FREE Children's Resource Friday- Prayer Leading Guide

In this Friday's Free Resource for Children's Ministry, I'd like to introduce you to a Prayer Leader Guide for kids. You may already be doing this with your kids at home or in church, but if not, I love to share this with you, and if so, perhaps a new resource for you to use?

Here is my son when he was just 7, praying during our Kids Prayer Meeting. The first obstacle for kids to overcome in prayer is language. How can kids get scripture hidden in their heart, so they are actually using biblical language to pray from, while applying it to their life at the same time? That's right, by "Pray-Reading" the Scripture.

Here's an easy way to work the muscle of Pray-Reading Scripture- and even better, is that by working this muscle, children will be memorizing scripture in a way that applies to their lives, making it more real to them!

1. Read the passage to the children and explain that this is scripture which is a prayer written by the Apostle Paul. That there are many prayers already in the Bible that we can pray as well. 
2. In this passage, Paul was praying for the Church in Ephesus, but we will use it to pray for (your Pastor, Parents, etc. whatever you choose)
3. Let them read and fill out the booklet, take it up to the microphone, and pray through as directed.

As always, I would love to hear what you thought and how it worked for you!
Enjoy,
Gina


Prayer Leader Booklet

Update on My Music

Hi there,
So this website was primarily designed as a place for me to post my writing, art, and music, but the music has been a little slow going. Mostly because I have been having throat issues for the last 2 years.
    Currently, I am on a vocal rest for two months, after just having my tonsils out. I am preparing though, in two months, to start my first recording project. It has been a dream of mine since I was 16 years old. I have written over 40 songs, and lacked the courage to sing my original music until the past few years.
   I'm excited about the future of my voice - now that those nasty tonsils are gone! And very excited to get a little EP out. I would love to have your prayers and support. Please tune into my website and listen to the music I post in the meantime, and keep checking in with me. I appreciate your encouragement so much!

- Gina

Personal Update

Hi there,
Just a note to let you know I have taken a couple weeks off my blog,
I have been working very hard finishing another Children's Curriculum called "Discovering God's Heart", a journey through the Song of Solomon for kids. It is almost complete, and will be available soon!

I also am recovering from a tonsillectomy and I thought I would be doing a lot of blogging while I was down, but turns out, its hard to think when you are groggy on medications after a surgery!

Just know, that I am working behind the scenes on more resources to make available very soon,
blessings,
Gina

FREE Children's Prayer Resource FRIDAY: Target Meditation

Today's tip: Teaching Kids to Meditate on God using the Target Meditation.

I developed a little visual system to help me meditate on scripture a while back, and I introduced it to my kids about a year ago and it really helped them.

When we are meditating on a Biblical idea or scripture, many other things come to our mind and we need to sort them somehow to stay focused. In Kirk Bennett's Revelation by Meditation model he shows you how to create that 'task' column along the left side of your page and the "pursuit" section across the bottom. The idea is if you can stay focused on your target, you can get some deeper, clearer revelation from God.

I created this simple worksheet for our kids to do just that. To try this out- simply print one out per child, give each child some colored pencils or pens, and put on some soft soaking worship music.  (Even young non-writers can use it and draw their 'revelation' from God!) If your child(ren) have never done something like this before, start with about ten minutes. My kids are very use to it, so I gauge them and I can tell when they are kind of done and ready to share.

When the ten or more minutes are done, bring them together in a circle (or if you are doing this in a larger church, break them up into small group circles) and have them each take a turn and share what God showed them about the passage of scripture.

My oldest son has always had a hard time in church and school settings. He has been challenged in the area of "sitting still"- maybe you can relate? Last year, when he was just seven, we did this with him and the most amazing thing happened! He really saw an amazing picture. He couldn't really describe fully what God was saying to him, but the way he interpreted it was that being "surrounded by God" made him feel good. This was his picture of dwelling in the House of the Lord. This was our prayer for him, that he would love to be in God's house!

So please download it, print it, and try it out! I'd love to hear from you-- Oh and Pass it on please!

Have a great Weekend!
Gina


TARGET MEDITATION Worksheet



Target Meditation

Our Golden California

Praying for Revival in the Golden Gate? San Francisco, California is overdue for a move of God! Many people have prophesied earthquakes and such over California, too many out there to count, and though science may show evidence of possibilities, we have yet to see it. Maybe because California hosts a multitude of prayer warriors? Just a thought.

In my dreams, personally,  I have seen 'shaking', to put it generally, but not specifically an earthquake. It's important to be careful how we interpret dreams, visions, and 'words' given toward our lovely Golden State. I have seen things I use to think were literal, but the Lord showed them to be symbolic.

