Guy Kawasaki is a Twitter and social media expert. He's the founder of Alltop, the online magazine rack (which I use as my homepage). At the world's largest consumer electronics tradeshow (CES), Guy gave a presentation entitled "The Art of Innovation" where he outline eleven key ideas. 1. Make Meaning - great marketing campaigns strike an emotional, real connection with people 2. Make Mantra - can you boil down what you are trying to communicate into a simple phrase like Wendy's, Nike, or eBay? 3. Jump to the Next Curve - Ice 1.0 was Harvest, Ice 2.0 was a Factory, Ice 3.0 was a Fridge 4. Roll the Dice - Deep, Intelligent, Complete, Elegant 5. Don't Worry Be Crappy 6. Let 100 Flowers Blossom 7. Polarize People 8. Churn, Baby, Churn - go against the flow 9. Niche Thyself - there is a place where value and uniqueness can coexist in excellence 10. Follow 10-20-30 Rule Read more...

If you follow this blog, you'll know that I'm a huge fan of author Daniel Pink. His latest book, Drive, is out now and I wanted to spread the word. In Drive (a book about what motivates people), Pink poses two epic questions: What's my sentence? Was I better today than yesterday? RFor a cool explanation of these questions, check out the 2 minute video. http://vimeo.com/8480171

Recently our children's ministry team sat down to discuss scope and sequence. Our team creates the majority of the curriculum resources used during weekend services at our three campuses (both written and video), so this discussion was vital to the next stages of our curriculum process. We spent a block of time getting a picture of where kids are today and where kids will be in middle school. This is an important task in the our field! We need to know exactly where kids are and where they will end up. Henry Jenkins, Director of the Comparative Media Studies Program at MIT, and a host of colleagues wrote a paper dealing with the subject of 21st Century Skills (which I came across in preparation for our team's scope and sequence meeting). The article discusses several critical skills children should develop. Filed under: Digital Learning, Curriculum | Comments (0)

From the fog of past memories, I recall a televangelist show named the "Hour of Power." I do not recall what happened on the show, probably because I often changed the channel to something more like the "Hour of Cartoons" (which I was obsessed with as a child). Recently my obsession has turned to the subject of productivity. In my ministry context, I try very hard to limit meetings but they happen. Many run long. Some begin with great hopes for future production but end with faint glimmers (and those are often the meetings I've led). So I took a hint from Scott Belsky of the Behance Network and put into practice the Hour of Power. Belsky presents these guidelines: Stop thinking big picture and zoom in on the particular factors that impact outcome on a daily basis. Place an hour on your calendar every day to focus on issues that have an immediate impact and a measurable outcome. Read more...

Previously I wrote about five forces or broad trends that we are facing as children's and family ministry leaders (the rise of the individual, connectivity, Twitter Speed, Rip-Mix-Burn-Share, and Motion Blur). I'd like to finally address the last force - Motion Blur. From the original article: Motion Blur: The result of the previous four trends is motion blur. Motion blur is happens when you take a photograph of something that is moving rapidly. The result is a less detailed picture, since the picture is trying to interpret all the movement and show the sense of speed. In the lives of kids and families today there is motion blur between the virtual and physical worlds they occupy. For kids and teens in the virtual world, friends and relationships on Facebook are just as valid as the friends and relationships they have at their school or neighborhood. Shane Hipps who wrote Flickering Pixels introduces the term "digitally absent" for those who would rather take a phone call th

Previously I wrote about five forces or broad trends that we are facing as children's and family ministry leaders (the rise of the individual, connectivity, Twitter Speed, Rip-Mix-Burn-Share, and Motion Blur). I'd like to address each one of these trends and present some ideas and possibilities for response. From the original article: Rip, Burn, Mix, Share: The iTunes mantra has become the new normal for content. Television shows or news programs get live video responses then mashed up, auto-tuned, and delivered to YouTube. Did you know that Google recently changed its copyright enforcement largely because of a YouTube video of a wedding party dance that turned a song into Sony's 8th best seller in history? Tutorials for professional software are distributed with the original files so that users can think up new ways of creating content, all for free. Kids are used to creating their own content. One of my favorite weekends of the year is the weekend after Christmas beca

