Category: Bible

Winter Fusion 2014

image imageLast night was the kickoff for Winter Fusion, a retreat for youth from churches in Virginia. I got to perform my unicycle routine as a little teaser for the full show tonight. It’s been a lot of fun so far interacting with these young people and meeting their leaders as well.

The fun thing for me is that I got to bring my family along for the retreat, and we are staying at an oceanfront hotel in Virginia Beach, VA. So as I type this, the roaring Atlantic Ocean is outside our window. Kezzie loves watching the water and the seagulls, despite the cold weather outside.

I’m so grateful for opportunities like this where I get to bring along my family. I traveled a lot in 2014 and often without them. This is a trip where we get to have some family fun when I’m not doing my presentation. So we are about to head out to the Portsmouth Children’s Museum, which is not far from us right now.

What a great way to send out a thrilling year of shows, travels, home renovations, and watching Kezzie grow up. We’re looking forward to more fun in 2015!

Socioeconomic Diversity in the Christmas Story

There are two primary nativity narratives in the Gospels – the Matthew version and the Luke version. Have you ever noticed that Matthew talks about the Magi (but not the shepherds) and Luke talks about the shepherds (but not the Magi)? Matthew was writing to a mostly Jewish audience while Luke was writing with Gentiles primarily in mind. Perhaps Matthew thought the detail about the Magi would strike the Jewish hearers in a certain way while Luke found it important to write about the shepherds instead.

I love the socioeconomic diversity in that contrast. The Magi were probably wealthy, royal, intellectual, and/or all the above. They traveled “from the East” just to see a little baby. On the other hand, a group of simple, common shepherds found their way to same little baby after hearing about the baby from angels. Royalty and commoners are both transformed by the power of this gift from God. Why? Because deep down inside we are all the same. Rich and poor – we all share the same human condition: depravity.

And this baby would someday ride into Jerusalem on a donkey – a beautiful irony that mixes both triumphant victory and humble lowliness at the same time. He is the humble King – come to save princes and paupers.

Pictures below are of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. One is of the sanctuary area and the other is the small crypt where it is traditionally believed that Jesus was born. They probably don’t know the exact spot, but it gives you and idea of the small stone spaces in which people lived back then and at least you know you’re in the general vicinity of where it happened!

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“What’s in the Bible?” Curriculum Review

db9e7794-phil-endorsement_06y04806y048000000c4f1c6b6-box-set-banner_09x07209x072000000I am somewhat of a bibliophile (one who loves books). And more particularly, I love to learn about and study the book of all books – the Bible. I guess that would be a more accurate use of the term “Biblio”-phile.

So it is with excitement and anticipation that I share with you a new curriculum from Phil Vischer, the creator of the well known Veggie Tales series (in fact, Phil is the famous scrappy voice of Bob the Tomato). This new curriculum, designed for use in Sunday School or other weekly church gatherings with elementary-aged kids, is called Buck Denver Asks…What’s in the Bible?

Here is the brief summary straight from the curriculum website:

“Buck Denver Asks … What’s in the Bible? is the 13-DVD series from VeggieTales® creator Phil Vischer. In his first new project since VeggieTales, Vischer has set out to teach kids (and parents!) the story of the Bible – God’s great rescue plan! We know the stories of Moses, Noah, David, and Jesus, but in this groundbreaking new Bible DVD series, we learn how they all fit together to tell one big, redemptive story. Vischer’s signature wit shines through with his all-new cast of characters, fast-paced flash animation, and catchy tunes. This is one journey through the Bible you won’t want to miss!”

I took a look at the info and some samples of the curriculum and I am impressed overall. I would certainly recommend it (and if you keep reading, you will see some special discounts on the curriculum that I can offer my readers).

Here are the things I like about What’s in the Bible?….

  1. A scope and sequence guided by the overarching narrative of the Bible, rather than topics. I know a lot of curriculum out there follows a general chronological order of the Bible, but this one aims to cover the entire Bible while constantly keeping in mind the overall cohesion and interconnectedness of the Bible. And it uses the entire story of the Bible as the driving force of content rather than just teaching topics illustrated by a few popular Bible stories.
  2. Use of a variety of learning methods. This curriculum is self-described as being “media-driven,” but that doesn’t mean “media-only.” There are plenty of interactive activities in small groups. There are hands-on activities as well as more cognitive activities (such as review through trivia questions). I like curriculum that keeps moving and draws on a variety of teaching methods and learning styles. I like how the videos use both puppets and Phil teaching (as himself). The puppets help the kids stay engaged (while teaching about the Bible) and Phil’s teaching brings a very real and pastoral aspect to the content. He is both deep and understandable at the same time. I like the combination of all those elements.
  3. The commitment to Scripture. This might sound obvious, but it is important that a curriculum have a strong Biblical grounding in terms of how the writers view Scripture. Phil Vischer has a strong commitment to Scriptural inspiration, authority, reliability, and relevance. To him, the Bible is not just the world’s best selling book that teaches us about the religion of Christianity and how people wrote about it centuries ago. For Phil, the Bible is God’s inspired Word – a revelation from God to us as His message of love and story of redemption. And that changes everything.
  4. It’s all right there. You basically have a curriculum in a box. From what I reviewed, it did not appear that the teachers (who are usually volunteers) need to bring much of anything with them except the videos and other handouts/materials provided by the curriculum itself. Any way to cut down on unnecessary clutter is helpful.

Here are the things I think can be improved….(which is not much, by the way)

  1. There is a puppet named Michael who rides in the back of a car on the way to grandma’s house. I’ve seen him before in other Buck Denver videos. Maybe it is my personal preference, but his voice is hard for me to understand. It is very high-pitched and sounds extremely unnatural for whoever is providing the voice for him. I think it is important to have clear and legible communication if you want to convey such quality content.
  2. Some of the puppets have no eyes (or, at least you can’t see the eyes due to over-furrowed brows or hats). I think the eyes bring life to a puppet (or any other creature for that matter). Again, it might be my personal preference, but I feel like I receive communication better when I can see some eyes in the puppet, person, or creature. Would you like a pastor to preach a sermon to you with a hat down over their eyes the whole time?
  3. There is an extra DVD for a Christmas series (yay!). But it would also be nice to have a special DVD series for Lent (the weeks leading up to Easter). They cover the Gospel stories and the death and resurrection of Christ, but I think it would be nice to have a dedicated series that follows the weeks of Lent.

There is not much to criticize here, because Phil and his team have worked very hard to put out a great product that will help lots of churches communicate the truth of the Bible in a largely Biblically illiterate culture (and becoming more and more so, unfortunately). Many of us are familiar with the success of Veggie Tales and the way it has become “salt and light” by teaching Biblical truths in ways that are not preachy and are palatable to the masses – both Christian and secular. My hope is that this “What’s in the Bible” project will similarly penetrate into our culture and society in a way that can instruct young people about the most popular (and I believe) most important book in history.

So, here’s the discount I promised you (as well as a free sample):

Click on this link to get ALMOST 50% OFF retail price (good through the middle of November 2014) and an opportunity to get a free sample: http://promos.whatsinthebible.com/kidmin-2014/