LifeWay

Kids Ministry

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

CentriKid, StudentLife for Kids, Thanksgiving

Thankful Turkeys

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HAPPY THANKSGIVING FROM CENTRIKID!

Here in the CentriKid office, we have so much to be thankful for!

  • We are thankful to serve in camp ministry.
  • We are thankful for ministry leaders who dedicate so much time, energy, and heart into the lives of kids.
  • Above all else, we are thankful for Christ!

Check out some of our Thankful Turkeys from CentriKid and Student Life for Kids:

This week we are celebrating #CKThanks with our annual Hand Turkeys. All you have to do is post your Hand Turkey on social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter) and include the #CKThanks. We may even repost some of our favorites!

Thank you for taking the time to celebrate Thanksgiving with us as we take time out to be grateful this holiday season. Want to know more about the camps provided by LifeWay Kids? Check out Student Life for Kids and CentriKid today!

Lydia McMillan works on the CentriKid Camps team. She manages social media, produces videos, works with actors, and leads production elements. She is married to Joshua and they have two kiddos who keep them very busy.

Parent Helps, Parenting, Thanksgiving

A Family Thanksgiving Plan

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Thanksgiving is one of the favorite family holidays. This blog features great ideas to get kids involved for the big Thanksgiving meal. Pass this along to families in your ministry!

Many of us mamas feel pressure to lay out a perfect Thanksgiving feast. Let your children deliver both good food and memorable camaraderie. It truly will take the focus off you.

IDENTIFY TASKS

First, think outside the box for ways kids can help.

Ideas:

  • Create place cards — Children who can’t yet write can draw portraits.
  • Squeeze oranges — Electric juicers seem custom-designed for children to press orange halves onto the rotating reamer and watch the liquid drip through.
  • Make a dish — Worry less about an even menu and more about praising the cook. Even preschoolers can become known for their green bean casserole.
  • Manage the list — Let a child take your list around for volunteers of all ages to pick their tasks and checkmark when completed.
  • Work the can-opener — Let Uncle Jorge set the cans for young Evan to spin.
  • Beautify the table — placing at least the non-breakable silverware.
  • Fold napkins — in shapes of the child’s choosing.

SET STATIONS

To keep your head while six hands clamor to help, do private prep. If your kitchen allows it, give each his own station.

  • Use the French cooking process, mise en place, to equip children to make a myriad of recipes. Substitute, for prep bowls, zipper bags filled with the right amount of flour, sugar, even that one teaspoon of baking soda. Then kids open, pour, and stir. Preschoolers will identify the starting letter in flour or sugar and can choose the right bag and the right time. So label each bag with what’s inside.
  • Place a towel or rug under each chair to catch spills.
  • Extra grownups who treasure children are often circulating in your home during Thanksgiving prep. Partner them with your children to feed the conversation and connections lauded by Proverbs 17:1.

If only one adult is available, have the children rotate helping. Even if everyone pushes up a chair, let one be the primary cook while the others watch and tell what the cook is doing well: “Wow! You didn’t spill at all!” or “I can’t wait to eat that!”

INVITE KIDS TO THE BIG TABLE

Children find it amazing that they can create food people enjoy. They enjoy interacting with adult guests.

Conspiratorially give a question to each child to ask during the meal:

  • What’s your specialty — that food you like to make on holidays?
  • What do you think is cool about being my age? What do you think is cool about being your age?
  • What food did you have to learn to like when younger?
  • What did my mom/grandma do when she was a little girl?
  • Who is a hero to you? Why?

This article appears courtesy of ParentLife magazine. Karen Dockrey wrote this article. She is a curriculum specialist and author or co-author of over 30 books.

Kids Ministry, Leadership, Teacher Appreciation, Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Teacher Appreciation

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Williams, DelaneeFamily Traditions are special. One of my family’s traditions has been making “Turkey Cookies” each Thanksgiving season. Just for clarification, these cookies don’t contain actual turkey, but are decorated to look like turkeys.

Even as a young child, I remember sharing these cookies with classmates, teachers, and friends each year. When I started serving in ministry, I wanted to do something special for the church staff and ministry volunteers during the Thanksgiving season.

Many times we overlook this special season to show thankfulness to the Lord and to our teachers who serve the Lord faithfully through our ministries. It only felt logical to begin sharing the “Turkey Cookies” with the staff and teachers at my church. After the first couple of years, “Turkey Cookies” became a tradition for our ministry.img_1926  It was a simple way to communicate thankfulness for them. Everyone needs encouragement and affirmation.

This Thanksgiving season, consider making these cookies for your staff and teachers. When you share them, communicate specific reasons why you are thankful for them and their ministry. Reaffirm a teacher who contacts his class each week. Recognize a teacher who arrives early and is prepared when the first child arrives. Share with another ministry leader why you enjoy serving on staff with her.

