hard to collect beans as currency, they tend to drop very few of them.

Jeremy Echols leads the camps area for LifeWay Kids. He, his wife Emily, and their precious daughter love their church, their neighborhood, and spending time together. Jeremy enjoys reading, watching sports, and all of his daughter’s after-school activities.

Kids Ministry, Leadership, Parenting

Camp Creates Courageous Parents

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As a leader in kids ministry, you’ve seen kids “grow up” at camp, but did you know camp creates courageous parents too?

Camp is an amazing environment for kids to get out of their normal routine, try something new, explore a new place, and make lifelong memories. Every summer we see kids do brave things like trying a zip line, jump off the diving board, or in some cases, their courage is tested by just traveling on the bus and staying away from home for a few nights.  

While the kids are away at camp, some parents breathe a sigh of relief … but most parents wonder, worry, and have to face fears of their own! Will my child like any of the food in the dining hall? Will my daughter make new friends? Will my son shower at some point during the week?

We love to encourage kids to grow through the camp experience, but parents can grow too. Here are some challenges that a Kids Ministry leader can give parents in your pre-camp information meetings. Encourage parents to grow, and give them support as you challenge them to:

  1. Send your child to an overnight camp without you. This is a huge step for some parents and not as big a deal for others. As a kidmin leader, you must discern where the parent/child readiness is here.
  2. Invest in your child spiritually at home, even if you don’t know all the answers. Your kids ministry teaching is wonderful, but a parent investing at home is so much more valuable than what we can do at camp or at church.
  3. Trust other people like a church leader or summer staff to pour into your child spiritually. It takes a team, and sometimes a new face or new place at camp will uncover a wonderful discipleship conversation where camp staffers and church leaders contribute to a child’s spiritual growth.
  4. Allow your child some independence. Give parents a packing list, but encourage them to allow their kids to make their own clothes selections and eating selection in a stay away situation like camp.  
  5. Make the necessary sacrifices. For some families, it means sacrificing time at the beach or the pool. For other families, they have to make financial sacrifices to afford to send a child (or children) to camp. Help parents see the importance of camp and be courageous to trust God with their time and finances because of the powerful spiritual impact camp can have on kids.

For parents who are not sending their kids away for the very first time, there may be different opportunities for growth. It could be that going to camp and investing in the whole group, eating camp food, and staying in the dorm is the courageous move. For parents who cannot go away to camp, they may need to be courageous enough to allow some distance and NOT call their child every day at camp. This might help the child be more courageous with leaving home and grow through the feelings of homesickness.

Jeremy Echols leads the camps area for LifeWay Kids. He, his wife Emily, and their precious daughter love their church, their neighborhood, and spending time together. Jeremy enjoys reading, watching sports, and all of his daughter’s after-school activities.

CentriKid, Kids Ministry, Leadership, StudentLife for Kids

How about a summer resolution?

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Now that the ideals, attempts, failures, and frustrations of New Year resolutions are behind us, how are you realistically planning to grow and learn this year?  

Consider studying NOW in your personal time around where your kids will be studying this summer. You can lead THEM to spiritual growth if YOU are already pursuing it in your personal walk with the Lord. Summer kids camp is always a milestone event for spiritual growth, so get a head-start!

LifeWay Kids provides camp experiences for church groups that place you in a key role for discipling your kids. Our summer camp staffers will lead the programming and set the stage to make the message of Christ clear in the lives of kids, but you are the one going home with kids after camp and your influence is so important.

At CentriKid 2019, our theme is “All Access” God wants Himself to be known. He has given you an “all-access pass” by revealing His name, the way to Him through Jesus, and His power as an expression of His love for you. God has revealed that He is the only true God, He’s not hidden, and He wants a relationship with you.  The key verse is John 17:3—start memorizing that now! If you take your kids to CentriKid Camps this summer, a resource to consider is “Remember God” by Annie F. Downs where she reminds us that God is who He says He is.

