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2015 Newsfeeds

Tuesday 15th December 2015

Tues 15th Dec 2015

HIH2016BANNER

Have you booked yet?

Paul Butler (Bishop of Durham, President of Scripture Union, ‘advocate for children’ on behalf of the Church of England’s bishops and the Lead Bishop on Safeguarding nationally) will lead us in two Bible studies in our main stage sessions on Friday evening and Saturday morning. Nurtured and Nurturing will exploring the stories of Timothy and Priscilla & Aquila.

Lou Fellingham (worship leader, singer and recording artist, originally lead singer for Phatfish and now with a firmly-established career as a solo artist) will lead us in worship with her band on Saturday evening. Rejoice as we reflect on the day and thank the Lord for the good plans he has for each of us.

Bob Hartman (storyteller extraordinaire and the author of over fifty books for children including the Lion Storyteller Bible) will be joined by friends to lead an all-age session to Celebrate Together: God’s Power at the end of the Families Welcome time on Saturday afternoon.

Families are welcome to join us from 1.30-6.00pm on Saturday. For delegates, this is a great opportunity to see how children of various ages respond to the practical ideas offered.

1.45pm Venture Together: God’s Power – Play games, have fun and meet God.

3.15pm Explore Together: God’s Power – Hear from God and learn from each other.

4.45pm Celebrate Together: God’s Power – Gather together for an all-age celebration.

Our Mission stream is in place:

Sports mission – Sport is integral to the culture of UK. Explore why and how we can share faith through sport in our churches, schools and local communities. Led by Richard Witham (Friday 6.00pm)

Why don’t dads come to church? – We’re often great at reaching out and supporting mothers and their children, but we still struggle to engage with dads. Examine the reasons why and look at the impact working with dads and their toddlers can have. Led by Mark Chester & Tony Sharp (Saturday 9.15am)

BASICS: Developing year-round mission – The calendar gives many opportunities to reach out and communicate the love of Jesus to children and their families. Practical ideas for different times of the year, also showing how one can follow on from another, forming a year-round outreach cycle. Led by Sarah Smart and others (Saturday 3.15pm)

Hands On ways to engage with unchurched kids – Accessible programmes, utilising space, reaching challenging kids, two fingered gospel, hula hoop verses and penalty prayers. Led by Phil Moore (Saturday 4.45pm)

DEEPER FOR LEADERS: Children’s ministry and the missio Dei. Led by Sharon Prior (Sunday 9.15am)

Messy hospitality – What’s so wonderful about welcome? Why has it been so important to Christians through the centuries? How do we do it well for families today? Led by Lucy Moore & the Messy Church team (Sunday 9.15am)

More information about the conference, including programme, speaker and exhibitor details can be found on our website https://www.handinhandconference.com/conferences-training/

Tues 15th Dec 2015

New exhibitors for 2016

We are pleased to welcoming three organisations that have never exhibited at Hand in Hand before and a returning exhibitor with a new concept.

Children Changing Nations

…equips children and leaders through prayer training and mission opportunities to carry and release God’s love and blessing across the nation, changing the course of history! Nick Jackson, who is part of CCN, will be including examples from some of their mission projects in his session titled Activate Children as part of our Holy Spirit stream.

Mission Aviation Fellowship

…is a dynamic Christian aviation charity, operating 130 light aircraft in around 25 developing countries, bringing help to the most isolated communities on earth.

Simple Truths

…is a programme that gives parents of younger children the tools to confidently talk to their children about ‘the Birds and the Bees’. MaryFlo Ridley and Hester Bouwer will be leading a session about Simple Truths, helping you discover how you can offer their programme to families you are connected to.

Key to Life?

…is a new initiative from Counties who have previously participated in our exhibition area with the Life Exhibition. Key to Life? is a cutting edge mobile experience sharing the story of Jesus through a series of interactive and immersive presentations – using sound, sights and smells. They will be parking their van adjacent to our exhibition area, so you will be able to experience it in full.

Tues 15th Dec 2015

Max7: a free resource

The Max7 website features over 8000 downloadable resources. These Bible resources include curriculum, videos, music, and training materials for use through children’s or young people’s ministry, sports or creative ministry. This worldwide partnership freely serves the work of evangelism, helping children and young people live life to the MAX, 7 days a week with Jesus – the life described in John 10:10.

With an easy-to-use multilingual search function the website allows users to find resources relating to a Bible verse or keyword. Many UK visitors already use the site for English resources but those working in multi-ethnic situations might also find resources applicable to the language groups they serve.

In addition, the Max7 community is able to participate and contribute to resource development through feedback and uploading new resources to the site. Regular updates of new Max7 resources can also be accessed through RSS feeds from the website, so users can stay in touch with new resource additions.

Max 7 is particularly strong on sports ministry resources, visual material related to parables and advocacy materials about children’s ministry. Find out more at www.max7.org

Tues 15th Dec 2015

FREE Download

For the next 2 weeks you can download Dave Robert’s 2014 conference Bible study: Jesus’ radical message about children for FREE. Jesus’ words and actions with respect to children were frequent and often challenging to the spiritual worldview of the day. What did he say then and what does it say to us today?

Dave will be hosting the our main stage sessions at the 2016 conference.

Download here

Tues 15th Dec 2015

 hands-on-dough

(Victoria Beech, at the 2014 conference)

  1. Introduce a Bible story or a complex concept, eg. tax collecting.
  2. Tell the Bible story. Invite children to create characters, objects and landscape. Don’t be precious.
  3. Respond to the Bible story in whatever way they choose.
  4. Praise God. Create words to describe and praise God.
  5. Say sorry to God. Make a sculpture or symbol of something you are sorry for and then squidge it up.

Tues 15th Dec 2015

Other dates for your diary

  • Ministry to Fathers teaching weekend, 13-15 May 2016, hosted by Who Let The Dads Out? at Cliff College, Sheffield.

  • Messy Church Conference 2016, celebrating and learning with the worldwide family of Messy Church. 16-18 May 2016, High Leigh Conference Centre, Hertfordshire. www.messychurch.org.uk/event/messy-church-conference

Wednesday 25th November 2015

Weds 25th Nov 2015

christmas-around-corner

It seems a shame that more children don’t get to read stories with Bible content or a strong Christian message. On our web site we have a section listing some great books for children. Could you give some as gifts this Christmas?