Online classes are becoming more and more common - not just for adults seeking flexible degree programs, but for children. I came across a great article in the Seattle Times about an online class for kids about kindness. Here's what Dan Pink had to say about the kindness class: Andy Smallman, head of the Puget Sound Community School in Seattle, has come up with a social innovation that’s ingenious, inspiring, and infectious. He calls it “kindness class.” Each week students in the online course get an assignment. In week one, they do something kind for themselves. In week two, they do something kind for someone they love. And so on. Along the way, participants do something kind for a neighbor, provide something wonderful for someone to find, let everyone go ahead of them for a week, and do something kind anonymously. For more information, check out the site and this Seattle Times article. In a world where people are seeking purpose and connection, kindness classes could be an i

Previously I wrote about five forces or broad trends that we are facing as children's and family ministry leaders (the rise of the individual, connectivity, Twitter Speed, Rip-Mix-Burn-Share, and Motion Blur). I'd like to address each one of these trends and present some ideas and possibilities for response. From the original article: Twitter Speed: Clearly everything is getting faster and more powerful. Computers, cell phones, netbooks, and the Internet. Five years ago, only 81% of American households had access to a low speed Internet connection! Now 96% of American households are connected to or have access to a high speed Internet connection. Many of you may not have heard of Ian Jukes. Dr. Jukes is an educator who specializes in digital learners. He has researched their needs, preferences, successes, and failures. His books include Teaching the Digital Generation, Windows on the Future: Education in the Age of Technology, and Understanding the Digital Generation: Te

I've taken a break from blogging, but I'm excited about all the amazing resources the Cory Center will bring to the field of children's and family ministry!

This is a live blog from a session with Dr. Grant Osbourne on the Book of Revelation.

Kids are more wired and connected than ever before. On one hand I can see the argument for becoming unwired and unplugged while at church. Ministry should focus people where they need to be. But on the other hand, I think it's more important to focus ministry on where people are before you focus them on where they need to be. Here are some suggestions...

Previously I wrote about five forces or broad trends that we are facing as children's and family ministry leaders (the rise of the individual, connectivity, Twitter Speed, Rip-Mix-Burn-Share, and Motion Blur). I'd like to address each one of these trends and present some ideas and possibilities for response.

So many things around us are changing. There are forces at work in the lives of our children and families that need to be recognized and addressed.

As more and more people use Twitter to learn and gather resources, there are some significant drawbacks from this platform that a new technology may answer: Google Wave. How can Google Wave facilitate learning and support networking among children's and family ministry leaders?

There are only a few things that really rip me apart, bullying is one of them.

It is possible to shoot amazing videos with a camera that costs less than $200. I'll show you how!

I'm about to share one of the best kept secrets in children's ministry.

Steve Adams is presenting the final session at PDCM 2009 about Encouragement.

Doug Fields is presenting Session 9 at PDCM!

Steve Adams and Randy Isola: Empower - To give somebody a greater sense of confidence or self-esteem

Steve Adams and Cynthia Petty with Carmen Hawe: Enlist - to gain the cooperation or support of somebody

Steve Adams is presenting Session 5: Equip - to prepare someone with the necessary education, training, or experience to succeed

Check out the live blog of Session 1!

Execute - to put an instruction or plan into practice. Tune into the 2nd General Session of the children's ministry conference at Saddleback!

Check out the live blog of PDCM 2009 - the Pre-Conference Session...

This past weekend, I used the program "Comic Life" to create five different scenarios on obedience as small group discussion starters after talking through the Parable of the Two Sons in Matthew 21:28-31. Did it work?

One of the best exercises for me to build my creativity has been drawing. I am not an artist, but I'm always looking for tools and ways to express ideas. Here's some great resources I've come across that are worth sharing.

