70. Dreaming Ahead: Holiday Planning in Kids Ministry with Danielle Bell

The best holiday ministry moments don't happen in December—they begin with intentional planning long before the season arrives.

In this episode of Kids Ministry Calling, we're continuing our Summer Dreamin' series by looking ahead to the holidays and exploring how churches can create meaningful experiences that go beyond events and help families grow in their faith together.

This conversation is packed with practical ideas for planning Christmas, Easter, and more with purpose. You'll hear creative ways to engage families, equip parents, and create opportunities for discipleship that extend beyond your church walls. From prayer resources and family worship to community outreach and memorable events, you'll walk away with fresh inspiration for your ministry calendar.

Most importantly, this episode is a reminder that holiday ministry isn't just about filling the schedule—it's about creating moments that point kids and families to Jesus.

Choose one upcoming holiday and ask this question: "How can we help families continue this experience after they leave our church?" Then create one simple resource, conversation starter, or prayer guide that encourages discipleship at home.

Because when we plan holidays with intentionality, we're not just creating great events—we're creating opportunities for kids and families to experience the hope of the gospel together.

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Transcript

Welcome And Summer Dreaming Theme

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Are you dedicated to working with kids and families in the local church? Well, clearly that's more than a career, that's a calling. I'm Jayna Magruder and this is Kids Ministry Calling. Summer is the perfect time for kids' ministers to breathe, reset, and start dreaming ahead. In this next episode, we're talking about how to intentionally plan holiday ministry moments that are meaningful, engaging, and gospel-centered, not just busy calendar events. And guess who is joining me to talk about that? You know her in lover, it's Danielle Bell. Danielle is the children's minister at Beller Baptist Church in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. She's a favorite here on the podcast because of her creative ideas and just sheer enthusiasm for kids' ministry. We talk about all the holidays: Christmas, Easter, Tom Sunday, and she tells us her thoughts on the first chunk retreat. And while it's not really a holiday, we talk about the Olympics and all the family fun you can have with the summer or winter game. So let's celebrate the holidays together with Danielle Bell. Well, hello everybody. Today is an exciting day because we have one of our favorites joining us today, Danielle Bell. Danielle, welcome to the podcast again.

SPEAKER_01 1:23

Oh, I am so honored to be back. I love your podcast and all that you're doing, and to be able to be here is just a privilege.

SPEAKER_00 1:29

Well, you are one of the first repeat guests since we've reset the podcast as Kids Ministry Calling. And so I know that you and I, we've been friends for a long time, and I get so many through the years, so many ideas from you. And I know a lot of our our listeners also follow you and the things that you're doing. Um and so I just I love it when you get to join us and we get to just talk. So thank you for joining us. Um I've been trying to kind of set you up for what our theme is. It's a very loose theme, but we are summer dreaming. And and whatever that means to you, first of all, uh, let me just ask you do you think I'm crazy for even saying that this could be a thing? Because I know that we know, as children's ministry leaders, summer is crazy. How in the world can we find any margin for dreaming? But we're gonna try after VBS, and maybe if you're taking kids to camp, you know that there could be some moments of margin where you could rest. Maybe it's in July. Danielle, I know you often go to the beach after all of the all the craziness, and maybe just maybe set aside some time to do some intentional dreaming about what could be next uh in your children's ministry. So that that's what that's what the theme is. And and today um we're gonna talk about something very specific. But before we do, let me just ask you, what are you dreaming about these days?

Dreaming Bigger For Every Family

SPEAKER_01 2:58

You know what? I love summer, Jenna, because I'm a people person. So I get to be with the kids and the people. I it's hard for me, you know, during the school year. You know, I'm like, I want to be with them. That's you know, why I love ministry is being with the people. So I am so excited about VBS and camp. Cannot wait. And I think there is margin. If we pause and really think, we are so blessed to get to do what we do. I know there is discouragement in ministry and a hundred different distractions, but we get to do this, which I always say God could do it so much better if he would just go around me and not use me. So I do love to dream because I think after an event like VBS, when you're seeing God at work, you do want to dream and be like, God, what what else do you want me to join you in doing? So if I'm dreaming about anything, and Jenna, if I've learned anything, I have so much to learn, um, is that I am dreaming about families. And I don't mean the 2.5 kids and the, I mean, you know, grandparents and aunts and uncles raising and fostering whatever the family looks like. And um, we have a whole a group of um unhoused families that may have been homeless at a time. I'm dreaming of how can we minister better to that group, to where it really bust outside the church walls. And I haven't been doing that great in the past, I've been convicted of. So that's I'm dreaming that, like, God, show me what you're doing and show me how we can join you in reaching the family and what a privilege that will be. So, in my moments at the beach, and this year I'm I'm even going to the mountains of Colorado um before summer even starts. And to me, the mountains are what speak to me, even sometimes more than the beach, because I see how big God is. And then I'm like, um, Daniel, you're just a small part. Just join join him.