The Big Pig Stampede and a bunch more amazing miracles (Bob Hartman, published by Tyndale)

Two itinerant market stall traders realise that if they follow this guy called Jesus around, there are always crowds and good selling opportunities. Their sons, ‘Goat Boy’ and Bug, along with cousin Lump, have great adventures and discover more about what it really means to follow Jesus.

Bob’s passion is to teach the Bible in a way that helps kids want to read its stories time and time again. Not just because the stories are ‘good for you’ but because they are creative, clever and so enthralling that kids can’t help themselves.

Sue says:

In many of his books for children, Bob uses incidental characters, or those that may have been around, to tell Bible stories in a fun way. The Big Pig Stampede should appeal to 7-10 year olds. Sadly it is only available in hard back (or Kindle edition) at the moment and is quite pricey.

Parenting children for a life of confidence (Rachel Turner, published by BRF)

The world has a formula for confidence: ‘You are amazing and perfect, just the way you are. People should love and accept you, and, if they don’t, well, that’s their problem. Some of the Christian community goes along with this formula. We can be told in church: ‘God made us perfect and precious. You are unique and wonderful, like a gemstone in his eyes, worthy of so much.’ We think that if our children could just believe those statements deep in their hearts, then they would be confident. If only they could live those beliefs, they would be able to weather the storms in the world. The problem is that the formula doesn’t work… In this thought-provoking and engaging book, Rachel Turner explores how we can help our children to discover a healthy core of confidence, offering practical wisdom and suggestions for nurturing this in daily life.

Sue says:

This is the third Parenting Children for a life of… title from Rachel and, as the rest, it isn’t just for parents but gives really helpful insights for anyone who ever has a conversation with children: parents, grandparents, Godparents, teachers, church leaders, church members – the list could go on. It is full of anecdotes and useful suggestions on how you may shape your comments and questions for children in ways that may help them grow in confidence and live joyfully in the freedom that Jesus has purchased for them.

Wed 25th Nov 2015

HIH2016BANNER

Our next conference is 5th- 7th February 2016 in Eastbourne.

Whatever your involvement in children’s or family ministry there will be something for you over the weekend.

Latest updates:

On Saturday afternoon the Bistro, just off the main exhibition hall, will be given over to opportunities for reflection and space to connect with God:

• 1.45-2.15 Remotivated for ministry Feeling stale and lacking motivation? Reignite your Spiritual Passion! Let’s learn how to minister in God’s strength. Led by Colin Bennett

• 3.15-3.45 Reside it the Lord Focus on the practical and spiritual aspects of walking with God in your everyday life. Led by Pete Oakley

• 4.45-5.15 Relax Unwind to music and hear God’s words spoken over you in a multi-sensory environment. A time to ‘Be Still and know…’ Led by Sharon Prior

• For the remainder of the time from 2.15-6.00pm, the space will be set up with interactive areas to encourage you to pray and encounter God – let our Father share his heart with you. Heather Thompson, Nick Jackson and members of our pastoral team will be there to guide and pray with you.

On Saturday evening, from 8.45-10.00pm, join us in the Congress Theatre to REJOICE!

Reflect on the day and thank the Lord for the good plans he has for each of us. Worship led by Lou Fellingham and her band.

‘Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done. Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of his wonderful acts. Glory to his holy name; let the heart of those who seek the Lord rejoice. Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.’ Psalm 105:1-4

Do you weep for the children that we lose along the way? I wept when I watched this short video by Terry Williams. Over the weekend, including during our main stage session on Sunday morning, Terry will be helping us consider how we might keep more children walking with the Lord.

Our Holy Spirit stream is in place:

Activate children – an introduction to the gifts of the Holy Spirit, how to help children identify their ministries and be released into them. Including plenty of practical examples. Led by Nick Jackson (Friday 4.30pm)

• DEEPER FOR LEADERS: The Holy Spirit in children’s ministry – already seeing the Holy Spirit move in your kids work? Want to go deeper? Facing some issues? Come and discover the God of the ‘more’. Led by Heather Thompson (Saturday 9.15am)

• BASICS: The Holy Spirit, the helper – Who is the Holy Spirit? Why do we need Him? What does He want to do? How can we teach children about the Holy Spirit? Led by Rebi Crocker & Pete Oakley (Saturday 1.45pm)

The Holy Spirit and under 5s – removing the boundaries of our expectations. Led by Olly and Helen Goldenberg (Saturday 3.15pm)

Get the message – helping children to hear from God. Led by Elaine Webster (Saturday 4.45pm)

Hands On ways of making the Holy Spirit accessible to children. Led by Nick & Chris Jackson (Sunday 9.15am)

Word and Spirit: striking the right balance – reflecting on the weekend’s sessions. What can you do to allow the Holy Spirit more freedom in your ministry while maintaining a balance with teaching God’s Word? Led by Heather Thompson (Sunday 12.30pm)

More information about the conference, including programme, speaker and exhibitor details can be found on our website https://www.handinhandconference.com/conferences-training/

Weds 25th Nov 2015

FREE Download

For the next 2 weeks you can download Sharon Prior’s 2014 conference session: Using different learning styles for FREE. Exploring different learning styles and how you can plan sessions to incorporate these styles, so that children can learn in the way that they were created to learn.

Sharon will be leading the sessions Mission stream ‘Deeper for leaders: Children’s ministry and the Mission Dei’ and ‘Relax to scripture and music’ at the 2016 conference.

Download here

Weds 25th Nov 2015

Simple Truths

are joining us at Hand in Hand for the first time. As well as exhibiting, we are pleased to welcome MaryFlo Ridley who is coming from the US to lead a seminar. MaryFlo has designed a programme that gives parents the tools and confidence to deal with the essential area of talking about the ‘birds and bees’ to children from a young age – a programme, using video clips and discussion, that you may consider offering to parents from your toddler or other church groups.

