Category: Family

Did God the Father Abandon Jesus on the Cross?

March 29, 2018

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” guest post by Russell Joyner Why would Jesus say something that sounds so discouraging? In Jewish tradition, in a moment of great distress, one should pray. When all looks hopeless, pray. When you can’t think of what to pray, then recite one of the pre-approved inspired…
Read More: Did God the Father Abandon Jesus on the Cross?
Church not Childcare

February 28, 2018

I believe the words and titles we use for things convey messages of value. That’s how language works. For example, take “wedding ceremony” versus “wedding celebration.” Both terms tell people that a wedding is happening, but the first phrase sends messages of formality, tradition, and even the sacredness of it. The second phrase sends the…
Read More: Church not Childcare
First Night Virginia!

December 12, 2017

I’m happy to announce that I will be returning to perform at First Night Virginia this New Year’s Eve in Charlottesville, VA. The shows will be at 6:30pm, 9pm, and 10:15pm at the First United Methodist Church in Charlottesville, VA on December 31, 2017. I hope to see you all there! Click on the link…
Read More: First Night Virginia!
Stewards of the Story

November 30, 2017

Last night, I was working with my seven year-old daughter on a Bible verse that she is trying to memorize. The verse spoke about the “fear of God” and we had a good discussion about the definition of the word “fear” in that context. While that alone is a whole other discussion, the point I…
Read More: Stewards of the Story
The Idea of Invitation in Worship

January 12, 2017

“Let the little children come to me.” – Jesus of Nazareth This past Sunday was a snow day in our part of the country. Most churches closed due to weather. When my wife, daughter, and I made our way downstairs to make some breakfast together, my wife suggested that we have a family devotional time.…
Read More: The Idea of Invitation in Worship
Do you do Santa Claus?

December 16, 2016

This is a common question I hear parents asking one another at Christmas time. The question comes from different perspectives and experiences that people have had with the story, tradition, and character of that jolly man, Santa. We’ve all heard stories of the proverbial thirteen year-old kid (or older) who finds out from their friends…
Read More: Do you do Santa Claus?
The Thanksgiving Tree

November 26, 2016

My wife and I had a debate a few nights ago over the meaning of the Christmas Tree. What ensued was a discussion about the “why” behind traditions that we often just take for granted. She doesn’t want to do things just because “we’ve always done it that way.” She likes to know the meaning…
Read More: The Thanksgiving Tree
Faith Development Resources: Early Childhood

April 22, 2016

INTRODUCTION Finding quality resources that help nurture the faith development of children and families can sometimes be difficult. This is the first post in a series, broken up by age-level focus, that can be of help to children, family members, and ministry leaders as they navigate the pilgrimage of the Christian faith. I will start…
Read More: Faith Development Resources: Early Childhood
Fun in the Snow!

January 26, 2016

Happy Monday and enjoy this little video my daughter took of me trying out the fire during this past weekend’s snowstorm….
Read More: Fun in the Snow!
Talking to Kids About Martin Luther King, Jr.

January 18, 2016

The great thing about a holiday is not just the fact that many people get the day off, but it also carves a memorial into the annual calendar that commemorates something or someone that we as a society deem important. When children see that they have a day off of school and that people are…
Read More: Talking to Kids About Martin Luther King, Jr.
Longest Celebrity Marriage?

January 15, 2016

Celebrities, including Hollywood stars, music icons, and famous people around the world have a reputation for short and numerous marriages. But there are always examples to the contrary, and I write this to show that lifelong monogamy is still possible. I personally believe it is only possible by the grace of God. I think I…
Read More: Longest Celebrity Marriage?
Super Easy Scripture Slides and Images

January 12, 2016

I recently stumbled upon a fast and free way to make Scripture slides for Children’s Ministry (or any other ministry, for that matter) with an array of free and attractive backgrounds. And it may already be in your phone/device. It’s built into one of the popular apps out there – the free YouVersion app of the…
Read More: Super Easy Scripture Slides and Images
Bring Me Game Ideas