For example, one of the pictures the Lord had begun showing me in 2006 was this image of the ground opening up with light coming out. It seemed to appear to me at significant moments during corporate prayer meetings, at the California State Capitol, and during worship sessions. The Lord showed me that this is not the literal ground opening but the light breaking through the dark places of politics and leadership in our state.

Recently, I read some reports from different sources about how God is going to bring revival to the San Francisco CA Bay Area. This makes my heart leap because we all know that God has plans for us, plans to prosper and not harm us, according to Jeremiah 29:11.

The past few weeks in the Prayer Room I have been singing the Revelation 4 song by Jon Thurlow, A Storm all Around You. It was pretty crazy this particular Thursday night as our Israel Prayer Team was singing it because on our way home that night we drove home through a lightning storm after just singing about how God's voice thunders and the lightning around the throne. (Revelation 4:5)

If you are not from the San Francisco CA Area, you may have missed this news, it was a most amazing sight. {Read the article here.}


So What is God saying about California? I believe God is calling all the prayer warriors of California to cry out for revival in 2012, and I believe revival is really coming. Here are a few ways for you to engage your heart in praying for revival in California, and the San Francisco CA Bay Area:

1. Believe that God can use you in the place of prayer. Your prayers count, so pray. Find a house of prayer or local corporate prayer meeting in your area and commit to regular weekly fasting and corporate prayer for revival.
2. Fast for revival. Set aside one day a week for weekly fasting for revival for your own heart and for California. For me, it is Tuesdays, every week. For more on fasting, see my post here.
3. Come cry out for revival at the One Voice Corporate Prayer Gathering coming to Hayward, CA. Attending Corporate Prayer Gatherings changes the atmosphere! Join with the state of California by attending large corporate prayer gatherings like this.
4. Speak life over California, that's right,  watch your mouth. (Proverbs 18:21) Speak, sing, paint, draw, dance in the spirit and sound of life over this state. When we speak life, we live life. There is lots of bad news out there, but there is also good news out there. Find some good testimonies of what God is doing in California and start talking about that. Start posting testimonies on Facebook and Twitter.  I am getting so tired of the negative slant constantly being spoken in social media. Lets get some of God's goodness declared shall we??

Join with me in corporate prayer and weekly fasting for revival in California, and I'll see you Saturday, June 9th at Cal State Hayward!

- Gina

The Local Church's Role in Children's Ministry

In one way or another, I have been involved in children's ministry since 1996. I have been on staff at several churches and attend various others in between, and one question that continues to echo inside me is, "what is the role of the local church"?
    I believe when Jesus told Peter, 'upon this rock I will build my church', He was speaking of His "plan A".  Plan "A" is that believers in a city would come together in unity and pray and worship together regularly. They would also fellowship with one another, preach the Word, and prophesy over one another. (1 Cor. 14:26-31) This is the New Testament picture of a local church.
   The interesting thing though, is that there is no mention of where children fit in the local church. Biblically, where are the children to be while the 'gatherings' are taking place?  It is fair to assume, based on Matthew 19:13-15, that children were present in public settings when Jesus was teaching.
   Now, culturally, in the western church we have "children's church" and "Sunday schools", and that's where the children go during the adult gatherings, but is that Biblical? Perhaps it is not, but what I want to examine is what the local church's role should and shouldn't be.

1. The Local Church should be a place of Common-Unity. (Acts 2:42-47)

Recently, our Senior Pastor spoke on the topic of "Community". (cHOP podcasts available here.) To define "Community" was pretty funny actually- because it really is so simple. It's people and families that come together based on the thing they share in common- Jesus.

A "Community" includes children, teens, young adults, young marrieds, seniors, empty nesters, older adults... that's right- everyone! One of the neatest things about our community at Convergence House of Prayer is that we all really do everything together- meaning, there isn't a bunch of age segregation. In the prayer room on any given worship set you will see some younger kids, some teens, some young adults, and some older folks all operating in  place of prayer and worship together.  This is the picture of "common - unity" I am speaking of.

2. The Local Church should be a place of equipping. (Ephesians 4:11-16)

Within the community, different ones are given different gifts of teaching, shepherding,  evangelizing, etc. Each one should be using his or her gifts for the equipping and edifying of one another. This is not limited to the five fold ministry gifts- but consider the gifts of the Spirit in 1 Corinthians 12. All of the workings of the Holy Spirit through us are for the benefit of the entire community. This is why every part of the "body" is important!