More information: www.maryflo.com

MaryFlo writes: Your child may be 4 or 7 and you wonder how to answer questions like, ‘Mummy, how does the baby get out of you?’ or ‘How did that baby get in?’ If you aren’t prepared, this can be heart-stopping! And yet this is a time in their life when they are naturally curious, and it’s an excellent opportunity for you to begin age appropriate conversations with them on the subject of sex. Are you prepared to capture these teachable moments?’ First you need to answer the question, ‘What is the main thing YOU want your children to know about sex?’ Most parents would agree that the messages in the culture are NOT the ones they hope their children adopt for their own, as they are confusing, degrading, and even disturbing. So what IS the positive, healthy message you would like your children to have? If you are a person of faith, what is the Biblical message you believe you want to send? In the first chapters of the Bible, God tells us the simple and beautiful truth of sexuality and what his purposes are. The beauty and the boundaries of sex are made clear here. Where then does the fear in talking to our children come from? YOU… not porn, not the internet, not the neighbour down the street, but YOU should get the privilege of giving your child their first impression of what this is all about. What expectation and hopes do you have for your children? What will their image of sex be as a result of growing up in your home? This is quite personal, and consequently messages will vary from family to family, but the important thing is that you are confident that YOUR message reflects YOUR values, and what you truly believe you desire to communicate to your children. You may not announce your message to your children just yet, but early conversations should reflect this message.

Weds 25th Nov 2015

hands-on-spirituality

(Carolyn Edwards & the CYM team, at the 2014 conference)

1. Encourage imaginative play and storytelling with plastic or wooden toys. Don’t interfere!

2. Pray using colour. No words or pictures, just big brushes, wallpaper and freedom to pray.

3. Light a fire. Big is great, but one candle can create a space for stillness and reflection.

4. Go outside. Take some risks. Climb, run fast, roll down hills, breathe deeply, look closely.

5. Make really big bubbles using a bucket of watery washing up liquid, two sticks and a string.

Weds 25th Nov 2015

Other dates for your diary

Thursday 22nd October 2015

Thurs 22nd Oct 2015

HIH2016BANNER

Our next conference is 5th- 7th February 2016 in Eastbourne.

Whatever your involvement in children’s or family ministry there will be something for you over the weekend.

Time to connect with God, be refreshed and reflect on your ministry

•    Through worship and Bible study in our main stage sessions. Paul Butler (Bishop of Durham) will be exploring two stories from the Bible as he speaks on Nurtured and Nurturing on Friday and Saturday.

•    Through opportunities for prayer, reflection and to encounter God during the optional session times on Saturday.

•    With space in the programme for you to take time out – for a walk on the beach, a conversation with another delegate, exhibitor or speaker, or prayer with a member of our pastoral team.

Time to develop fresh ideas about your ministry with children and families

•    Through the challenge from our final main stage speaker – Terry Williams (SU, Queensland Australia) to consider the need for information and formation if we want to see transformation.

•    Through our programme of optional sessions with streams addressing the Holy Spirit, mission to children and families, and family ministry.

•    Through the ‘diving deeper for leaders’ sessions –one within each of the three streams.

•    Through the Additional Needs Alliance forum incorporated within the optional seminar programme.

•    Through clinics, where you can book to discuss issues you may have with your children’s or family ministry with some of our team

Time to be resourced for your ministry

•    Through Hands On workshops, including our Families Welcome afternoon on Saturday when local families are invited to come along and you can join them in sessions seeing the theory in practice. This will conclude with a celebration led by Bob Hartman.

•    Through our exhibition and shop areas where you can meet with many of the organisations and ministries resourcing aspects of children’s and family ministry with products, ideas and local events.

More information about the conference, including programme and exhibitor details can be found on our website https://www.handinhandconference.com/conferences-training/

Don’t forget to take advantage of our Early Bird offer you need to book before 1st November.

Thurs 22nd Oct 2015

Two new books…

Two new books that are both easy reads with a mix of biblical background, theory, experience and practical ideas and which speak into the developing conversation about family ministry from the context of intergenerational church.

Blended: a call to reimagine our church family (Eleanor Bird, published by BRF)

Church as we know it is changing. With conversations and initiatives bubbling up around how our churches can be truly intergenerational, functioning in close and loving community as the body of Christ, Eleanor speaks into the debate with a challenge to rethink our work with all ages from the ground up. She offers practical observations drawn from her experience in a local church context together with a biblically based framework for how this thinking can be taken forward in your church.

Rachel Turner (author and previous Hand in Hand speaker) says:

In order for us to see nations changed, we need to see the full body of Christ rise up together across all ages, to walk and minister shoulder to shoulder. Blended invites us to see that it is not only necessary, but possible. No matter what size community or denomination we belong to, this book gives us ways of seeing and doing church together with a new heart that will reap great rewards for the kingdom.

Explore Together: the journey (Lianne Semans Smith and Lee Herdman, published by Scripture Union)

Also two resource books, each containing 12 sessions to help you and your church engage with the Bible as an inclusive, authentic and creative community.

The authors write, ‘Whether we like it or not, whether we think it’s wrong or right, the reality for many churches in the UK is that we segregate more than we gather together… Togetherness is about intentionally cultivating a mindset within our Christian communities that takes seriously its collective responsibility for faith formation and helps each member of that community recognise the part they have to play on that process.’ Explore Together is a fresh, new, exciting and creative way to enable groups of any and all ages to engage with the Bible.

Paul Butler (Bishop of Durham and 2016 Hand in Hand speaker) says:

Letting the Bible speak for itself is essential. Explore Together is a brilliant way of simply encouraging us, at every age, to let the Bible speak, hear God’s voice and share it together.

Thurs 22nd Oct 2015

christmas

The No-rehearsal Nativity (a book by Janine Gillion, published by BRF)

Janine writes in her introduction to the book:

‘Throughout my working life I have enjoyed combining my professional work as an actor and teacher with my life as the wife of the vicar. When it was suggested that I write a manual to help others engage children in a nativity play, I thought it might seem presumptuous of me, as many churches, schools and other Christian groups produce the most wonderful, inspiring and enchanting nativities. However, I wanted to use my experience of all aspects of the preparation and performance, in order to provide a full guide for those who are starting from scratch, offer suggestions to those who want to adapt of develop their usual way of presenting a nativity, and be of use to those who may be interested in trying a different approach.’