At Student Life for Kids 2019, we have designed our theme to help your kids understand that without Jesus we are broken. When we believe in Jesus, God transforms us, and God uses us to help transform the world. We filter everything your kids experience through our theme, from dramas and games to sermons and Bible studies. The key verse is 2 Corinthians 5:17, so commit that to memory!  If you are taking kids to Student Life For Kids this summer, a resource to consider is a book our camp team is reading right now! “Spiritual Leadership” by J. Oswald Sanders will challenge you to grow as a leader and also spur you along your faith journey.

Jeremy Echols leads the CentriKid Camps team and manages the LifeWay Kids events.  He, his wife Emily, and their precious daughter love their church, their neighborhood, and spending time together.  Jeremy loves to read, watch sports, and grill burgers.

Kids Ministry, Leadership

How Do You Get Ideas Done?

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Ministry to-do lists involve a lot! If your ministry to-do list is anything like mine, it involves things that happen every week, larger monthly projects, and a few annual events that all have actions required. And, often I have unexpected things that arise because I work with people, and I work inside of an organization that is larger than just my team. Getting everything done would be no problem if (a) there were no unexpected things added, (b) ministry didn’t involve people, or (c) I didn’t have a life outside of work.   

Since those things aren’t going away, here are a few tips to support and encourage you with getting things done this year for your ministry. This can help you with taking your new ideas from “ideation” to “action” and this can also help you sharpen the focus on your existing work:

  1. Start with a Plan—Take a few minutes to identify a plan, even if you can’t plan out every detail in the first sitting. Be realistic and start writing out your ideas (paper, computer, markerboard) so you can begin to see all that is involved. Don’t forget to consider the big picture and make sure the “why” of your work matches the mission of your ministry. Also, consider the details. For some, the details will come to your mind from the very beginning, and others will need help thinking of all the details. In either case, make a plan!
  2. Watch the Calendar—Whenever ideas emerge, sometimes they can be put into practice immediately, and other things have to wait for the right season or timing. So, identify when your idea needs to happen and build in the proper markers along the way. One of the tools we use in LifeWay Kids is a “start meeting.” This is a specific type of meeting with the key personnel needed to kick off a project and give it a budget, timeline, and parameters. After the start meeting, there should be a clear delivery deadline and hopefully some markers along the way for seeing progress.
  3. Involve the Team—We are smarter together than we are individually, so plug your team into making your ministry ideas happen. If you don’t have a formal team, you can create a team to serve together on a project. Cast vision for the “why” and look for opportunities to develop their connection, earn trust, and get buy-in towards the goal. As you move forward with the team, assign tasks clearly and check in periodically. You can do more with a coordinated effort than you can alone.
  4. Leverage Technology—Make lists, share documents, find apps that support your idea and make it easier for the team to collaborate. One of the oldest tricks in the book is to write down a list, but if that is only in your paper notebook, nobody can view that or help you with it. Even something as simple as a shared list in the “Notes” app or a shared Google Doc will make it easier to get your team involved and keep them on the same page. There are certainly more robust project management apps if your ministry idea requires it, but starting with a shared list and a couple of meetings or updates along the life of the project will do wonders for team collaboration and accountability to the deadline.

Your best ideas deserve an opportunity for excellence. The kids in your ministry will never realize your effort to bring ideas to “done” in a more intentional way, but the impact of your work is powerful and has eternal implications. So start with a plan, watch the calendar, involve the team, and leverage technology so your ministry can transform from “lots of ideas that may somehow happen” to “ideas are developed and making an impact!”

Jeremy Echols leads the CentriKid Camps team and manages the LifeWay Kids events.  He, his wife Emily, and their precious daughter love their church, their neighborhood, and spending time together.  Jeremy loves to read, watch sports, and grill burgers.

Kids Ministry, Leadership, Ministry

Have You Hugged a Volunteer Today?

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Volunteers in Kids Ministry are the very best!  Kidmin volunteers make the whole ministry go smoothly. They are absolutely essential and without a doubt, they deserve all the appreciation we can shower on them!

So … have you hugged a volunteer today??

Maybe you are not a hugger, and that’s OK, you could still hug a volunteer and show appreciation. A wise kids ministry leader is always looking for ways to show volunteers that you care!