SPEAKER_00 4:45

So I'm excited about that too. That is so fun. I didn't know you're going to the mountains. Yay. Cooler weather, that's for sure.

SPEAKER_01 4:53

I know, I know. We're packing sweaters.

SPEAKER_00 4:54

Yeah, I love that. Love that. Well, okay, so our topic today, I think, really um plays well into you dreaming about what's next for families and how you reach families um in your church.

Turning Holidays Into Discipleship Milestones

SPEAKER_00 5:06

And it's how do we intentionally plan for the holidays? So, you know, we have the big, the big buckets of holidays, the obvious, Christmas, Easter, but everything in between as well. What are some ways that we can intentionally use the holidays to both think about discipleship, intentional discipleship, but also to give families something to hook on to and to have help them have intentional time of discipleship at home? So that's kind of the broad category of what I want us to explore today and um and let you just kind of get us kicked off. So, what could intentional holiday planning look like?

SPEAKER_01 5:48

Well, one thing I love about the holidays, you know, we talk a lot about milestones and spiritual milestones in churches. Like holidays are natural milestones. Yeah. Like usually people come out to church more, you know. You have those people you may not see except for Christmas and Easter. Yep. So I think we have a chance, you know, Advent, maybe families that didn't focus on weekly things as much, they may during Advent or different times of the year. So I love that holidays are built in, maybe not spiritual milestone, but hello, it's Jesus coming and Jesus rising from the dead. We don't get any bigger than that. I call them the Super Bowls in the church. So how can we not just do a program, which I think I've been convicted of in the past? Not that those are bad. Right. Those can be great and very impactful, but how can I then, you know, Life We is so good about giving us um devotional resources that I print off and hand out, you know? And that's building that bridge from the church to home to where that conversation carries. Right. You know, and I think holidays are perfect for that.

SPEAKER_00 6:49

Yeah. And I mean, like like you said, it could be a program, it could be an event, um, it could be something that you're inviting people to come to, but it could also be providing tools, providing resources, um, devotional content, things like that. Um, it you've got people's attention, is the point. Right. And so how can we uh catalyze that and capitalize upon that um to help connect people more? So tell us about um some some let's let's just let's start with Christmas.

Christmas Planning With Simple Home Tools

SPEAKER_00 7:19

How do you approach Christmas in your kids' ministry?

SPEAKER_01 7:23

Well, uh, we do a big Wednesday night, you know, Christmas party. I usually am in an inflatable green or um red suit, depending on it's fabulous. Um I made my my ret guy wear the other color. He's like, I knew you had another color and you would bring it for me. And I was like, of course. So doing some intentional um events, like, because the kids' minds are there, you know, that it's everywhere. Now, if we were Hobby Lobby, we would do it in like September, but we do have to do it around Christmas, right? Right. But you know, we do some intentional there, but I'll tell you, Jana, where I want to go, where I want to be better. This summer we're handing some parents some as you go cards for every day, like as you go to the picnic. I want to do some better of just some simple discipleships in that, like as you experience Advent. Give them just some, you know, and that we've we thought about like back to school may not be a holiday, but as you go back to school, so as you celebrate Christmas, as you go to Christmas Eve service, you know, before the families even go, you know, and I say this all the time. I've never met a family that doesn't want to focus on the spiritual things. I think sometimes they just don't know how. So as you go to Christmas Eve or Christmas morning service, here's how to prep your family. Why don't we just pray? Why don't we sing a song? Give them a little card. So I think ways we can equip parents that want to lead and want to go to Christmas Eve service well without the kids going, when do we get to go home and do whatever? Let's focus on this. So I want to put just some index card size tools in their hand of okay, this is, you know, I've always gone to churches that don't always follow the Advent exactly the same as some, you know, sometimes they switch up. But okay, if we're focusing on joy, what does that mean? Yeah. And I I think we can get so lost. I'm the queen of getting just distracted with all the things going on. But how can we put just some simple things that all joy? Families, here's five things you could do this week to focus on the joy of Christ coming, you know, in the flesh. So that's what I want to focus on more. I've done the the Wednesday night and the Sundays bigger, but just in carrying on to the home, just some simple rhythms, even maybe in the Christmas Eve service. Here's something your family holds, and here's a card as you leave to talk about wow, what does that really mean to us? How how is tomorrow, Christmas Day, gonna look different because our family is focusing on Jesus? So I really think I've tried to overthink it and made a big when sometimes we can handle some simple, thought-provoking things that families want to do, parents want to do, they may just not know how to ask the question, you know.