The book also includes a script, ways of incorporating a blessing of the crib or Christingle service and ideas for costumes.

Christmas Kids Alive! comic

The UK’s only weekly Christian comic will be producing a special glossy Christmas edition as their Saturday 5 December issue. Full of Bible stories, cartoons, jokes, competitions, puzzles and much more, this super comic is a great Christmas gift for the children at your church and at just 25p is fantastic value for money. Even if you don’t regularly purchase Kids Alive! you can order the Christmas issue as a one-off. It doesn’t carry an issue date and so can be distributed throughout the Christmas period. To order, call SP&S on 01933 445445 by Monday 9 November.

GodVenture Christmas resources

include a Sticker Advent Calendar (that has a story booklet to use alongside the calendar), Advent Pocket Cards, Sticker Christmas Cards and a Family GodVenture book. All of these and lots more ideas for families to use together at home can be found on the website www.GodVenture.co.uk

Thurs 22nd Oct 2015

FREE resources from Premier Childrenswork

Young people are leaving the Church at an alarming rate. In an effort to stem this loss and better equip Christian children’s workers, the creators of Premier Childrenswork magazine have announced that all children’s ministry resources will now be available FREE to download online! Access hundreds of meeting guides, games ideas, all-age service plans, discussion starters and more – ready-to-use and completely free of charge. Visit premierchildrenswork.com/resources to register and begin downloading your free, ready-to-use resources!

Thurs 22nd Oct 2015

FREE Download

For the next 2 weeks you can download Heather Thompson and Nick Jackson’s 2014 conference session: Helping children bring heaven to earth for FREE. Do you long to see children making a difference in their world? How can they be encouraged to work with God to see His Kingdom Come?

Heather and Nick will be key contributors to the Holy Spirit stream at the 2016 conference

Download here

Thurs 22nd Oct 2015

hands-on

(Judith Twani, at the 2014 conference)

1.    Get down on your knees and move around the space, seeing things from the perspective of a small child

2.    Let the children know this is their space using photos and examples of their creativity

3.    Use open-ended materials as play resources: boxes, paper, fabrics, blocks…

4.    Use the floor rather than tables and chairs

5.    Get outside and become immersed in the great place God has created

Thurs 22nd Oct 2015

Other dates for your diary

  • Mission Magic workshops, all new content, inspirational messages and new Christmas magic! 4 November, Newcastle; 11 November, London; 11 December, Hertfordshire. www.missionmagic.co.uk/training-days

  • Explore Together tour: Scripture Union sessions on discovering how people of all ages can engage with scripture together. 24 November, 1.00-3.30pm Lancaster Priory, 7.00-9.30pm Preston Minster. exploretour@scriptureunion.org.uk

  • Messy Church Conference 2016, celebrating and learning with the worldwide family of Messy Church. 16-18 May 2016, High Leigh Conference Centre, Hertfordshire. www.messychurch.org.uk/event/messy-church-conference

Wednesday 30th September 2015

Wed 30th Sept 15

we-are-family

A couple of weeks ago I attended the We are Family conference, exploring the changing face of family ministry. Over two days we were presented with the findings of the research on family ministries carried out by CGMC (Consultative Group on Ministry among Children) and The Methodist Church with Merida Associates; attended sessions introducing the new Core Skills for Family Ministry course; heard from a co-founder of Mumsnet; caught up with friends and associates and ate very well!

You can find the full report on the research findings on www.cgmcontheweb.org.uk or www.methodist.org.uk and details of the new Core Skills book are below, but I was left with two thoughts after the conference.

Firstly – many parents, especially mums, spend far less time with their children than they did 20 or 30 years ago. Then, they may have been pleased to drop the children off at Sunday School and have an hour to themselves. Now, if children have been at after school clubs, child minders or grandparents whilst parents are out at work, weekend family time is precious. If we want to attract families (and keep them coming) to church, then we may have to think carefully about how we structure all our services and activities so that families find them such enjoyable times and places to be together that they prioritise them, rather than thinking they may try and fit in church if it doesn’t conflict with other, more fun activities they can plan.

Secondly – I think we are still grappling with the scope of Family Ministry. On a practical level, family ministry has come out of children’s ministry and often the children’s worker has been asked to extend their role to include families or a new family worker is appointed and given responsibility for the children’s and youth work too. In this case the scope of family ministry is limited to dependent children and their carer adults. But on a theological and theoretical level we start looking at families as households of all forms and the Biblical concept of extended families, tribes and clans. To my mind, this encompasses everyone! It maybe that is how we should be reimagining church, but then we shouldn’t be appointing family ministry workers to oversee the work – what is left for the minister or vicar, the pastoral team, the worship team..?  Shouldn’t they all be reporting to the family ministry worker? Does that mean that a fresh understanding of family and family ministry needs to become a cornerstone in our theological colleges?

Wed 30th Sept 2015

Core Skills for Family Ministry: developing key skills for church-based family ministry

Written by The Consultative Group on Ministry among Children and published by BRF, this is a modular training course for children’s and family work practitioners developed on the same principles as the Core Skills for Children’s Ministry modules.

This foundational training book offers six stand-alone sessions on:

  • Biblical, historical and contemporary understanding of family
  • Family ministry today
  • Seasons of family life
  • Role of family relationships
  • Family wellbeing and wholeness
  • Faith in families

All the modules have been field-tested with participants from different denominations. Each module is creative, thought-provoking, interactive and designed to inspire and refresh children’s and family workers at all levels of expertise and experience.

Sue says…

If you have used Core Skills for Children’s Ministry you will know what to expect from this book. Although an individual can work through the chapters, the opportunities for group work and discussion mean it is most appropriate for people to join together for a training session lasting about 2 hours for each session. If you would like a taster of the course, elements from the first four sessions will be offered as seminars at our next Hand in Hand conference.

Wed 30th Sept 2015

HIH2016BANNER

Our next conference is 5th- 7th February 2016 in Eastbourne.