At this point, my guess is that your heart is in total agreement with me, but your brain may be saying “I don’t have enough time for an elaborate Pinterest creation!” Nobody does … so here is a list of quick ideas you can totally use in your own context. Add your own creativity and show your volunteers how much you love them:

  1. Give a volunteer a hug. A high-five or fist-bump will suffice if you just aren’t a hugger.  Shake hands if you are into being super-formal. The point is to get in the same space, close enough to make physical contact. Don’t just rely on waving, texting, or emailing … get in there and make contact!
  2. Write a Letter to Say Thanks. Hand-written letter-writing is such a rare thing for so many people. It doesn’t require any great expense, just a little thought and a pen. For those of you without a personalized stationery set, sticky notes will do if you write something nice on them!
  3. Communicate the Vision. Everyone likes to know where the ministry is headed. Find simple ways to share about the “why” for the ministry and what you see on the horizon. Volunteers love hearing about how they contribute to something larger that makes a Kingdom impact!
  4. Invest in Leaders. With volunteers in churches of any size, you can invest for future leadership. It may look different in different seasons. Sometimes just sharing a practical tip with a teen volunteer will make a huge improvement in their delivery of the lesson.
  5. Ask a Question and Listen. You earn major points as a ministry leader when you have the personal buy-in from those who serve with you. Take the time to learn personal details or ministry feedback from those who serve with you. Lead relationally and personally! Listening is one of the best ways to show your heart and appreciation.

For the Kids Ministry leader looking to go the extra mile, step it up with these ideas:

  • Plan to get away together for a conference, a retreat, or even a fun getaway.
  • Share snacks they love, either collectively (think biscuit bar) or individually (based on which coffee or candy they enjoy).
  • Plan a personal or family project to encourage your volunteer(s). Write an acrostic using a volunteer’s name and the things you love about the way they serve.

You can choose the best way to show your volunteers how much they mean to you, but the most important thing is to do it! Share this post with other leaders you know who serve with volunteers and encourage them to hug a volunteer today too!

Jeremy Echols leads the CentriKid Camps team and manages the LifeWay Kids events.  He, his wife Emily, and their precious daughter love their church, their neighborhood, and spending time together.  Jeremy loves to read, watch sports, and grill burgers.

CentriKid, Kids Ministry, Leadership, StudentLife for Kids

5 Not-So-Hidden Benefits of Serving on Camp Staff

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Summer camps begin recruiting for their summer staffing roles every year in the fall. Who do you know that would do an awesome job serving at a camp? Take an opportunity to recommend someone you know, and their life will be changed forever!   

Any former camp staffer knows about the hard work and the blessing of working camp and we want everyone to know these five not-so-hidden benefits of serving on camp staff:

  1. Character-Building, Not Just Resume-Building – when students work at a camp, they gain work experience by having to get up on time, show up prepared, and do a job. This is great work experience early in their career.   
  2. Eternal Impact, Plus Get Paid – serving at a Christian summer camp makes a kingdom impact and it is way more than just a job. Every role at camp has a purpose that goes way beyond just flipping burgers or mopping floors.
  3. Growth as a Leader – so many camp staffers enter the summer and expect to grow in their work ethic, but one of the most amazing things is when a Camp Director sees leadership potential in a a staffer with less experience and begins to invest. This doesn’t happen by accident, it is part of the design!
  4. Ministry Experience Beyond What is on Paper – a two month summer job doesn’t look amazing on paper, but serving churches at camp gives a ton of exposure to a variety of ministry contexts. The opportunity to connect with church leaders from so many different settings really does provide “seasoning” that goes beyond the tasks.
  5. Life-Long Relationships – the bonds formed by working in close proximity all summer will create incredible friendships and lasting relationships. There were camp friends who were in my wedding and whose kids play with my child even today!

The summer will be here before you know it, so who do you know that would be an asset to a camp team and would benefit from serving in this way? For all the LifeWay Camps, the summer staff applications can be found here. But of course, we recommend serving at Kids Camp!  