I've written about Wordle before. It's a great tool to create cool designs out of text by calculating how frequently words are used and representing it graphically. I was recently challenged to use Wordle as a devotional tool.

So often our ministry and leadership can be characterized by constant movement, action, and focus on what is going to happen next. Are there any dangers to leading with velocity?

I've been using Twitter, email, and cmconnect to ask churches to share their special needs leader resources. Shockingly, I received zero responses back from ministries who have a written handbook or formal leader resource for those who work with children with special needs. Even those with established special needs programs had no such resource. Help me understand: why not?

Last fall my church’s senior leaders introduced the staff to the book “The Externally Focused Church” by Rick Rusaw and Eric Swanson. Over the summer I’ve been thinking about how to apply some of those principles to children’s ministry.

As I prepare for the fall, I’m reviewing a document that I go back to often titled “Busting Barriers and Mindset Changes.” I’ll share some of that document with you because that’s what I am, a sharing kind of guy.

Over the past several weeks I have been working almost full-time to prepare and execute the large group environments for our summer camps, Hot U Jr (for 3 year olds - entering Kindergarten) and Hot U (entering 1st grade - entering 4th grade). Summer camps are fun and exciting but they pose a challenge for me because I do not spend the summer preparing for the fall. I have been carving out additional time early in the morning or when I'm eating lunch to think through some fall training materials for my elementary small group leaders. Here's four C's that I think will help shape those materials.

I've learned so much from the Learning Leaders Fieldbook created by the MASIE Center that I had to create a blog series to share the insights. You can check out Part 1 of the series here. The MASIE Center created the fieldbook to focus on the creation, role and function of a Learning CEO.

As a pastoral leader, it's part of my calling to offer comfort, support, and care for the families who are acutely affected by loss and tragedy. When I started out in ministry, I really did not know how to approach families in these tough situations. But after 6 years in ministry, I've learned a crucial lesson.

How can we develop as leading learners in our faith communities? What will it take to establish ourselves as leaders of learning?

Get the most out of your time in brainstorming meetings by following some simple rules.

Teaching Bible stories and how to find passages in the Bible is only part of a much larger faith skill set that children need to survive in the 21st century.

How can your team excel at brainstorming? Here's five simple rules.

Think Orange is a great read, but does the field of children's and family ministry need more than a book about why the partnership between parents and families is crucial?

The context where you place a volunteer will dramatically effect their ability to grow as a leader in the same way that the soil conditions, irrigation, and sunlight affect the way a seedling will grow. The rules of real estate apply to volunteer placement: location, location, location!

Increasingly, churches are adopting and redesigning business models for ministry. As businesses start developing new kinds of positions and roles, should the church follow suit? I think it might be worth a shot with the advent of the Learning CEO.

As leaders, we must examine how we use the greatest book in our ministry. Tech Learning provides us some ideas about how to take strides to improve our efforts.

I had the privilege of having five minutes to share about my graduate school experience during commencement weekend. I thought I would share those thoughts with all of you and make what I hope to be a compelling case for advanced study in children's and family ministry.

So I just finished grad school...now what?

I'm always looking for better ways to find things on the Internet. As you know, the Internet is a vast sea of information that is constantly being searched and catalogued.

As the field of education shifts towards integrating technology into the classroom, what are the shifts children's ministry needs to make to engage digital learners?

Is there a reason why the Cory Center has a technology blog for a children's and family ministry website? Find out.

Kids these days are bombarded by a world that tells them what to think, what to wear, who to love, and how to live. It’s a nightmare for parents who want to influence their child’s life without being controlling. So how does a parent successfully build into the lives of their kids to produce children of character?

What tools are you using to connect to people in the children's and family ministry?

Our memories of those who teach us are powerful - these memories should inform our leadership and recruitment strategy.

I'm a huge fan of David Allen's Getting Things Done management style. But the philosophy behind these practices was bluntly expressed in a manifesto that just wrings true with my strengths.