SPEAKER_00 9:57

Yeah, that's a great point.

Advent Anchors And The Jesse Tree

SPEAKER_00 9:59

Now, I did not grow up doing Advent. Sounds like your church does Advent. My church uh does as well. But growing up, I did not do Advent. Did you? No. Okay, no, I did not, so it's new, yeah. And so how do you all approach that? Do you you do the four Sundays and acknowledge it that way?

SPEAKER_01 10:19

Yeah, and my favorite, and I know at my former church, we had families come up for those four Sundays and light the candles and read the scripture just to see. And they were all look different. You know, it would be like extended families with grandparents, maybe if it's a multi-generational family at the church, which I love. So, and and we're hoping to plug more of that in where we are now. But I love seeing the families come up, read what it means, read the scripture, and light that candle. So, but yeah, I'm like you. I did not grow up with the little candle wreath and you know, all of that just wasn't focused on. But I think it's a great anchor, you know, in those weeks that are so busy for us.

SPEAKER_00 10:53

It really is. I like the word anchor. It helps us uh center back on um, I I I hesitate to use this language, but you know how people say the reason for the season. Um Right. It's true. It's just gotten cheesy. Exactly. But it's true. So um, if not, then it becomes about all of the other stuff, which is inevitable. We're gonna have busy calendars and all the parties, and everybody feels like they have to celebrate in every capacity. Whether you're you might go to gymnastics class, well, we gotta have a gymnastics Christmas party, we've got to have a soccer gathering, you know, everybody feels like they have to do something. And so if if we if our churches invite us to remember that each Sunday and leading up to and anticipating the coming of Christ, I think that was even new to me as uh, like I said, I didn't grow up in a church that that celebrated Advent or acknowledged Advent on the calendar. Uh but I think helping kids get excited about that day where we get to light that candle and and celebrate the coming of Jesus. Um one thing that really helped me and my family, my young family, when my kiddos were little, um, our church at the time did a Jesse tree. Are you familiar with a Jesse tree?

SPEAKER_01 12:09

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 12:11

And um a Jesse tree, for for those of you who maybe don't know that, is uh is basically a way to like your uh countdown calendars with the little windows uh where you every day, I mean that was such that's what the advent calendar I had growing up was right. It had candy. Some of them have candy in their hands. I mean, every year, my mother would put them away, get them back out of the Christmas box, and it was just a silly little window. And that brought me so much joy. I tell my kids, forget the candy. It's just about the little picture.

SPEAKER_01 12:45

We're like, no. Well, and and and Voskamp has a great one that we use every year that we open up and put it on the tree. Yes. And there is, there's that anticipation of and now that we've done it a couple years, I love that my daughter can go, I know it's gonna be on this one because we're talking about this. Right. You know, so it's it's a countdown.

SPEAKER_00 13:03

Yeah, it's a it's a countdown for every day, and it helps tell a little bit more of the story, whether that's you know, telling about uh the angels of the story or the wise men of the story or or the Jesse tree goes all the way back to just the lineage of Christ and shows you how it all started from the stump of of Jesse, you know, and so I remember learning about that, and um that makes it really come alive for kids. And, you know, as we're talking about working with families, it helps kind of uh help them to maybe expand their understanding of of Jesus and how it started way long ago.

unknown 13:44

Right.

SPEAKER_01 13:45

And as I think as good men leaders, we can be dreaming now. Yeah, let's ask around, gather those resources. I didn't know about and loss camps until I saw somebody share it. Right. So give your families in November, hey, get this now, don't go halfway through December and go, we should have. Right. Help your families know what they where they can go to for those things. Yeah. So I think that's one of the things we can dream about is resourcing our people before it's too late.

SPEAKER_00 14:10

Exactly. And this is a great time to do that.

Palm Sunday As Intergenerational Worship

SPEAKER_00 14:13

So, okay, well, let's move on to Easter. How how does your church or your churches that you've served at do Easter?