Make a commitment this Thanksgiving to share genuine words of affirmation to your church staff and ministry leaders echoing Paul’s words in Philippians 1:3-5, “I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you, always praying with joy for all of you in my every prayer, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.”fullsizerender

Turkey Cookies:

  • Oatmeal or Sugar cookies (can be store bought or homemade)
  • Vanilla or white Icing (I have found store bought works easiest)
  • Hershey kiss
  • Candy Cornfullsizerender-1
  • Red Miniature M&Ms (small pieces of twizzler candies or red hot candies can be substituted for M&Ms)
  1. Place icing on one end of the cookie to anchor a Hershey kiss as the head.
  2. On the other end of the cookie, use icing to attach 5 candy corn as feathers.  
  3. Put a small amount of icing on top of the Hershey kiss to attach the red miniature M&M for the beak.fullsizerender-2

*Remember to be mindful of allergies and food sensitivities. Some ingredients may need to be substituted.

Delanee Williams serves as a Ministry Specialist with LifeWay Kids. She is a graduate of Baylor University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.  Delanee has served in kids ministry for over twenty years and is passionate about developing, equipping and encouraging leaders.

Christmas, Kids Ministry, Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving from LifeWay Kids!

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There are no words more appropriate than these:

“I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you, always praying with joy for all of you in my every prayer, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:3-6

Thank you for partnering with us to serve kids. It’s a privilege and joy to help equip you for God’s work. Enjoy your time with family and friends in celebration of Thanksgiving, and we’ll be praying for you as you go back to work on Sunday.

If you haven’t downloaded your free copy of our Family Advent Guide, here’s your chance. Click here!

Thanksgiving
Encouragement, Thanksgiving

Teacher Appreciation Ideas: Fallen For You

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Jeff Land-150x150I love it when I find great examples of teaching appreciation ideas from other Kids Ministry leaders. I was perusing my facebook feed the other day when I saw this great example from my friends at Long Hollow Baptist Church. Children’s Ministry Director, Rebekah Bullard, and Children’s Minister, Robyn Collins, came up with this great idea for encouraging their leaders.

Supplies Needed:
Yankee Candle Votives
Clear Glass Votive Holders
Cellophane Packaging
Jute Twine
Printable Tags (Download Here)

Directions:

Place votive candle in votive holder.
Place candle and holder in cellophane packaging.
Tie package with jute twine and attach a printable tag.
Distribute to your volunteers.

Rebekah and Robyn have over a thousand kids in their ministry on Sunday mornings, so you can imagine that they have quite a few volunteers! I appreciate them taking the time to appreciate their volunteers!

Jeff Land loves Life! That’s pretty great, because his job here at LifeWay is the Team Leader for Bible Studies for Life: Kids. Jeff loves his life which is so blessed by his amazing wife, Abbey, and their four sons, Reed, Nash, Will, and Tuck. A natural encourager and fun-lover, look for Jeff’s posts about teacher appreciation and game ideas. When not serving at work, Jeff serves 2nd graders at his church, First Baptist Church, Joelton, TN.

Crafts, Encouragement, Fun, Leadership, Thanksgiving

Fall Teacher Appreciation Ideas

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Land-150x150Recently, I got a jar of peanuts and candy corn with a label “This may sound corny, but I’m nuts about you!” I loved the jar for several reasons. One — I love candy corn, and two — that was a teacher appreciation idea I posted last Fall. Around here, we don’t just post for the fun of it; we really want the ideas we post to be useful in your ministry. Today I’m sharing an idea that I used to tell my team here at work how much I loved them!

Supplies:
Miniature Pumpkins and Gourds (I bought mine at a local farm for $.25 each)
Jute twine
Pumpkin Label (Download Here)

Instructions:

I resized my labels to get 6 on a page in a Word doc. You can do this or just print the size that they are in the PDF file.
Punch a hole in the top of each label. You might want to write a personal note on the back.
Use the jute twine to attach the label to the stem of the pumpkin.
Deliver and watch your volunteers’ faces brighten!

It’s so important to tell the people who are working in ministry with you that you love and appreciate them.

For 5 more fall-themed teacher appreciation ideas, click here. 

Christmas, Easter, Parenting, Thanksgiving

Are Family Traditions Important for Kids?

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vogel-150x150Each of us grew up looking forward to things in life that we could “count on.” Even though we did not know it at the time…these treasured experiences have become “traditions.” Included in this group would be things like: how the house smells at Thanksgiving; the types of food we eat on certain holidays; whether we read the Christmas story from the book of Luke on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day…and on and on.

Children love traditions! Adults love traditions! Each year we look forward to re-experiencing meaningful memories. For different families this list of valued traditions can be very unique…For example, in my family we never have mashed potatoes for the Christmas or Thanksgiving meals. For some families, though, things are just not right without the mashed potatoes on the dinner table for both occasions.

