Comments for Just Thinking

Comment on Who Do You Trust? by Henry Zonio

Henry Zonio — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 17:53:48 +0000

Great thought! That last question hits it on the head! "…do we trust him enough to follow him there even if we don't know what the final destination is?"

Comment on Procrastinating Processing Prose Pertaining to Proscratination by Bev

Bev — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 00:45:13 +0000

This has been my middle name for awhile and am recently trying to get out of it!! Keep me up to date with your findings. I am interested!!

Comment on Re-Thinking Missional Children’s Ministry by Necia

Necia — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 20:22:09 +0000

While still in the didactic mode, the material from Children Desiring God (Bethlehem Baptist Chuch in Minneapolis) does a good job teaching “Bible stories” from a larger perspective and training children to think, “What does this teach me about God?”

One of our attempts to be missional is with service projects. 4-5-6-year-olds can color cards for older folks or residents of a women’s shelter, pray for misisonaries and send them “thank you” notes for what they do, raise money for Bibles, goats in Kenya, and hurricane relief. They can color placemats, fall leaves, etc. as table decor for a “senior adults” dinner or church picnic. I’m thinking of having them decorate cupcakes for the men at a homeless shelter – maybe buy the cupcakes and have them add sprinkles, etc. That would either be brave or misguided!

Comment on Up For The Challenge by Henry Zonio

Henry Zonio — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 14:37:51 +0000

Great point… On the other side of the coin, though, we need to be careful that we don’t use the sacrifices made to create a system of one Christian being better than another because of how much they “sacrifice.” Sacrifice also is more than just how much time someone gives to church programs or how much they contribute to a church budget. I know that’s not what you mean by this post. Western Christianity has become too comfortable. I am concerned though at a growing trend to hold up people who “sacrifice a lot” that they become celebrities and the “ideal” of what we should be. We have to remember, too, that while we are called to sacrifice, what God wants even more is our hearts and our devotion to him. Sacrifice should arise from our love of God and not as a way to avail ourselves of guilt or to reach some sort of pinnacle.

Comment on Up For The Challenge by Eric

Eric — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 22:09:21 +0000

I like what you wrote about the guy swimming at the North Pole and its connection to what we are and should be willing to sacrifice for the sake of Jesus Christ. The fellow that spoke at The Bridge here in Abbotsford this past Sunday talked about the churches where people go cruising at – just kind of sitting in the stands. It has me thinking that even at this stage in my life, God wants me in action, not cruising.

Comment on Missional Children’s Ministry – Part Deux by Henry Zonio

Henry Zonio — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 20:38:39 +0000

I believe story is critical in developing missionally minded kids. Helping them to identify with it and find themselves in it and finding out and living out their role in the continuing story.

The trick in all of this is helping children develop a sense of engagement in story without imposing our limitations on their imaginations and what God can speak into their lives. It’s an art to strike the balance between helping them learn the stories and how the stories connect and allowing for God to reveal himself to them in ways they can understand. That’s where discovery and experience of the stories plays into it as well as an understanding of child development and what they are able to understand and visualize and contextualize at each stage of early life. Unfortunately, much of pedagogy in most schools stomps out that kind of discovery in children. Things are changing but very slowly.

Comment on Re-Thinking Missional Children’s Ministry by Henry Zonio

Henry Zonio — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 20:31:19 +0000

Finally! Someone in leadership is doing more thinking on what CM looks like in a missional context! This motivates me to finish fleshing out my thoughts on what the ethos of children’s ministry in a missional context looks like. Nice to see more churches intentionally thinking through it.

Comment on Misguided Promotions by Doug

Doug — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 20:47:52 +0000

A preacher said recently, ” Doing something to be rewarded is much different than being rewarded for doing something”. He and you seem to be on the same wavelength.

Comment on Re-Thinking Missional Children’s Ministry by Jennifer

Jennifer — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 20:57:31 +0000

Cool. Sorry I had to leave early. So…I love big picture thinking as much as the next person, but next time are we going to start narrowing in a bit on how that will affect what we are doing Sunday mornings this fall? Or this week even? Step by step action to put these ideas into practice? I’m so glad to be part of this conversation, BTW.

Comment on SillyFest 2009 by Bev

Bev — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 20:54:43 +0000

I do feel silly being silly, but not around the kids! I guess it’s good that that is my job or I may be one serious person!

Comment on SillyFest 2009 by click

click — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 10:50:52 +0000

You are doing a wonderful thing here on the Internet. I wish you the very best. Kindest regards.

Comment on SillyFest 2009 by Henry Zonio

Henry Zonio — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 14:12:38 +0000

Easy solution… more people should just work with kids once in a while… that’ll get you silly… or suicidal…

Comment on It’s Raining Holy Spirit by Henry Zonio

Henry Zonio — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 14:07:57 +0000

This is what I miss most about my Pentecostal upbringing. While you do have your cariacatures of Pentecostalism, I grew up with that notion that the Holy Spirit isn’t always “safe” and we need to allow him to rain down… not it weird charismatic ways but in radical life-changing ways. That is why I am liking Mark Batterson more and more. I think he’s a good example of someone who understands how to allow the Holy Spirit to work freely within a missional context. No, he’s not perfect… no one is. We are sooo missing out on passion and life and adventure by trying too hard control things and making sure things are polished and well-delivered. We gone too far in the direction of not coming off as “weird.” Now we just come off as entertaining and practical.

Comment on “Image”ine That by Bev

Bev — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 18:20:20 +0000

I enjoyed reading this Nathan!! Not sure what image I leave.

Comment on It’s Raining Holy Spirit by cathi grandfield

cathi grandfield — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 20:32:18 +0000

(evidently what i wrote the first time was “a bit too short” in Wordpress’s opinion, so i’ll just say it a few more times…)

i love this!!
i love this!!
i love this!!