Please share this post with someone who serves in your ministry and offers to be a reference. Help them get started with applying for CentriKid Camps or Student Life For Kids.

Jeremy Echols leads the CentriKid Camps team and manages the LifeWay Kids events. He, his wife Emily, and their precious daughter love their church, their neighborhood, and spending time together. Jeremy loves to read, watch sports, and grill burgers.

CentriKid, Evangelism, Kids Ministry, Leadership

Share the Gospel with Kids – Training Session from CentriKid

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At CentriKid Camps, we are clear about our purpose—we serve the church in her mission of making disciples. One of the best ways we can do that is by using every activity at camp to intentionally make the message of Christ clear in the lives of kids.  

Bible Study and Worship are obviously times when we share the gospel and unpack what it means to live a life that is committed to God. We also train our staff to share the gospel through Recreation, Track Time activities, and even Hang Time.  

We aim to help kids grow in their relationship with Christ and to present the message clearly for those who don’t have a relationship with Christ. Our staffers are faithful to share clearly in every programmed activity of the day—never with the intent of pressuring children, but always with the heart of making it easy to talk about the things of God and ask questions.

Download the free Training Plan and prepare for your next training session:

With this training session, we are opening up the playbook and equipping kids ministry leaders to train their volunteers with the same materials and plan that we use to train CentriKid staffers. Thousands of adult leaders experienced this training session at camp in 2018 and we hope this resource is valuable for many more to be trained for sharing the gospel with kids.

Jeremy Echols leads the CentriKid Camps team and manages the LifeWay Kids events.  He, his wife Emily, and their precious daughter love their church, their neighborhood, and spending time together.  Jeremy loves to read, watch sports, and grill burgers.

CentriKid, Kids Ministry

The Best Summer Days are at CentriKid!

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CentriKid Camps are underway again this summer and kids are learning about “Blueprint: God’s Design.” Each year we are able to serve hundreds of churches and thousands of campers with Bible Study, Recreation, and Worship each night. The best days of summer really are at CentriKid Camps!

Track Times and Bible Study are great times when kids are hearing the gospel while participating in fun activities. Worship has also been a powerful experience where kids are taught about what it means to be God’s workmanship, and how we are completely forgiven. We’ve already heard from churches after camp about over 100 campers who began a relationship with Christ for the very first time while at CentriKid! That’s something to celebrate!

Kids in the Sign Language Track Time perform in Closing on Day 5 at camp and it is a really special time as they share what they’ve learned all week in front of the camp.

CentriKid is having an impact on the adults who attend camp too! One mom who attended camp in Kentucky with her church group said: “my 6th grader is thoroughly embarrassed (by me), and my 3rd-grade daughter thinks I’m cool stuff.”  

We would love to serve your group at camp next summer, and registration is already open for 2019. Check out all the dates and locations at centrikid.com and sign up today! Contact our team anytime by email at centrikid@lifeway.com with logistical questions, parent questions, or anything else that we can help you with.

Jeremy Echols leads the CentriKid Camps team and manages the LifeWay Kids events.  He, his wife Emily, and their precious daughter love their church, their neighborhood, and spending time together.  Jeremy loves to read, watch sports, and grill burgers.

CentriKid, Kids Ministry, Leadership

Go Behind the Scenes with CentriKid Staff Training

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Here is a peek behind the scenes at CentriKid Camps staffer training. Every summer we hire a couple hundred summer staffers to facilitate the CentriKid program elements of Bible Study, Recreation, Worship, Track Times, and everything else! These leaders make the most of their opportunity because through each camp element they share the gospel with kids in practical ways. Staffers value their role serving the Church each week by making the message of Christ clear in the lives of kids at camp.

Each aspect of camp is woven into the overall spiritual direction for the week of camp. For camp this summer, at overnight camps as well as day camps, we develop a theme and graphical motif to teach kids how God loves them, they can be forgiven from sin, and God has big plans for their life.