If you were to make a list today of annual family traditions, what would be on your list? Never forget that this list of treasured memories usually began during the childhood years. So the question becomes, as a family, what will be the traditions that your kids remember? Consider these and then plan to make some of these happen throughout the year:

  • A time when the family reads from the Bible together. This might be at Christmas when we read the story of Jesus’ birth and Thanksgiving when we read Psalms of thanksgiving.
  • A family group time at Christmas. One of my greatest joys each year is gathering my twelve grandchildren (soon to be thirteen!) for a time of singing, sharing the Christmas story and playing games together that help us remember this blessed time of year. (For years, my grandkids have dressed up and acted out the Christmas story…very easy to do with just a few pieces of fabric and a few props.)
  • A planned time just before Thanksgiving dinner when each family member names just one thing for which he/she is grateful.
  • A concerted effort to attend church together on Mother’s Day or Father’s Day.
  • An effort to make each family member an Easter card always including the phrase, “He Is Risen!”
  • A birthday dinner for each member of the family letting the birthday person choose the restaurant.

Traditions don’t have to be complicated. They can be very simple:

  • Going out for ice cream every Friday night.
  • Going on Daddy Dates and Mommy Dates.
  • Choosing one night of the week when everyone in the family is committed to staying home and playing games.
  • Memorizing one Bible verse a week together as a family

You get the idea! Plan for fun times together as a family and “keep your promises” when it comes to honoring these times together. Your kids will love it!

Encouraging, Thanksgiving

From Gratitude to Generosity: Thankful Hearts Are Giving Hearts

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Jana3-150x150Thanksgiving is quickly approaching, which is supposed to usher in the Christmas season. However, it seems that in recent years our current culture gets the two celebrations out of order. Christmas music starts in October, decorations are up in November, and the media ads start even sooner. It’s as though Thanksgiving has disappeared; after all, it is not associated with any kind of consumerism. Other than grocery stores and football commercials, the media and marketplace could care less about this special day.

Of course for the Christian, Christmas is a BIG day – celebration of the coming of Christ, our Savior. Yes, Jesus is more important than the pilgrims. However, the order of Thanksgiving coming first is a beautiful way to prepare our hearts for the Christmas season – especially when teaching children the importance of gratitude.

Gratitude is defined as the feeling of being grateful or thankful. We can teach kids what the Bible says in Colossians 2:6-7, “Therefore, as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, overflowing with gratitude.” If our children are overflowing with thankfulness to God for Jesus and for all the blessings that come from him, their little hearts are primed to turn gratitude into generosity.

This year, let’s help kids start with gratitude and use that as a way for them to see all that God pours out to us through His Son; then as a response – give back to others, counting the act of giving better than receiving.

Jana Magruder serves as the Director of Kids Ministry Publishing. Jana, her husband, and their three kids moved to Nashville from Austin, Texas where she served as the director of children’s ministry at the west campus of Austin Stone Community Church. Jana brings a wealth of experience and passion for kids, kids ministry, and the local church.

Encouraging, Thanksgiving

Helping Preschoolers Celebrate the Season

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Jana_newNothing is more fun than welcoming in the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons with a preschooler. Joy abounds with this age-group, so it is the perfect opportunity for us as KidMin leaders and/or parents to use this special time as a way to teach preschoolers about Jesus. Here are some of my favorite ways to celebrate the season with this age group:

1. Create a Thankful Tree.

Grab some twigs and small sticks from the yard and place them in a vase to create a “Thankful Tree.” Use construction paper to make simple leaf shapes, punch a hole in each, and then use yarn or string to make ornaments. Keep a basket of empty “leaves” ready to go and encourage preschoolers to write or draw something they are thankful for to hang on the Thankful Tree.

2. Make treats for others.

Kids of all ages love to work in the kitchen — especially preschoolers! Baking treats can be especially meaningful when you’re doing so for others. Perhaps a neighbor needs some cheer or a teacher would be blessed by a basket full of baked goods. Whatever it is, allow kids to be a part of blessing others.

3. Decorate with Christmas music.

When its time to decorate, play some Christmas music and sing about Jesus. Use this as an opportunity to show how to worship our God for sending His Son to us.

4. Participate in service projects.

There is no shortage of ways to serve the community during the holiday season. One idea is to find a ministry that needs toy donations and allow preschoolers to shop for someone else. Use this as a way to teach generosity and curb the appetite for consuming gifts.

5. Use Advent to tell the gospel.

There are multiple curriculums and teaching plans that show how to use the Advent season to tell the Gospel of Jesus from the very beginning. Allow your Thankful Tree to become an Advent tree (or Jesse tree) and create ornaments that tell the story of “the coming” of Christ.

I pray that you won’t miss one opportunity to help preschoolers celebrate the season and ultimately celebrate our Savior!

Jana Magruder serves as the Director of Kids Ministry Publishing at LifeWay. Jana, her husband, and their three kids moved to Nashville from Austin, Texas where she served as the director of children’s ministry at the west campus of Austin Stone Community Church. 

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