Family Ministry will be one of the streams running throughout the weekend, including

  • Seminars introducing 4 of the 6 units from Core Skills for Family Ministry
  • Other seminars and workshops on aspects of family ministry including a panel-led discussion exploring the impact of different cultural backgrounds on family ministry
  • Messy Church sessions and a ‘Messy Walk’ where you can join some of the Messy Church team and get out of the venue for a while on Saturday afternoon (there are some nice tea rooms nearby if the weather is too bad for walking!)
  • Clinics, where you can book to discuss issues you may have with your family ministry with some of our team
  • Families Welcome – on Saturday afternoon local families are invited to come along and you can join them in sessions seeing the theory in practice. This will conclude with a celebration led by Bob Hartman

Why not start planning now to bring those involved in delivering aspects of family ministry in your church? If you agree with my thoughts in the article above – that could be your entire leadership team!

Wed 30th Sept 2015

Puppet sketches that support Lectionary themes

Two of our regular conference exhibitors – Grace for the Next Generation and One Way UK, have worked together to produce short puppet sketches that introduce the Lectionary theme each week and tie into the Roots for Churches resource produced by a third exhibitor! Of course you don’t have to be a church that follows the Lectionary to be able to make use of these sketches that all have a related theme and Bible passage. Also, several of them could easily be delivered as a drama or simple duologue if you don’t have an expert puppet team. The scripts are downloadable from the Grace website: http://graceproject.org.uk.gridhosted.co.uk/new-information/

Wed 30th Sept 2015

Jack & Friends

Jack and his friends are mainly puppets and Andi Markham, from Kids UK, is The Puppet Man. There are currently 5 DVDs that contain a Bible story and various sketches, features, songs, crafts etc that are loosely related to the story theme. You can see them all listed on the Kids UK website: http://www.kidsuk.org/KidsUK/shop.html . Clips are also available on YouTube – search for Jack & Friends – The Puppet Podcast.

Wed 30th Sept 2015

FREE Download

For the next 2 weeks you can download Ed Jones’s 2014 main stage conference session: Intergenerational church and the role of children for free. How we can practically work through and release children into what is often considered to be a crazy and impossible idea, rather than the exciting and God-inspired opportunity that it is.

Download here

Wed 30th Sept 2015

5-hands-on-grandparents

(Judith Twani, at the 2014 conference)

1.    Re-enact Joshua and the walls of Jericho. Build the city with boxes

2.    Make a post box for prayer requests

3.    Make a large card Goliath and scrunch up paper to make ‘stones’. Try to knock the giant down

4.    Create instruments to accompany praise times. Cardboard tubes can make drumsticks

5.    Make a puppet theatre or TV screen

Bonus idea: Give them to a child to play with. They will have much better ideas than you!

Wed 30th Sept 2015

Other dates for your diary

Tuesday 18th Aug 2015

Tues 18th Aug 2015

cinnamon

You should never feel isolated in your ministry – you are part of a network that delivers over 220,000 social action projects, serves 48 million beneficiaries and gives over £3 billion worth of social support!

Earlier this year, The Cinnamon Network undertook audits in 57 towns and cities across the UK. Factoring up their results to the whole of the country gives the statistics cited above and the £3 billion only equates to the time that staff and volunteers give in the preparation and delivery of projects, it doesn’t include the value of the use of buildings and equipment or an estimate of the savings to Local Authorities or reduction in benefits claimed by beneficiaries. You can find more details of the audit on the Cinnamon Network web site: www.cinnamonnetwork.co.uk

The web site also has links to Recognised Projects – tried and tested ideas that can be taken off the shelf, set up and run by local church volunteers. Some of these are just running in one or two churches at the moment, others are already reaching out nationally. In the area of family and children’s ministry are:

  •  4Family equips local churches to train volunteers to support isolated, lonely or vulnerable families in their communities.
  • Baby Basics helps local churches to provide vulnerable women with essential equipment for life with a new baby. They work closely with midwives, health visitors and other agencies to provide a safe and reliable service.
  • MakeLunch helps local churches to provide meals during the holidays for children who would otherwise go hungry because they receive free school dinners during school term time only.
  • TLG Early Intervention helps local churches work in primary schools amongst children at risk of exclusion.
  • Who Let The Dads Out? helps local churches to establish projects which give dads, father figures and their children the opportunity to spend time together and have fun and provides resources to support dads in their fathering role.

TLG and Who Let The Dads Out? are regular supporters and contributors at our Hand in Hand conferences.

Tues 18th Aug 2015

TLG

TLG is a Christian charity that believes that education is a basic human right. It aims to provide a second chance to all children and young people who have been excluded from school or who are at a crisis point in their education. The earlier we can support a child, the greater impact this will have on their future – reducing the risk of exclusion later in their life.

The TLG Early Intervention programme trains teams of volunteers from local churches as Behaviour Coaches to go into schools and support primary-aged children through issues which are often outside their control, such as family breakdown and bullying. Coaches spend 1 hour a week with 1 child for 1 year. 93% of children show improvement in behaviour, and the lasting relationships with children and families allows the impact to be even greater.

As well as being one of The Cinnamon Network’s recognised projects, the TLG Early Intervention programme is supported by the Cabinet Office and Nesta.

More information: www.tlg.org.uk

Tues 18th Aug 2015

Who Let The Dads Out?

WLTDO? believes that to ‘turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers’ (Malachi 4:6) is a powerful way ‘to make ready a people prepared for the Lord’ (Luke 1:17). They help churches do this by inspiring, resourcing and supporting them to begin running activity sessions for fathers and children to attend together. These sessions give dads and their children the opportunity to spend time with each other, mix with other families, have fun and engage with the church.

Most churches become part of the movement by starting a Who Let The Dads Out? parent and toddler group. No other organisation has provided parent and toddler sessions as consistently, passionately or with the same longevity as the church. But those sessions reach relatively few fathers and there is a growing demand for male-orientated parenting groups in the context of family support strategies.

More information:  www.wholetthedadsout.org.uk

Tues 18th Aug 2015

The Barnabas Family Bible

(Martyn Payne & Jane Butcher, BRF)

Written for parents, grandparents and carers to share with their children through interactive family Bible and prayer times, this book spans the whole Bible narrative through 110 key extracts, with each section providing a brief comment on the passage, questions to discuss, a visual aid to encourage engagement with the story, an activity idea, a prayer idea, a key verse and a link to another Bible story. It also contains a Guidance and Support section on sharing faith as a family.