SPEAKER_01 14:22

Okay, I gotta say, I think Palm Sunday was my favorite more than Easter this year. Okay. Palm Sunday, we are in a year of prayer as a church. So every meeting is a prayer meeting. Um, we're doing more corporate prayer in the service. You know, we're our our business meetings are not their worship and prayer, and then we're gonna talk about business, but we're gonna seek the Lord. It's really revolutionized, it's really been really cool. So, Palm Sunday, I think it was my favorite. I had to go to my adult education guy, though, and I said, Hey, I want to do something family in the first hour. And that's when most of his young family life groups, I said, It's gonna kill your adult life groups, but I want it, he said, do it. I love it. So we gathered all um families and some of we, some of our senior adults, the grandparents brought their kids. I think the coolest thing, Jana, I saw a mom who I had her kids when I was in Murfreesboro way before when they were little, she brought their kids. So she brought her grandkids and we um started in the theater all around tables. We started each service, we did it in both service. You know, we always have the kids walking in with branches, but I'm like, uh-uh. Adults can do that too. Okay. So we had adults line up. So we had from, you know, kindergarten through, you know, 80-year-olds because of the grandparents that come. My prayer, because of course it was the start of spring break for us this year. I was like, God, can we just have this many in the in the choir loft? Because I didn't want it to look, you know. We walked through two lines waving. My favorite is watching the adults wave and their excitement, and they modeled that for the kids. We packed out the choir loft. We had to come down onto the platform. So then we sang two worship songs, which I loved, and then we snuck out. My pastor's like, they're going to experience. And because it was Palm Sunday and praising Jesus, we focused on praise, you know, the kind of the first of the acts of prayer, adoration. So we had families around table. I had our prayer coordinator walking them through um some prayer prompts. Then one of my volunteers, I didn't do it, y'all. So find people that are as passionate as you. She made all these sets of these laminated cards of all the names of God, what they mean, and the scripture that went with this. And then we, and so what I did is I was like, okay, families, talk. What what do you need? We we kind of talk like, you know, you play matching, you know, um, game. But I said, flip over a card. Uh and what is it, what is it that you need in your life? What are you going through personally or as a family that you need to know God is? Is he able? Is he so then I had them talk and I said, parents, you need to share with your kids who God is for you right now. Because don't ever make it look like you don't need him, you know. Right. So I got to, and it's my favorite, Jana. You know, you get to do it, you get to sit back and watch. Yeah. These families discussing. Well, I need to know that he is, you know, omnipresent, that he is here and he is there. And so then we um closed in prayer. We did the 1030 service at the beginning, but then I had all the kids come with me, and we had made laminated cars with many palm branches. And thankful for our safety team, because you know, parking lot can be dangerous. Right. We went all in the parking lot and on every car, because they'd already experienced it both services. We had prayer prompts and it said such a such a Baptist thing. It was all alliterated with peas, like pause and pray in the parking lot before you pull off. You know, so Baptist. We should have put a casserole on the front of their car. But and we put those prayer prompts of all some mother names of Jesus. So then the whole church, before they could pull off, God bless some cars, kids put two or three under their windshield. I'm like, maybe they need it. I know. That's all right. But then everybody in the church, no matter their age, before they left. So it was a whole day of praise. Wow. I got more comments from parents. Yeah. I'm telling you, I'm like, I know he's rising next week. I know it's Easter, but what a blessing to praise him. And so I can't wait to. I think we're gonna do um confession. I want to do confession, maybe not on a Sunday morning, around a campfire where we're burning things as families, throwing them in and confessing, practicing that. Thanksgiving, I want to do I'm thankful, you know, in the axe, the T around Thanksgiving. Maybe that is on a Sunday morning again. But then I thought about, you know, the supplication, the intercession. We need to do around Christmas and we need to go out and do that as a service opportunity. So just seeing the families take it. And again, we had a missionary in town and they were speaking around the church. So two of my life group teachers that didn't have young ones, they adopted those kids. You know, we had those people on standby. It was it was absolutely precious.

SPEAKER_00 18:54

So palm Sunday. I mean, I'm here for it. You know, you know what I love about that as you're talking, I love how you did not start with a blank slate. You looked at what your church was already doing, your your prayer initiative, and thought, how can we wrap around that and make it super intentional and make it make sense for why you're even doing that? And how can we bring the kids into that? A lot of times there's initiatives, church-wide initiatives like that, and kids' ministry not is not necessarily thought of, you know. Right. Yeah, not in a bad way, but just but how can how can we bring kids, bring families, bring grandparents into that in a way that is fun. It it it goes with um not just the prayer initiative, but but you're acknowledging the calendar. So it, you know, the Palm Sunday and Easter season. I mean, it was praise. It purposes Hosanna. Totally makes sense. I love um and then the other thing that I thought of is just using Palm Sunday instead of putting all your efforts on Easter Sunday, which is, you know, often you know, families might be traveling, they might have a lot of other family in, and so maybe they don't they don't get to, you know, come to your church, they're go they're doing something else, you know. So how can we use Palm Sunday again to um just set the set their hearts on Jesus and uh and celebrating him? And so just real quick, so I can make sure that our audience understands visually what what was happening and me too. So you invited not just kids to come in with their waving palm branches down the aisle, I'm assuming. Um you invited their families too as well. So you had multiple generations. They they they waved the palm branches, walked down the aisle all the way to the choir loft. Is that what you're saying? All the way up.

