We had another great weekend at NewSpring Church.  Even though it was the end of spring break week we still had a stong attendence in KidzWorld.   I usually hang out around the check-in station to greet kids and to take guests to our environments.  Once in awhile there will be a parent who may want to ask some questions about the ministry.  Today, I was approached  by a mother who has been attending for a few weeks and her two boys who attend KidzWorld.  She told me that the boys had a choice between going to the zoo for a special day with some friends or coming to KidzWorld.  She told me that the boys yelled, “We can go to the zoo anytime but we can only go to KidzWorld on the weekend.”  So they piled in the car and came to church today.  She also went on to say that they talk all the time about what  they learn and always tell their friends where they go to church. And that’s why we do what we do in KidzWorld!!!

If you attend NewSpring this coming weekend you will get to see some of the KidzWorld kids in action. Adventure Avenue 4 through 5th grade kids will be leading one of the worship songs. They are excited about it and you won’t want to miss it.

As you may already know we are looking at the virtue of hope this month in Route 252.  This weekend the kids got to do a ministry project for the First Baptist Church in Maryville, Ill.  As you probably heard, their pastor was shot and killed a week ago during a Sunday service.  What a tragedy!  My heart goes out to that congregation and all who have experienced this loss.  As you can see by the pictures, the kids made cards and signed a banner to be sent to the children’s pastor and the kids there at First Baptist.

We have been learning all month that Hope is believing that something good can come out of something bad.  The kids did an amazing job with this project and it was so good to see them show concern about others.  Parents, you ought to be proud of your kids.  One boy came up to me and told me he was going to send his hope bracelet that he made a couple of weeks ago in KidzWorld to the children’s pastor at that church. 

Next week in the 252 Theater we will be talking aboute what heaven is like.  It ought to be good.

 Usually during the week I take some time to look back and think about the weekend here at NewSpring Church.

Here’s what I’m thankful for:

The awesome volunteers we have helping us minister to kids!

Having a staff that believes kid’s ministry is important.

Having a church body that believes kid’s ministry is important. (It’s evident by the excitment about our new preschool building.  We revealed the plans during First Wednesday service. You can watch it online. 

Having passionate KidzWorld staffers who continually go the extra mile to be able to reach more kids.

Kids that are so excited about coming to KidzWorld that they bring their friends with them.

Having adults who have no children bring other adults down to KidzWorld just to see our environments.

Why is it that when you’re driving and looking for an address, you turn down the volume on the radio?
Why doesn’t glue stick to the inside of the bottle?
Why is “abbreviated” such a long word?
Why is it called lipstick if you can still move your lips?
Why is a boxing ring square?
Why is the word dictionary in the dictionary?
Why isn’t there mouse-flavored cat food?
What was the best thing before sliced bread?
How do “Do not walk on the grass” signs get there?

When you come to KidzWorld you know something fun is going to happen. No one is exempt from getting involved, including our fabulous volunteers. Tonight we got a couple of them involved in a fun game that helped the kids rehearse the memory verse for the month. You can be a part of the fun too. Just go to the volunteer tab at www.newspring.org and let us know that you’re interested.

So many churches say, “Children’s ministry is one of our top priorities.” They say the words…but they are just words.  When you look at the fact that most people accept Christ before the age of 12 you can easily connect the dots on what should be a priority for a church.  Unfortunately, so many churches are saying the words without having any action to minister to children.   I just got off the phone with a children’s pastor in another state and he is having a hard time trying to convince his senior pastor that children’s ministry is more than child care.  This church has spent countless thousands on new furniture for the foyer, repainting & updating all the offices, new lighting for the restrooms but when this children’s pastor asks for money to repaint and theme a room for his kids…the answer that comes back is, “No, it’s just child care for the 11 a.m. service.”  My heart breaks, not only for that particular church but for many others around the country, where the sentiment is the same.  That’s why I’m so thankful for what we have here at NewSpring Church in Wichita, Kansas.  Kids are important to us…and we back those words with our actions.  Having hundreds of volunteers who serve with a passion to reach kids is just a start.  We also have beautiful, engaging areas for all ages.  One thing that can’t be overlooked is our senior staff who believes in kids’ ministry.  So the next time you are dropping off your precious cargo in one of our kids’ environments, why don’t you say a word of thanks to the volunteers who are there to greet your child and make KidzWorld a place where kids can learn about God’s love for them.

Saturdays have been getting pretty crazy around NewSpring.  The Saturday service is growing. Just last night we had over a 1000 people at Saturday XL and we had the highest total in KidzWorld except for Easter Saturday last year!  And I can testify that those kids had a great time.  (Side note:  If you don’t have a ministry why not give Saturday KidzWorld a try. You might just find out you love it.) 

As the kids were checking out, one mom stopped me and asked if she could talk to me.  That usually means there is a problem.  But she had good news.   She told me that every morning at the breakfast table her four-year-old asks, “Do we get to go to church today?”  Of course mom has to answer “no” every day. Then finally Saturday morning arrives and as the child eats his breakfast cereal he asks again, “Do we get to go to church today?”  And mom gets to respond, “YES!”  Her son shouts, “Yahoo!”  The mother told me how much her child loves to come and learn about Jesus.  In fact she said that they stopped going to church for awhile because her child didn’t want to go.  Now he can’t wait to come to KidzWorld and that takes the stress off bringing her family to church.  To all those of you who make our environments joyful, relevant and irresistible…thank you!

Saturday night we had a great time with the kids in Route 252 learning about our new virtue: Fairness.  We are going to have a blast all month long.  What was a blessing to me as I talked to some parents and they told me about their kids bringing kids to church.  One mom told me that her daughter got a phone call from a friend asking if she could come with them to church.  She had been listening to the daughter all week long talk about how much fun it was at NewSpring so she decided to ask if she could go!  How cool is that?  What we do at NewSpring is set environments for all ages so they can engage and learn how God loves them.  To all you kids and parents who are bringing kids from your schools & neighborhoods, keep it up.  You are making a big difference in the lives of others.   There were several families tonight that loaded up their minivans and brought many kids with them.  In fact some brought two cars to get all the the kids in.  I shared that with our executive pastor tonight and he commented that it is like having a bus ministry without the buses. Keep it up!