Fighting For Moments

Every Sunday Morning in our kids environments and Wednesdays at Relevant Student Ministries we do our best to create an experience. We work many hours throughout our week to make this happen. Everything that happens on Sundays and Wednesday nights is intentional and is pointing towards 1 main thought.

Now we do this every single week without fail. But there is this unspoken thought amongst all of us. We are fighting for what could possibly be ONE moment.

Have you ever encountered that teenager that just doesn’t get it? You know the one. They often try to talk to you while your preaching. Or they raise their hand in the middle of the talk. Generally they are middle schoolers. Or the kids who just keep showing up because they want to hang out with their friends or see their girlfriend/boyfriend. You never see them paying attention or interacting. They aren't bad kids. They just don't really want to be there or at least not for the reasons we want them to attend.

The story is even more so true in Kids ministry. They just haven’t yet developed the attention span to focus for that long.

There is a reason that service programming is so important. You are fighting for a MOMENT! One moment where that kid or student locks in and finally gets it. One moment where everything clears out of their mind and they pay attention. For that moment you can share truth. For that moment you can clarify a little bit about why Jesus and the cross is so important.

Don’t get me wrong I am not saying that we cannot have fun. Im not saying that we need to tell kids repeatedly that they are going to Hell. I am saying that every moment in your services should count.

Worship
Transitions
Speaking
Announcements
Fun Elements
Videos

They should all be intentional and they should be done well. Because you never know when that moment my come. So plan all of them well.

3 things I have learned about service planning

Be intentional – Don’t just put a video in for a transition. Don’t just put a song in because it is fun. Use every moment you have. Be very aware of the truth you want to communicate and use the entirety of the time you have to push that down into them. Every moment counts. Use it as so.

Everything can be leveraged to communicate powerful truth – Every part of your service can point to one main thought and idea. Every part of it can communicate something life changing. If it cannot be used for that then maybe you shouldn’t use it. It should be able to at least point towards where you are going for the service.

You might fail sometimes – it will not always go as planned. Some times you think there will be a certain outcome and it just doesn’t happen. But you have to take RISK!! It might not always work out. The important part is that you don’t settle for what you have seen or heard about. We have to put ourselves out there. We have to try things a little crazy. You will learn. Look at failure through the lens of learning not personal failure. The reward on risk is far better than never taking any.

What would you add to this list??

Ryan Millard

My addicition doesnt define me. Its a disease that I live with, but i will always be more than just an addiction. I fight every day to put the pieces back together. Thank you for taking part in my journey. You are not alone!