In the introduction to the book, the authors share the following:

Family is a big idea and needs to be seen as such. It is for all sorts of families that The Barnabas Family Bible has been written. Wherever children are being nurtured in love by significant adults in their lives, there is family… So however you are gathering to read the Bible together, we hope that this book will become a treasured and valued companion.

Sue says:

This book would make an ideal gift for parents who ask for a thanksgiving, dedication or baptism for their child. The Guidance and Support pages at the back of this book will give encouragement, ideas and confidence to families who want to explore the Bible and grow in faith together but don’t know how to get started. But, as the introduction says, ‘Wherever children are being nurtured in love by significant adults in their lives, there is family,’ and that can describe your church gathering too – especially if you only have a few children each week. This book could also be a useful resource for children’s work leaders.

Tues 18th Aug 2015

Founding Fathers

(Nathan Blackaby, CVM)

Other contributors: Carl Beech, Mark Chester, Dave Hearn, Krish Kandiah, Steve Legg, Ian Manifold, Jason Royce, Doug McWilliam.

Never before have good male role models, for children and young people, been recognized as so urgently needed. Nathan Blackaby shares characteristics of great men of faith from the Bible and personal experience and also draws on experts in areas including fostering, adoption, blended families, toddlers, teenagers, talking about sex, rites of passage, limited access and grand-parenting,  giving pointers and ideas to help men be intentional, Godly fathers, whatever their circumstances.

This book celebrates the importance of the role of fathering at all stages of the journey and offers thinking and help to dads as well men with no children who could still be a key influence to a fatherless generation. Discounts are available for bulk purchases through the web site:

www.cvm.org.uk/founding-fathers

Tues 18th Aug 2015

HIH2016BANNER

Our next conference is 5th- 7th February 2016 in Eastbourne.

Dependant on your role, you may either spend the summer months frantically busy, running a holiday club or camps, or you may have the opportunity to have a bit of break from your regular, term-time programme of events. But whatever our involvement in children’s or family ministry, it can often feel as if we are under constant pressure to deliver.

  • Do you sometimes feel close to burn out?
  • Do you need to be reenergised and motivated again for your ministry?
  • Would you like to spend time encountering God away from your regular responsibilities?

Throughout the conference weekend there will be various opportunities to take time for yourself, reflect on your ministry, reassess your calling and worship with others.

Why not start planning now as to how you could come as a church team? Imagine the possibilities for ministry when you return home with refreshed and motivated leaders and helpers all with a deeper understanding of their calling as well as equipped with new ideas and resources.

Bookings are now open. Take advantage of our Early Bird offer and SAVE by booking before 1st November 2015.

Tues 18th Aug 2015

FREE Download

For the next 2 weeks you can download Carolyn Edwards’s 2014 conference session: Survival skills for worn out children’s workers for free. Strategies for times when you want to ‘throw in the towel’!

Download here

Tues 18th Aug 2015

5-hands-on-grandparents

(Victoria Beech and Juliet Dodswell, at the 2014 conference)

  1. Resource them with ideas, eg. prayer jar; fridge magnets; sending picture messages, and recommend excellent products
  2. Help them share rituals for seasons, events, transitions and rites of passage
  3. Explore their unique opportunities, eg. special spaces and things in their home
  4. Show them how to share stories using every day or natural objects
  5. Encourage them to support parents as parents and in their own spiritual journey

Tues 18th Aug 2015

Job opportunities at BRF

BRF is entering an exciting new phase of development and is now recruiting for the following new full-time and part-time roles based at their offices in Abingdon:

  •  Communications Officer
  • Content Creation Administrator
  • Customer Services Coordinator
  • Executive Assistant to the CEO
  • Fundraising Officer
  • Messy Church and Who Let The Dads Out? Administrator
  • Publicity and Promotions Officer
  • Sales Development Officer

For full details and how to apply visit their website: www.brf.org.uk/vacancies

Tues 18th Aug 2015

Other dates for your diary

Friday 17th Jul 2015

Fri 17th Jul 2015

Guardians

Discovering the Bible in a digital world

by Maggie Barfield (Guardians of Ancora development team, Scripture Union)

I’m sure the Minecraft revolution has not passed you by – every day millions of kids (and older children) go onto their consoles, smartphones and tablets to play a game where they build – and destroy a world of their own. This is just the latest of a number of games that have held the attention and action of our children.

Children are increasingly seeing online as the primary place for information and entertainment, replacing books, TVs etc. When we at Scripture Union set out to ask ourselves the question of how to connect with all those children who don’t come near a church, we found ourselves asking the question, well what if Bible engagement was a video game – what would it look like?

When we started we gave ourselves four key goals: to reach beyond church children to those children who had never seen or read the Bible, who had no idea of Jesus or of God’s love; to be a game that children want to play repeatedly, so needing to embody features of the most successful secular games for children; to remove as many barriers to playing as possible, thus free to download, and free to play; to encourage children to come to a relationship with Jesus and support their faith formation within the game.

One of the key principles of Scripture Union is the undeniable truth of the Bible and as we developed the project we were concerned to ensure that bible settings are accurate and that although the story is told and experienced in a way that is fun and interactive, the story is not altered in any way. We also understood early on in the project that the retelling of the stories by themselves would be unlikely to bring children to a real relationship with God; playing them on tablets can be a solitary experience. We recognise the value of the church, the support networks, crucial friends and for many children their family in bringing people to Christ. It was always important that alongside the story telling and gameplay, we give a safe place for children to explore their own faith and reflect on the impact of the stories, and how that may affect them outside of the game. We encourage children to write their own prayers, to be creative designing pictures using stickers and familiar Paint tools which they can share with those people known to them.

So, after a huge amount of work by many talented people, and nearly five years after our early discussions, the first release of Guardians of Ancora, our digital game for children, has been launched and is opening up the Bible in a new exciting and interactive way for kids throughout the world.

Guardians2

Guardians of Ancora (Scripture Union)

Available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play Store and the Kindle Fire App Store the game is free to download and to play.