You have heard the famous saying, "It takes a Village..." - I have heard people preach for and against this saying, but I believe this, "It takes a village, to be a village." In other words, it takes everyone participation to be a community. Everyone has something to offer to edify or equip the community. No one was called to come and "absorb". I do not see a gift of "absorption" in 1 Corinthians 12. I guarantee you, there is something you can contribute to your local church community!

What about Parents and Families?

It has never been the role of the local church to raise children, or be their 'spiritual food'. Children should receive from the local church the same thing adults do... community and equipping. It always will remain the role of the parents to train up their children (Proverbs 22:6). The local church should provide community and equipping for parents and families. Personally, I think specialized classes for kids are great, particularly if they are supporting the vision and direction the parents are on as well so that parents and children are on the same path- remember "Common"- "Unity".
     What I am not a big fan of is children's programs that create detachment from a common vision. If the Biblical role of the church is to edify the whole family, then the whole family would be receiving a common message, edified together, and the parents would own the responsibility to pour into their children.
     Now I know there are many, many local churches that are trumpeting this vision, and I too will continue to trumpet this family - focused vision.

What about Children without a Family?

I used to think that the local church ministry was first for the unsaved as an evangelism reach. Later I discovered it was because of my personal heart of evangelism that I felt that way, but that it wasn't really Biblical. If the children and families within the local church are operating in real community, what better place would someone from the outside come in and feel welcomed? The fatherless generation of our culture need to be received into a "family" not into a "program".

I became fatherless at 15 when my parents separated, and when I was 16 years old I had a friend that invited me to go to youth group with her. Needless to say, I went and that is where I heard about Jesus. She took me to a summer camp where I joined many other teens at an alter and prayed a prayer of salvation. It didn't really stick for me. I felt very uncomfortable at the youth group or teen events, I didn't feel like I fit in at all. What I did like, what got my heart, was that her family invited me to spend the weekends with them. Often I would spend the night with them on a Saturday night and go to church on Sundays with them. That is what I really enjoyed.  Even when I didn't really know God, I knew that I enjoyed being a part of a family that was taking me to church.

To this day, that family will always feel like my real family. See, it doesn't matter if there is dysfunction, family is real. Programs are not.


To wrap up, I would love to hear from you. How does your local church edify you and your family? How does your local church equip whole families? What's your take on the topic?

-gina

A Word about Silence...

A word about silence kind of sounds oxymoron? Ya, but in reading the Way of The Heart, by Henri Nouwen, I have been contemplating this chapter on silence for a couple months now. There are a few things that really stand out to me that I have been pondering...

Firstly, the purpose of the 'word'. If the word it to convey an idea, simply a 'candy wrapper' for the real thing, is the idea, philosophy, or even theology being wrapped in those words. On page 49 of his book he quotes Chuang Tzu:

"The purpose of the word is to convey ideas. When the ideas are grasped, the words are forgotten. Where can I find a man with forgotten words? He is the one I would like to talk to."

Many times, I find myself speaking for the effort of trying to convey a thought, a revelation of the Word, or somehow to express what I see so another can also see, so we two together can relate. Many times, I fail at finding the words to communicate what it is inside me that is unspoken.

Long talks, or 'sharing' of our hearts with one another don't always leave us feeling resolved, but somehow emptied. It was really good for me to hear how the author explained this because it is something I personally struggle with. The Roman educator, Arsenius said it well:

"I have often repented of having spoken, but never of having remained silent."

I too, relate here. I feel like I speak too much, and when I do speak what is the fruit? I am simply asking these questions, not bashing myself, but it is good to really ask these questions. I want my words to count and to effectively communicate. So I did a little introspective work on this topic and it was really good for me.

The second part to this, is the purpose of being silent in a 'wordy world'. That is to guard the fire within. Many men and women of God I have looked up to I could say a similar thing about, and that is that they were a person of few and powerful words. You can probably think of a few men and women of God right now that speak plain and bold and you feel rich in spirit in listening to them teach or preach. That is what I am talking about. Words that carry within their container something that you can grab on to and receive. 

The life of the spirit within us is fragile, and must be guarded. One of the Desert Fathers says that the "mouth is a door only for exit." This is referring to all that is cultivated in the heart seeping out by the opening of our mouths. I want to give hope, life, revelation, and teaching of God's Word to people, but I don't want to give away everything I have that my fire dwindles to a faint flicker. I am not sure if you can relate, but I am looking for moments in my days that I can steal away for silence.

I have decided to commit my life to daily times of silence as a key to increase the fire in my heart, how about you? Do you take times of silence? Time with the Lord being completely still and silent?

I would love to hear from you on silence!
-gina