SPEAKER_01 20:51

Yeah, we collected those palm branches because we didn't want weapons during the work. I mean, we gotta be real, right? Right. Me and the college minister's wives are taking up the palm branches. Okay. They went up to the choir loft without weapons, and then they s the first two corporate singing songs were just packed with an intergenerational choir and then the corporate singing. And then during uh the no, I you know what? I actually led prayer time that day. Okay, and we because we're focused on corporate prayer, and I said, I said, you know, we praise God for who he is. That's what I've been teaching the kids. And we've been doing when I teach the kids praying all out loud at once. So I said, adults in here, y'all are gonna be uncomfortable. But I had everybody stand up and I said, I want you to just start praising God for who he is all out loud at once. Jana, the roar of who he was from all different ages. And then I let them into like hold your hands out. And what is it you bring today? And what is it that that God you just prayed can't handle? So then we just had a, you know, we did it more using our bodies because kids were there. And then at the end of the prayer time. We slipped out at that first hour and we went to our specific time in the theater around tables. But it was and I told the kids, I was like, Y'all gonna help me out. Adults can get uncomfortable and weird about things. Y'all, I want y'all shouting those names of God out loud. Don't be ashamed. And they weren't. And because of that, the adults were bolder. I loved it.

SPEAKER_00 22:19

Oh, I love that so much. Well, there's some ideas right away. So with Christmas, Easter, Palm Sunday, prayer initiative. I could see that names of God bringing in a missions idea. Again, you know, wrapping around what the church is already doing and making it intentional for our kids and families. Okay. Well, what other holidays do you think we could get intentional about planning for?

Olympics Night And Other Creative Holidays

SPEAKER_01 22:48

Now, I know this may not be a holiday too many, but Jana, the Olympics are a holiday. Okay. Yes. Let's talk about it. Yeah. But one of my favorite things we've done when we haven't done winter yet, where I am now, we've done it at my past church. But when that rolls around, we make that a family event. Okay. And can I just tell you? You know, families are competitive. Yeah. And the good thing about summer, it's the summers are in the summer, so the families have a little bit more time. But they get to sign up as a country, they come dressed. And when I tell you, I know in my Birmingham church, I had a man that played the O-line at Old Miss in Lederhosen. Okay. Because they were like Austria. And of course they won. You know, he had the little, you know, he looked straight out of, you know, sound of music. And they won best costume. They were awesome. It was funny watching him try to do the events in his knee socks and all that stuff. Wow. But they come dressed. So, you know, they've worked at home and come up with a theme. We um award medals. We do silly events, like, you know, I don't have, you know, gymnastics in people. So we did rhythmic gymnastics with, you know, little twirly things. And I have judges come in and um they get medals, but then we talk about, you know, what medals don't last. And we're we're working towards a prize that lasts forever. And again, my whole goal when I bring do events like that with multi-generations, and uh, sometimes it is grandparents. I had a because I was in charge of it, I had to phone a friend to be on my daughter's team. So my friend and her college daughter were Italy with my little girl. And um, but then they would turn and talk about what does it mean to live it for eternity and stuff like that. So anytime you can wrap around something that's already everywhere in the news, you know, the Olympics are everywhere. And um, Fourth of July, you could do something. I think I I often think we so miss Thanksgiving. You know, we're like we're gone to Thanksgiving. That's why we want to fold in another thankful prayer service. I don't know if that looks like it. I know it's gonna be prayer. We're gonna be thanking. Will we march through the service with um, you know, fall leaves? I doubt it. But you know, we're gonna do though. We could, we could, are holding, you know, our harvest. But, you know, those are already there. And I do. I feel like we go from Halloween and we're like, forget to be thankful. So I think there's holidays, and like you said, I I'm not recreating anything. Yeah. Our our whole emphasis of the year, you know, and as Kinman leaders, I think that is our job to support the church's mission. Yeah. So don't recreate something. Right. We're all about prayer. Maybe you're all about scripture memory. Maybe your whole church is a strong missions church. What can you do around these holidays where you're you're undergirding the goal and the mission of the church? So don't reinvent it. And if you don't know, sit down with the pastor and the senior staff and say, what is the mission? Hopefully you do know because the whole church should know. Right. But if you don't, sit down and go, how can we support that instead of being this silo unit over here doing our own thing? So I do love, um, we in the right around, I think it's gonna be around 4th of July with our fifth graders because we're losing them. We do a parent versus kid kickball game for the fifth graders. Yeah, they don't know it this year. Um, but I'm gonna make the parents wear the inflatables. Oh. Because, you know, they just work the kids because yeah, my and my pastor will have a fifth grader. He had one last year too, and he is so competitive. And so we we play kickball and then we sit down and I have them talk with their parents and I have the parents share um what is something you wish you knew going into middle school. Yeah. Like, you know, because once they're in middle school, kids think their parents don't know anything. Exactly. They go through that little process. And so to force that conversation when we have them, and we kind of have a cookout and stuff, and it's just it's easy, Jana. I mean, everybody wants to play a little kickball. I just have some discussion and devotion at the end, and then they've made a memory, hopefully, that will carry on. And it's so fun. I have a guy that was a referee, and it was so awesome when he called our pastor out. And you know, it's just and the kids are like, yeah, the pastor got out. You know, they need to see, you know, their church staff being silly. So I'll have to send you pictures of them in the inflatables.