Targeted at 8-11 year olds the game will challenge children to restore the light to the World of Ancora by immersing themselves in Bible stories as they run, jump and solve puzzles. The game players are encouraged to reflect on those experiences in ways that support their own personal faith formation. Playable on all the major Tablet computer platforms, the graphics and gameplay are focused on being as good as other games that children play at the moment. Find out more at www.guardiansofancora.com

The Scripture Union development team say:

At Easter thousands of children and parents saw the game up close at Spring Harvest, and the response excitement and enthusiasm. One mum told us “At last I have a game that I’d love him to play, and he wants to play it”, whilst another boy who owned up to being a bit of a gamer, playing Minecraft a lot said ”I cannot wait for this, and I’ll tell my friends about it as well”

The launch version is just a stage in the development of what we pray will be a game that covers the whole message of God’s salvation from Creation to Revelation. The vision is to connect hundreds of thousands maybe millions of children to the Bible stories through the playing of the game, and through that a relationship with Jesus. Already churches and leaders who have seen early test versions of the game at events throughout the world are thinking of ways they can use the game to develop their ministry and support them in evangelism.

Sue says…

Download the game and play it yourself but, more importantly, get children to play it, ask them to tell you what they think and how you might use it in your church and encourage them to tell their friends about it, giving them a great way to share the Gospel message.

For younger children, the Bible for Kids (LifeChurch.tv) is a great, free iPad app with engaging, interactive illustrations to Bible stories written by Bob Hartman and fun facts and activities designed to help children remember what they discover.

Fri 17th Jul 2015

Extreme Crafts for Messy Churches

(Pete Maidment & Barry Brand, BRF)

Sub-titled 50 Activity Ideas for the Adventurous, this book is divided into five sections – big stuff, construction crafts, science crafts, arty crafts and edible crafts – with an appendix on planning a male-friendly Messy Church.

Mark Chester, founder of Who Let the Dads Out?, says:

I am by nature a craft sceptic. Glue, glitter and sequins are not easy for a bloke with big hands to cope with, but, within a few pages of the start of this book, Pete and Barry had won me over with their promise of the ‘extreme activities’ to come. I was not disappointed. I wanted to try building a fruit catapult, walking on eggs and mixing up some Oobleck (read the book to find out what that is!). I can still recall the excitement I felt as a child when discovering invisible ink, and now I’m desperate to give it a go again. The guidance in the back of the book about planning a male-friendly Messy Church is great stuff, but, as with the rest of the book, it’s not only relevant to Messy Churches. Whatever group for families you run – Messy Church, Who Let the Dads Out? or any other – I wholeheartedly recommend this book to you.

Sue says:

This book is great if you want ideas for activities for children and families that go beyond your usual craft table and games. Not only will they have an appeal to dads and boys who come along to your groups (and many girls and mums as well!), but they should help you get more men into your team of helpers.

Fri 17th Jul 2015

HIH2016BANNER

Our next conference is 5th- 7th February 2016 in Eastbourne.

  • We will have three main areas of focus for our optional programme – family ministry, focused on the relationship between church and families; mission, focused on how we reach out to families and children in our locality; Holy Spirit, focused on ensuring a Spirit/Word balance in our ministry.
  • During our main sessions, and as part of the Saturday afternoon sessions, we will focus on you, your relationship with God and your calling to ministry – offering inspiration and refreshment.
  • The Additional Needs Alliance Forum will be incorporated into the programme of optional sessions over the weekend.
  • We will again offer the Families Welcome option to local families to join us for Hands On activities and a time of worship on Saturday afternoon.

Bookings are now open. Take advantage of our Early Bird offer and SAVE by booking before 1st November 2015.

Fri 17th Jul 2015

FREE Download

For the next 2 weeks you can download Alex Taylor’s 2014 conference session: Encouraging faith in children for free. How can we encourage the faith development of the children in our care? Explore the principles and consider some practical steps to take in your work.

Download here

Fri 17th Jul 2015

hands-on-ways-to-pray

(from Victoria Beech and Phil Moore at the 2014 conference)

  1. Use letters – write your thanks or praise with fridge magnets, spaghetti, sponge, meringue letters.
  2. Use colours – choose a category for each colour of jelly bean, then eat and pray.
  3. Use numbers – choose 6 things or people to pray for. Number them, roll a dice and pray.
  4. Use ritual – wash your hands. Say sorry and ask God to wash away the wrong thing.
  5. Use your fingers – thumbs up = praise; index = thanks; middle = sorry; ring  =others; little = me.

Fri 17th Jul 2015

rock-pulseRock UK and Pulse Ministries working in partnership

Pulse Ministries is a charity with a mission to ‘Enlarge and Equip God’s Kingdom!’ It works with churches and organisations from different Christian traditions across the country, running holiday clubs, church weekends, youth weekends, praise parties, training and internships, all with a heart to equip the local church for mission. They have a specific heart for evangelism and leadership, committing to share the Gospel at every event they run and investing in leaders wherever possible.

Rock UK is a Christian charity providing facilities and activities for church youth groups, family weekends, Christian Unions, conferences and retreats. They are passionate about developing young people, bringing adventure into learning and using the outdoors to transform lives. Annually they provide over 50,000 people with a variety of accommodation options, meeting spaces and adventure programmes through their four UK venues: Carroty Wood, Kent; Frontier Centre, Northants; Summit Centre, South Wales; and Whithaugh Park, Scottish Borders.

Rock UK recognises that for many of their visiting groups, finding the time and resources to develop and deliver a spiritual programme during a residential stay can be a daunting task, so they are delighted to have developed a new partnership with Pulse Ministries to provide the option of a Spiritual Programme which groups can book as an addition to their visit to one of their centres. With the aim to be fun, interactive and thought provoking, sessions will include biblical teaching and be tailored to fit the specific needs of the group alongside their programme of instructed activities at the centre. Team Pulse will join the group from the very beginning to the end of their residential, building relationships with leaders and participants and providing help, support and assistance to where needed

Fri 17th Jul 2015

Other dates for your diary

Friday 26th Jun 2015

Fri 26th Jun 2015ALLIN-NEWSLETTERBANNER-967x273

Sue Price, Hand in Hand conference manager, writes:

I expect many of you are in a similar position to my own church, where we are currently grappling with what an all together service should look like. We had been running a Messy Church monthly on Sunday afternoon for five years and decided it was time for review, so we asked adults and children for feedback. Some families that had been coming regularly for five years said they enjoyed it but the adults still regarded it as something they came to for the benefit of their children.