Allyson is a new staffer with CentriKid this summer, and as she prepares for the summer, she is excited about the opportunity to serve churches and invest in kids. She helped at another camp last year but was drawn to CentriKid because she had a chance to help as a team Assistant with her church and fell in love with the way CentriKid staffers are so intentional with teaching kids and making the gospel clear on an age-appropriate level.

Camp ministry doesn’t just exist for one week out of the summer. Through the years, I have seen how that one season in a staffer’s life has impacted their ministry beyond just the summer. 

Jesse is a returning staffer who came to CentriKid in a Media Tech role with plans of completing college and going on with his career. 

After serving a couple of summers, Jesse expressed an interest in the Camp Pastor role and has served well in that capacity. Now he’s changed the course of his education to pursue a seminary degree and train to serve as a pastor of a church!

God is working already in the lives of kids, adults, and even summer staffers who will be at CentriKid. We look forward to sharing ministry results from camp and celebrating how lives are changed for eternity because of the impact of camp.

To learn more about CentriKid Camps, visit www.centrikid.com and if you know a young adult who should consider serving for a summer on camp staff, share the “Become a Staffer” page and help that student get plugged into the application process. The summer staff application is online and already available next summer! There are several FAQ’s there and a link to the online application.

Jeremy Echols leads the CentriKid Camps team and manages the LifeWay Kids events.  He, his wife Emily, and their precious daughter love their church, their neighborhood, and spending time together.  Jeremy loves to read, watch sports, and grill burgers.

CentriKid, Kids Ministry, Leadership

When is a child ready to go to overnight camp?

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Kids camp is a great time to make memories. Church camp takes all the fun elements and combines a spiritual application to each aspect of camp—making it even better! But parents want to know when their child is really ready for overnight camp. Answers may vary for different families, sometimes the readiness may vary for different kids in the same family!

Here are 5 questions to ask when figuring out if a child is ready for overnight camp.

  1. Do they meet the age requirement for overnight camp? All camps and activities have age restrictions for a reason. It isn’t to keep kids out, but to make sure they are able to have a safe and successful week.
  2. Are there special needs to consider? Some campers have dietary, mobility, or emotional needs to consider before sending them on an overnight camp trip. The church leaders and camp staff want to see every child succeed, but some situations require extra help or specialized knowledge.  Make sure you communicate about any special needs with the group leader for the church and with the camp staff so they are ready.
  3. What is their confidence in going away from home overnight? Some kids do just fine going away from home without mom or dad, but other kids really struggle with the thought of it. Some parents have given kids a “practice trip” to grandparents or sleepovers with friends to help build the confidence for a first-time overnight camper.
  4. What is their independence level without mom or dad present? Going away to camp requires a child to get up, get dressed, and get going on their own. You can pack all the clothes for the week, but the kid still has to get up and get dressed (hopefully in a different shirt than he wore all day yesterday!)
  5. Would it help if a parent attended also for the child’s first camp? Sometimes a child just needs the reassurance that mom is close-by, so having a parent on the trip can be a healthy step in growing up, without facing all the fears of being away from the whole family. Don’t bring the family dog, but mom, dad, or a sibling can be a huge help in overcoming homesickness with a young child concerned about being away.

We know the impact of camp is powerful. Campers make lifelong memories while trying new activities, meeting new friends, and growing in their faith. My hope is that every child has the opportunity to make camp memories and grow in their spiritual journey through the camp experience. Here are several insights about helping parents have peace-of-mind with kids going to camp.

At CentriKid, we offer camp for 3rd-6th graders, but not every church sends their kids who are entering 3rd grade, some wait for kids to complete 3rd grade. That is something you as a kids ministry leader and the parents of the individual kids can best determine. We want kids to have a great time, be safe, and comprehend what’s going on at camp.

We serve tons of churches every summer with kids camp and we love having experienced kids at camp and also first timers! For more information about CentriKid Camps visit www.centrikid.com and contact us with any questions you have along the way.  

Jeremy Echols leads the CentriKid Camps team and manages the LifeWay Kids events.  He, his wife Emily, and their precious daughter love their church, their neighborhood, and spending time together.  Jeremy loves to read, watch sports, and grill burgers.

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