We can probably all agree that we have personal convictions about things, we believe in ownership—the “all in, do whatever it takes” mentality—and know God has a calling on our lives. What do you do though when these three at times can seem at odds? The chances are, you will go through seasons where these…
“What happens when the leader is wrong in a top-down culture? Everyone goes off a cliff…” (Leaders Eat Last, p. 143) This phrase resonated within me while reading through Leaders Eat Last for a second time. Leadership is such a big deal in any culture. Most reading this are probably children’s leaders or pastors. I…
I’m very excited to announce that we at Go Kids are releasing our second full album called “Thrill”. If your kids attend River Valley Church on the weekends then they’re probably pretty familiar with the songs already. Our River Valley Music team has been writing some pretty amazing songs that correspond with our teaching for…
Our children’s ministries physical environments tell a story. When you walk through our environments you’ll get a feeling of airport hangars, vintage travel agencies, global adventure, etc. We’re called “Go Kids” because as our pastor would say, “We’re about the GO!” One of our strategy pillars states that we want to “Be A World Changer.”…
For years, I’ve always held a very simplistic view of children’s ministry. Outside of reaching the lost I believe it’s the most vital ministry in the church. Kids ministry represents our future. Without raising up the next generation there will be no Christianity. Thus, Deuteronomy 6 and David’s heart in Psalms: O God, you have…
Are our kids worth fighting for? I’m imagining everyone reading this saying a resounding, “Yes, of course!” Imagine sending a soldier out to war without armor, without weapons and no communication devices. Not just sending him out to war, but expecting victory. Imagine that warrior coming home beat up and wounded. There would be no…
“Good leadership is like exercise. We do not see any improvement to our bodies with day-to-day comparisons. In fact, if we only compare the way our bodies look on a given day to how they looked the previous day, we would think our efforts had been wasted. It’s only when we compare pictures of ourselves…
I don’t know what your thoughts are on Valentine’s Day. Personally, I think it’s a fun day. Most kids participate in Valentine Cards and this year we thought we would participate as a kids ministry. We made Go Kids Valentine Day cards that our kids could use to pass out to their friends. We have…
One of the fun small ways we celebrate and appreciate volunteers is through a borrowed idea from Disney (of course). Pin trading! Most fans of Disney are well aware of their infamous pin trading. They have pin trading posts and some pretty hardcore pin trading fans. If you’re not familiar with pin trading, you basically…
“Disneyland is the star, everything else is the supporting role.”—Walt Disney Sounds kind of like a funny quote, but right when I read this I felt like Jesus said to me that He is the star in the church and everything else is the supporting role. Sometimes I think we get caught up in the…