SPEAKER_00 27:03

So oh, that is a great idea. That's a great simple idea, a kickball game that you can do. Yes, Fourth of July kind of helps make it uh, you know, noteworthy on the calendar and maybe gives you some decorative ideas and it's summer and uh and playing with that. But yeah, I love that the simplicity of that. But it's all about making those moments and and having the chance to make the memories, but also making it in intentional about the gospel. So quick question, kind of a rapid round. Okay,

Trunk Or Treat Outreach Without The Pressure

SPEAKER_00 27:36

fall fest or trunk retreat or neither? We do a trunk retreat. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 27:41

I inherited it at the church I'm at now. Okay. Um, and it worked last year. We had to do a drive-thru because it was during like rainy week. And can I tell you what we loved? We always have an evangelism team stayed stationed at the end, and my pastor heads that up. He's like, You get you tell me who signed up for it, I will reach out and train them. And they loved them in the cars last year because you get a full-size candy bar if you stop for that. They weren't they stayed longer, you know, because they were trapped in a car. And we had so many people like either pray to receive Christ or say they're gonna come to church because they're never forced to a decision. At my former church, we had a fall festival and the recreation ministry did it, it was a bigger place. But um, we uh the kids served in it. My fifth graders served, and then or and staff was at a at a prayer booth, you know, and you can maybe uh go it in your neighborhood. Hey, do a fall fest in your front yard for all the people that come by. I think that's just as powerful. But sometimes I think we got to equip families. Hey, if you're gonna do a party in your yard during trick-or-treating, here's some things you can do. But, you know, encourage them, get to know your people that live around you. Maybe, maybe for us, folding in prayer, it may be prayer walk your neighborhood beforehand, prayer drive your neighborhood. You know, some things that you can help families do. So when they're out and about, maybe you don't have something on campus at church, they're in the neighborhood, but hey, they've already prayed. They've seen when they drove around that lady sitting on our front porch alone all the time. Maybe make something for her. So I think I'm just, Jana, I can get so busy and I literally have a white ceramic squirrel in my office because I see so many squirrels. It was given to me. Maybe they were making a point. I don't know. But we have to, I have to stop and be intentional or I'm gonna blow past it.

SPEAKER_00 29:26

Right. Exactly. I love giving families the idea for that. Um, even if your church is doing something that is maybe on actual Halloween, maybe you give them the idea to do that the weekend before. Or I actually, I love to tell this story. Um, uh, my husband and I, years and years ago, helped uh start a church plant in our neighborhood. And um that church plant uh uh as part of their strategy gave some of the uh founding, you know, members that had houses in the the immediate neighborhood of the church, which was a middle school. You know, we met in a middle school. Right, yeah, um, a little bit of budget to have a front yard hot dog grill for Halloween. And and and said, please do this. And so we did. And what that started for us was hmm, 16 years ago is still going on in that same neighborhood, except now it's like a huge block party. They block the streets off, and neighbors from all over the neighborhood walk over in their costumes. Uh, we started we the way we did it was we had a hay ride for the kids and we just grilled hot dogs very simple and uh got to meet all of our neighbors that way, you know, to have those into people are out during Halloween. They are, and that's a great time to meet your neighbors, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 30:53

And they want protein with all the candy if if hot dogs are protein. I think sometimes what we get what we get confused with as ministry leaders, we think it has to start big or it's not effective or you know, successful. You started small, yes, and and it grew because you were faithful in the little thing that your pastor asked. And so I think we've got to quit going, it's gotta be big or it's not good. That's that's not truth. I think it's being faithful is what makes it successful, and quit thinking it's gotta be this blowout thing because I can do a lot of big events, and if God's not in it, it may have no eternal impact. Right. But if it's what he's calling us to do, it may be simple. Serving hot dogs, and if God's in it, it's gonna be something eternal.

SPEAKER_00 31:37

Yeah.

A February Focus On Christlike Love

SPEAKER_00 31:38

Have you ever done anything around Valentine's February love, all of that?