I know, the debate over Harry Potter is essentially over. However the debate comes to haunt those of us who lead children’s and family ministry because the movies are still being released. This debate has a fairly polemical nature to it. The two sides (pro and con) routinely write books and fire away in articles and blogs. But I’m less concerned about the polemic nature of the actual debate. My brother John is.

I came across an excellent article reflecting data and conclusions about the study of the impact of e-learning and learner’s views on the physical places where they learn. From my understanding, this study was intended to help organizations plan better learning spaces (buildings, centers, libraries, colleges, schools, etc…) but the information revealed some key components of digital learners that are helpful for children’s and family leaders.

Everyone loves a good story. But the truth of the matter is that stories actually hold a special place in the brain. Research from Sung-Il Kim in 1999 (and later reflected upon by cognitive psychologist Daniel Willingham) showed that the brain treats information told in story form in a different manner. There are a few general characteristics of story that are pertinent for our conversation as children’s and family ministry leaders.

For many of us, we are in the season of preparation for next year’s crops. Take time to till the soil, level the field, and grind out the weeds.

I think the field of children's and family ministry is an incredible place to work and devote my time and energy. But there is one critical area where the field needs to step up: theology.

Kevin DeYoung, author and pastor, took time to speak to our pastoral staff today about the Emergent Church and an Evangelical and Orthodox response.

So I went to see the new Hannah Montana movie for my daughter’s third birthday and here’s what I learned.

If the world of information is growing exponentially, what are you doing to keep up in your leadership, teaching, and learning?

Can you share the story God is telling and the role you are to play in only 50 words? Try it.

I'm always looking for new ways to help train my leaders. I came across a website the other day that has a free game to do exactly that - it's brainy, fun, and it will be featured at some point in a leader's meeting soon!

If you don't follow Indexed - you're missing out on something funny, insightful, and creative.

Dean Butterfield reviews KidzMatter's resource, Who's Your Idol - a four week curriculum loaded with videos and images to teach kids about placing God first in their lives.

With new online tools for devotions, how much time should we spend teaching kids how to use the book of the Bible?

A simple way to support parents in your church!

What is the best thing we can give to our kids?

Employers and school superintendents define "creativity" and there are interesting disconnects between framing problems and being comfortable with the absence of a right answer.

Conspire 09 continues with an interview of Ivy Beckwith and Donald Ratcliff, performed by Amy Dolan. I did my best to sum up the questions and responses!

Phil Vischer kicked off the Conspire Conference with an insightful look at children and media.

How are we setting up kids to hear the Gospel? What can we learn from messaging professionals in other fields?

Turn the discipline of prayer into a visual and digital experience with http://Wordle.Net

Children's Ministry can often center around teaching children about the characters of the Bible. But what happens when the plot of these stories become dull and repetitive? How can we break ourselves and our teaching out of familiarity?

The symbol of a tree with deep roots is powerful. Paired with wings or a bird in flight, even more so. How can ministry in the middle of a recession stay strong when asked to do more with less?

You might be a tech geek if any of the following phrases apply to you!

Evernote is a new web-tool that helps people like me remember things that I come across online. Move bookmarks aside - Evernote is the new elephant in the room.

Shane Hipps, author of Flickering Pixels, has some interesting things to say about technology and faith.

The Spark Conference, hosted by Elmbrook Church in Brookfield, WI, is a different kind of conference that works for me and a whole bunch of other leaders in children's and family ministry.

Many members of the Cory Center Team along with Bethel MACFM graduates will be gathering today for the Spark Children's Ministry Conference in Brookfield, WI. today. It promises to be a creative time!

Can Wii Fit help curb the obesity epidemic in American families?

The Vatican follows the lead of President Barack Obama and Queen Elizabeth II, launching a YouTube channel featuring the musings of Pope Benedict XVI.

A new study came out addressing the question of who the majority of Facebook users are and what kind of friendships are created.

Are the kids we serve becoming contributors or just bigger consumers? YouTube helps us decide.