Of course it is great that these families feel comfortable with us and we have no idea if and when the Holy Spirit may open their hearts to receive Jesus, but other families that fell into that category had already slipped away as their children reached teenage years. Families that were developing in their journeys of faith wanted more and some were occasionally coming to Sunday morning services but, however often we told them not to worry if their children ran about and occasionally made a noise, some felt embarrassed and uncomfortable.

We also knew that however much we talked about Messy Church, the (mainly older) members of our Sunday morning congregation were not recognising it as part of the corporate worship of our church. We felt it was time for change. We either needed to expand our Messy Church to a weekly service (which we considered was too much for our limited people resource) or take the best of Messy Church and completely revise our monthly all age service on Sunday morning.

That’s what we started to do from this January. It is still a work in progress, but our Together@10 mirrors the informal start of Messy Church with coffee and pain au chocolat, games and a craft activity (that relates to the service in some way) on offer. This puts everyone at ease before we all move through to church at 10.30 for a service that incorporates a broad range of worship songs plus Bible teaching and prayer using a range of presentation styles and congregation involvement. Of course we will finish with more refreshments and time to chat – at least 2 or 3 times a year we will have lunch together. So we are looking for ideas and resources and it is great to know we are not alone.

Jo Squires, from BIG Ministries says, ‘I really believe we need to start thinking away from ages and think about abilities, restrictions and differences for people. Then we can begin to help people feel comfortable in their own skin at church and worship God as they are, even if they struggle with singing or have never been in a church before or can’t sit still!’ So BIG Ministries have been working on what this might look like in practice, trying out ideas and have now produced a new book with 10 service plans for all-in worship.

Fri 26th Jun 2015

The All-In Thing (BIG Ministries, Elevation)

This is what the team say about their new book:

The idea of The All-In Thing is to help people create worship experiences that actually work for times when the whole church is ‘All-In’ together in a service. The whole premise for All-In Worship is to take into consideration the massive variety of people with such a variety of needs we have in our churches (regardless of age) and facilitate their worship by making things accessible and inclusive for all. The book includes the explanation of the vision of All-In Worship, 10 service outlines and all the details, scripts and resources you need to be able to pull this off! You can also purchase an accompanying CD, All-In Songs.

Sue says…

This is a helpful book with an introduction which may make you think about how you structure services or, if you are already convinced, give you a reasoned argument to put to others in your leadership team who are not yet with you! Even if you decide the provided structure wouldn’t work in your church exactly as presented, it has lots of ideas. My one criticism is that the Bible passage is always presented as quite a long drama requiring comic timing. You would need a committed drama group to pull these off and people aren’t being encouraged to open the Bible for themselves. That said, you can always adapt – we used The Holy Spirit Power Acts 2 drama for Pentecost, with our youth group presenting a truncated version and then moved on to a reading of the Bible for the last part (with all the members of our congregation who have non-English native tongues standing up and reading Acts 2:8 & 11 in their own language). Another book that you may find helpful if you are looking for this kind of resource is All-Age Services by Bob Hartman. It is now out of print but it is worth trying to track down a copy.

Fri 26th Jun 2015

HIH2016BANNER

One of the advantages of a weekend conference, rather than an evening or day training event, is the time it allows for personal refreshment and inspiration for you as an individual and for social and team building times for church groups. We will be more intentional in adding these elements into the timetable for 2016

Programme details will start to appear on the web site soon, but you can expect:

  • Motivational speakers – helping you go away revitalised for another year
  • Challenging teaching – helping you to go away excited about how you can develop your ministry
  • Great worship and space for reflection – enabling you to take time for yourself connecting with God
  • Fresh resources – the opportunity to see the biggest range of resources and ministries relating to children’s and family ministry in the UK

Bookings are now open. Take advantage of our Early Bird offer and SAVE by booking before 1st November 2015.

Fri 26th Jun 2015

FREE Download

For the next 10 days you can download Lucy Moore’s 2014 conference session: Making storytelling fun for free. Children love stories! But keeping their attention can be quite a challenge. How to turn your story-time sessions into fabulous fun – for you and your audience.

Download here

Fri 26th Jun 2015

hands-on-paper

(from the 2014 conference Hands On team)

  1.  Make paper aeroplanes, write prayers on them and fly them across the room
  2.  Make a ‘thank you’ chain. Write different thinks on strips of paper and fasten them together
  3. Hand write a letter to each child and/or family affirming and encouraging them
  4. Fold into a zig-zag and cut out gingerbread men shapes to make a line of the people holding hands
  5. Make snowflakes – each is unique: fearfully and wonderfully made

Fri 26th Jun 2015

KT-Logo

Have you ever wondered who we are?

Kingsway Trust used to part own Kingsway Communications publishing resources for churches – Kingsway Books, Children’s Ministry resources, Songs of Fellowship songbooks, Thankyou Music songs, Kingsway Music and Survivor CDs – and putting on associated conferences and events.

Five years ago the Trust sold its interest in Kingsway Communications to Integrity and is now an independent entity with a very small team running the annual Hand in Hand and Mission Worship conferences and their associated web sites.

This independence gives us the opportunity to partner with many organisations and ministries across the UK that serve the church in the areas of children’s and family ministry and worship and bring you excellent speakers, worship leaders, teaching and resource information.

The downside of independence is that we are reliant on conference ticket sales to keep going.

If you know of any potential source of funding or want to support the charity yourself, please do let us know. For more information on Mission Worship click here.

Fri 26th Jun 2015

Other dates for your diary

  • We Are Family, the changing face of Family Ministry. A joint conference from CGMC and The Methodist Church. 11-12 September 2015, Liverpool.www.cgmcontheweb.com
  • Messy Church Conference 2016, celebrating and learning with the worldwide family of Messy Church. 16-18 May 2016, High Leigh Conference Centre, Hertfordshire. www.messychurch.org.uk/event/messy-church-conference