168 Project has Kidvids

Kidvids are Christian theme videos suitable for your child's phone--we watched this one in Sunday school today. It's about zombies, and what kid wouldn't love that? But we are all the walking dead without Christ. http://www.168film.com/Media/Gift-of-Grace

A message about poverty for Chrisitans

From a church newsletter. "One in five children in the United States now lives in poverty in our nation, the wealthiest nation in the world. Our faith compels us to speak out and to act on behalf of 'the least of these' (Matthew 25: 40)."

Most children who live in poverty do so because fathers have not married mothers. Very few children of married parents live in poverty.

Why doesn't the church say more about the economic importance of marriage?

Little Hannah prays up a storm

We’re not going to listen to that old Satan, we’re going to heaven anyway!

He’s an awesome God, he can do mighty things.

Coloring inside the lines

Yesterday at Marc's I bought three Bible stories coloring books for 99 cents each. The drawings probably aren't great art, but the stories of Noah, David, Adam and Eve, Moses and Job are accurate and faithful to Scripture. A Christian who knows the hope of a Redeemer for sin and how that story is woven through out the Old Testament can use this book easily to explain things to children.

I loved coloring books when I was a kid, and it didn't squash my talent at all (you are born with talent and no amount of "expressing" yourself throwing globs on canvas will create what isn't there). I drew and wrote stories all the time--especially about horses and dogs. I particularly enjoyed coloring as a group activity where we could discuss and debate the colors, and why you chose to do something a certain way. It was only the academics in art, teachers and the critics who decided learning to color inside the lines was bad for creativity. Hey! Not everyone can be a leader--this world needs some good followers, too!

Here's another example of "inside the lines" working outward. Mary Polin was a professor education steeped in the radical assumptions of deconstructivism--advancing her career by deciding authors didn't really mean what they said, and that truth was simply a social construction bound to culture and gender which today's academic could set free.

Then in 1993 she met Jesus and was really set free from radical feminism and secular humanism. She then began to write the New Testament, Psalms and Proverbs out by hand, word for word, and as she did so, her mind began to heal. That's a beautiful story (found in "A professor reconstructed," A faith and culture devotional, by Kelly Kullberg and Lael Arrington, Zondervan, 2008). Kelly is on Facebook and so are the fans of this book. And I see her husband regularly at the coffee shop.

Our Children's Ministry

My intention was to ask some questions, but instead I just picked up the April 1 Council Meeting Minutes and found that the Children's Ministry had been the subject of a report, so I'll just mention here what was reported.

Russ Nagy* directs the Discipleship Ministries of UALC, and the Children and Student Ministries are under him. Russ is a layman, not a pastor, but is paid staff. He has been teaching youth and adult Bible studies for as long as I've been attending the church. He says the vision for these ministries is "Grow up strong in God's Word and Truth." UALC's Children's Ministry involves 6 paid staff, hundreds of volunteers, and thousands of kids, according to Russ. It has the traditional things like Confirmation classes, VBS, Sunday School and Youth groups--but today's kids are much more interested in experience than knowledge. Regular attendance isn't particularly valued by children or parents, and they might float between different churches with only nominal influence from UALC (I'm paraphrasing.) Numbers are down in the traditional offerings, but up in over all contacts (called "touches"). Some kids the staff see only once; others, hundreds of times. The staff believes "'touches' educate, comfort, inspire, encourage, and proclaim Christ's forgiveness."

The 1970s were the "glory years" of UALC's Luther League, according to Russ (we began attending in 1975 when our children were little, but I had my eye on that youth program which was really terrific). The current program, Genesis, is well attended but not like it was 35 years ago--but he thinks the newer programs to involve more parents are a positive change. He is always looking for more "touches" and more volunteers.