SPEAKER_01 31:44

Um I'm I have done a family worship around love before. And um, we did a whole thing on sin. And, you know, I like to you, you know, we wrapped up somebody in the family, they were bound in sin. And then I think we did red crep paper for the love of God that freed them. And okay, you know, I it it's again, it's a thing. I think a lot of churches do like f date nights or you know, family nights, but we had a it wasn't like the closest to Valentine's Day, Sunday night, you know, because you get around people going out on dates. So we did it sometime in the month of February and focused on the love of Christ. I all I remember is we did it was that clear cellophane to wrap them up, bound in sin. You know, but we talked about how the love of Christ, the blood of Christ, you know, break breaks us free. And, you know, they did that as a family. I haven't, it'll be interesting what we'll do this year. I haven't, I haven't that was at a former church, so I don't know what we'll do coming up this year. I need to dream about it on the beach.

SPEAKER_00 32:43

That's what I need to do. Dream about it on the beach. Yeah, and I mean, but okay, yes, do that. KMC listeners, do that. Dream, dream on the beach or wherever you are, have those uh individual uh times of dreaming. But also I really liked how you said, Danielle, maybe invite your staff into that and looking at okay, what are the annual initiatives that we're focused on as a church and how can we as a staff dream together, collaborate about how that includes preschoolers, children, preteens, parents, grandparents, families, and in an intentional way. And you whether that means the church calendar, the holiday count calendar, or just some of these objectives and values and initiatives that the church has.

SPEAKER_01 33:33

And if we can all be on the same page, hallelujah. Yeah, we're not fighting for the time. Absolutely. When we're making parents be a taxi, when we could really do something all together, you know.

SPEAKER_00 33:44

That's so true. That's so true. And I think it's a great team development exercise that just helps everybody kind of be aware of what the other ministry is doing and how can we collaborate and make this really effective for families. So, okay, well, we've covered a lot. Can you think of anything else that, you know, a tidbit or holiday planning tool?

SPEAKER_01 34:05

Well,

Networking So You Do Not Start From Scratch

SPEAKER_01 34:06

I was thinking about when you were saying talking about it above the staff. One thing I love about kidmen leaders, I've not yet met one that is like gatekeeping all their ideas. So if your church team comes up with something and you know somebody is doing something like it, call them, email them, go, what worked? What didn't work? Yeah, you wish you knew. I when I share things, I'm like, take it, take it. And if you make it better, let me know. You know, like I'm not gay. So as and I think this is this podcast is so important for because you're meeting people on here, and I I think you gotta network and talk to different people and go, ooh, they did this really cool thing with the hot dogs, you know. Jana, what did y'all hand out? Did you hand out anything in the beginning? Right. So network because y'all we're on the same team. Absolutely. So I don't care if you take what I did, just make it better. Now, I don't think we have to be that church. I think sometimes we think I want to be just, you've got to do it in your context. Absolutely. You know, but network with the other ministry leaders, because I'll share anything. And I haven't met anybody that I've called and said, okay, you're doing this. What how do I do this? And it's I always say, what do you wish you learned? Because that's me. I'm the queen of messing up and like learning from mistakes, you know. So talk to other leaders and learn from them to make it work.

SPEAKER_00 35:25

Yes, and that that's the fun part of networking. And I love how they're, you know, that we have our Facebook communities that are out there, you know, depending on if you use Hi-Fi or Gospel Project, VBS has a huge Facebook. Oh, VBS is the best place.

SPEAKER_01 35:38

They're sharing ideas and putting pictures up constantly. I'm like, darn, that's good.

SPEAKER_00 35:42

Yeah. If you need to be inspired or if you uh are stuck in how to how to make something come alive, just get on those Facebook groups. And it's basically like a Pinterest idea board. And I I I love seeing how people make it their own and take, like you said, the seed of an idea from maybe another leader, another church, and make it their own, contextualize it and make it work for your church. So that's the beauty of it. And that honestly, that's why I wanted to talk to you about this because you do such a good job of you've got creative ideas, you're willing to try things, um, and you're real, you're willing to share and come alongside others who are doing the same thing. So thank you. I am.