January 8, 2016

The ‘Bring Me’ game is a group activity ideal for engaging children. The leader requests random items, and the first person or group to bring the item gets a point. The game uses technology as it allows for internet-based scavenger hunt challenges. The leader needs to adapt the items according to the group’s characteristics. The…
Read More: Bring Me Game Ideas
Teaching Kids About Street Performing

January 7, 2016

I performed for a small group of three to five year-olds at my daughter’s school today. They were studying about Europe, so I figured I would teach them about Europe’s rich tradition of busking (another term for street performing). I showed them a picture of a busker at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland as…
Read More: Teaching Kids About Street Performing
Teaching Kids About Money

January 4, 2016

Thanks to Dave Ramsey and other financial teachers, we were inspired to use clear labeled jars to show our daughter how much money she has and how to categorize it. I know that she will grow up in an even more digital world than we did, which means money will become more and more “invisible”…
Read More: Teaching Kids About Money
Remembering the Sabbath

January 14, 2015

Last week was a very busy week. There was office work, family obligations, booking events, and the ongoing process of fixing up our old house. And right now we are fixing up the kitchen! It will be great when it is done, but the process can seem long and laborious. So I try to find…
Read More: Remembering the Sabbath
Worship Response Stations

August 7, 2014

I recently returned from Pine Creek Camp in Gore, VA. I was the camp pastor for two weeks with several hundred preteen kids and their chaperones from Assembly of God churches around Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, D.C., and West Virginia. I speak at many camps each summer, but this one stuck out because of the format…
Read More: Worship Response Stations
Whatever is Lovely

June 10, 2014

God is love (1 John 4:8,16). So anything that is of God is lovely. And all things lovely are of God. This includes, but is not limited to, the love we share between one another in various relationships such as friends and family. In fact, all people are God’s creation and we are called to…
Read More: Whatever is Lovely
Life as a Professional Juggler: FAQ’s

December 12, 2013

By God’s grace, I am living a dream. I get to do what I love and I don’t even feel like I work. But what I do is serious “work” at the same time. I get a lot of questions from people about what I do, so I thought I would try to consolidate the…
Read More: Life as a Professional Juggler: FAQ’s
The National Gallery of Art

November 25, 2013

It’s a shame that we have lived in Richmond, VA for the past six years and it was only a few weeks ago that we took our first trip to the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. Just 110 miles away, this treasure of a museum has got to be one of the greatest…
Read More: The National Gallery of Art
How to Build a Portable Puppet Theater

October 21, 2013

Several years ago I built a portable puppet theater out of PVC and black fabric. We have used it since then for puppet shows at our church. Our church has different locations, so this is perfect for moving the theater back and forth to different spots where we have children’s worship services and summer activities.…
Read More: How to Build a Portable Puppet Theater
Joyn the Journey

September 5, 2013

This is a shameless plug for my wife’s blog (Sarah Joyner). She just updated the blog with some summer pics and a list of Kezzie’s favorite things. Enjoy! http://joynerjourney.blogspot.com/2013/09/here-it-is-month-our-family-waits-for.html
Read More: Joyn the Journey
A Retreat for the Whole Church

September 2, 2013

This past weekend, I had the privilege of speaking and entertaining at a church-wide retreat at a camp in the middle of Nebraska. What I witnessed in the dynamics of this retreat was one of the most powerful forms of the church being the church I’ve seen before. And I’m not talking about how they…
Read More: A Retreat for the Whole Church
Visiting Israel with a Toddler

August 12, 2013

My wife and I celebrated our 10 years of marriage this past May by visiting Israel and the West Bank. It was a two and a half week trip and we have a daughter who is two. We decided that we did not want to be away from her for that long of a trip,…
Read More: Visiting Israel with a Toddler
The Wordless Book

April 16, 2013

I have created a Power Point presentation that follows a version of The Wordless Book, sometimes known as the Colors of Salvation, or the Salvation Colors. This presentation is technically not “wordless” because I put the Scripture references in there. But that’s all. Each color is shown by a colored circle, then the corresponding Scripture…
Read More: The Wordless Book