Other members of the staff reported that there are home groups, luncheon meetings with high school kids, and small groups for girls. Joy Peterson is in charge of the below middle-school children, and she noted that the programming differs between Lytham Road Campus (original location of UALC) and Mill Run (opened in 2000), but doesn't give specifics. I attend Lytham which has two traditional services (also one contemporary and one high-energy called x-alt), so perhaps the Lytham Sunday School reflects the families who attend there. 4th and 5th graders have "Funky Fridays." 6th graders have their own small groups. The two locations have separate children's choirs. A layman, Mike Mills (don't know if he is staff or volunteer), is in charge of pre-confirmation classes, for 7th graders. Some of the notes in the minutes were so cryptic, I'm not sure what they mean, but it looks like there is an after school Bible club at Windermere Elementary School, and if it's in this report, I'm assuming it is sponsored by UALC. The VBS theme this year (which draws between 2500-3000) is "Hope--Above and Beyond." It is a Narnia type theme and is being written by Tony Auseon.

I don't think I'm reading between the lines if I see some hint that the staff--paid and volunteer--are swamped with casual, not particularly deep contacts, with kids who don't return or only come around occasionally. Could it be the "business model" they use from Purpose Driven Church doesn't meet our needs at UALC? Perhaps that's not be best model for equipping young people to meet today's challenges.

*Russ is also a well-known musician. His band played for our daughter's wedding, and my husband hired him to come to the house on my 50th birthday to serenade me with his trombone (my instrument). He and his brother Joel composed and published Christian music. My son-in-law's mother was his choir director when he was a little boy!

How to meet a woman

For as long as I can remember, women and girls have wanted to know how to meet other compatible women and girls for friendship, hanging out, shopping, girl-talk and shared babysitting. Just yesterday, Sue Shellenbarger answered this question in her work column in the Wall Street Journal. A woman wrote to ask how to find a working mothers group in her locale. Sue replies

1. Do a web search
2. Look in a book store for a book club group
3. Check out the library
4. Call or check the web site of your local Children's Hospital family resource office
5. Start your own group
6. Sign up your child for Saturday activities and get to know other mothers.

Apparently, Sue doesn't think churches are a resource for friendship. In my experience, it's a lot easier to meet other women when you have children in the home. However, churches offer many service opportunities and classes, and these tend to be mostly for women, although some attract couples. So, I don't know if Sue just isn't aware of what's happening at her neighborhood churches and synagogues, or if houses of worship are hiding their light under a bushel except when advertising a concert or bake sale. I have a friend who is active in many organizations, more than I would ever want, and yet she recently joined Bible Study Fellowship, an international, non-denominational women's group that meets weekly at the Church at Mill Run, and she told me how much she is enjoying meeting new Christian friends in her small group. We met about 35 years ago in a church women's group and became friends. Friday I saw another woman from that same group at the coffee shop.

Since I retired I've expanded into my no-comfort zone, occasionally visiting the shut-ins and nursing home and helping in the church kitchen. But everyone new I've met is too busy with grandchildren or care taking relatives to be a friend. I joined a book club when I retired, but only see the participants (except the ones I already knew) when we meet to discuss our book selections. For a few years I painted with some women and we occasionally went to lunch and art shows.

The worst suggestion on Sue's list is to sign your kid up for one more activity so you, the mother, can have friends. If you're employed, your child is either in day care or school and doesn't need one more reason to be away from home! I think one of the reasons mothers love homeschooling is that it gives them a close knit group of friends all working toward the same goal, all with children about the same age, and living in the same area. People not familiar with homeschooling seem to think those children are isolated, but I see them doing many things together involving all the children in the family.

For many years before the 70s, and in many denominations, women were excluded from the traditional boards and political hierarchies in the church, so they just formed a parallel structure with boards, committees, service projects, separate fund raising, and a lot of chat and fellowship. Some of these structures are disappearing now and the ones that still exist have mostly older women. The mixed gender programming of today's churches may be more equitable and make more efficient use of talent, but women's friendships have suffered.

Birthday Prayers in verse

These are from "A Book of Prayers for Boys and Girls" by G.J. Neumann, Wartburg Press, 1943.

O Listen, Lord Jesus,
And hear what I say:
There's something I'm wanting
To tell you today.

For this is my birthday--
O come, be my Guest;
Of all I'm inviting
I love you the best. Amen.

Lord Jesus, today
A blessing I pray
As a birthday gift for my mother dear;
With happiness, health,
And love's pure wealth
Bless her, O Lord, for many a year. Amen.

Wartburg Press used to be located in Columbus, Ohio, and became part of Augsburg Press, which is now Augsburg-Fortress, the publishing arm of the ELCA.