SPEAKER_01 36:22

And can

Kids Practise Sharing The Gospel

SPEAKER_01 36:23

I tell you one more fun little thing that we did this year? It's not around a holiday, but we are big hi-fi. You know, Jeremy goes to our church, he does not require us to use it, but I love having him there because I'm like, you see how much the kids like that video, y'all need to do more of that. He's like, We take notes. But we love the three circles. Our pastor uses it to train our, even before we were using IFi Hi-Fi, our evangelism team at um our trunk retreat uses three circles. So um we at the end of Hi-Fi, because we don't have midweek during the summer, we invited the kids practiced the week before sharing the three circles. And then we invited some of our evangelist people that have, you know, the call to evangelism and different precious adults in the church. And we had them come to each of the classes. And this, y'all, this was the easiest night. I taught the large group, and then they broke up into their small groups. And the and I told these these adults, I was like, you challenge them. Don't let those kids give you the Sunday school answers. These adults came in, it was the most precious, and the kids drew the three circles for them and shared. And one teacher, she kept the little girl's like, he came to die on the cross, and she's like, he did, but what else did he do? And the little girl kept getting, you know, he came to die on the cross, and she's like, but remember he was born. And then she's like, and for seven years he didn't sin. And you know, that that parent, or that I think she's a grandparent in our church, kept reinforcing that Jesus was perfect. And we had a dad in my daughter's class, he was giving it to him. He looked at one little girl and said, Well, why would God even put the tree there if he knew it was? And that little girl looked right back at him and he said, None of them lost their cool. They did really good. And she said, Because it's an obedience thing. Like when God makes the cookies and your mom, and when God, you know, your mom makes cookies and tells you not to touch them, you don't touch them. Oh, and it was so neat. And I got to tell the parents, you know, here's I said, What do the kids need to work on? What do they not? You know, we had one fifth grader that told somebody that if he messed up after he became a Christian, he may or may not go to heaven. So we had to talk about assurance of salvation. But there's the curriculums y'all do have such good gospel things. And I think we say, hey, kids, go share it. But that was our last Wednesday night, and they got to share it with adults in our church. And I think the adults and the kids were blessed. It was so fun.

SPEAKER_00 38:35

You could do that around any holiday. So you could do that anytime. I love that. Giving them the chance to actually put it into practice and in a safe place and get some feedback along the way. I think that's an excellent idea.

SPEAKER_01 38:49

One of our little boys that comes with his grandmother, he never speaks, he hardly ever participates. He didn't draw the practice three circles, but when he saw the other kids doing it, he looked at the teacher and said, I want to do it. I walked in there, he was talking the whole time. I was blown away. So I think we got to stretch the kids.

SPEAKER_00 39:04

So that's a great, great idea. And we will link uh something that will take you to three circles and show you exactly what we're talking about. It's just another way to uh share the gospel. And I love it for kids, especially in that preteen age group, uh, where they're they're really grappling with, you know, how to communicate uh their faith. And it gives them a way to do it, draw the three circles and talk about it intentionally. And you can start with um with any circle and and get to the same thing. And so that's why I love it, any circle.

SPEAKER_01 39:39

And we that video you're gonna link, we send it to all the parents. Yes so they can learn what their kids are um learning and they can do it with their peers.

SPEAKER_00 39:46

Love it, love it.

Danielle’s Podcast And Final Encouragement

SPEAKER_00 39:48

Well, that is a great place to close. Um, Danielle, can't thank you enough for joining us again. Thank you for what you do. We we love um hearing from you. You're very inspiring with all of your ideas and your enthusiasm and your love for kids and families. Just thank you for what you do and for for being so generous with what you do. I know that you are a podcaster as well. So tell us about your podcast.

SPEAKER_01 40:13

Yes, my friend and Lauren and I basically from conversations on the phone of how do I deal with this? How do I deal with that? We just kept, or through Marco Polo, but I know that makes us old if we use that. But we were like, let's continue the conversation. So it's called Sundays Got Us Talking. We have a um a substack for it, and we actually, the as you go cards, we made those and our paid subscriber, which is really cheap, they get that whole thing that we made for those cards, all 40 cards. And then we are just um talking to ministry leaders about things in the all ministry ages, um, and how just a conversation. We took our conversation from Marco Polo and the car on the leave and work to a podcast. We're learning, we're not professionals like y'all yet, but we're learning.

SPEAKER_00 40:55

You're doing a great job. I love it. Thanks. And and I know you've got a little bit of background in in radio or television or some media of some kind. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 41:04

But Jana, I'm of the age when we edited in my broadcasting, we were using tape. No digital back when I was in college. So I've I've got to learn.

SPEAKER_00 41:13

So yeah. Well, we're all learning. And, you know, I think I can't remember which which order this particular episode's going in, but um, this summer for the series, we have dreaming about starting your own podcast. And so I'm looking over at our engineer Donnie, who is on the podcast telling us exactly what to do, what to buy, what equipment to do. And um, so if you haven't checked that episode out, it's coming. So, well, thank you again, Danielle. And thank you, listeners and watchers, for being part of the kids' ministry calling community. And we'll see you next time on the next episode. This

Credits And Team Thanks

SPEAKER_00 42:07

episode of Kids Ministry Calling Podcast was brought to you by our amazing team, including executive producer Angie Elkins, producer Nikki Option, edited by Trey Garza, and recorded in the Lifeweight Podcast studio in Ritwin, Tennessee, with sound engineer Donnie Fordon. And artwork by Cameron Wilson. And I'm your host, Janet McGreader. Thanks for listening to Hit Ministry Calling.