by Kristi Porter
Over the past few months we’ve been able to hear hundreds of Game Changers from Orange Leaders like you all over country. We’ve been pretty inspired by them, and just couldn’t keep them to ourselves. Here are just a few from our recent meet ups and Orange Tour.
“I’ve been working at a Methodist youth camp for children and adults with developmental disabilities and the traditional camp community, watching and equipping them to lead in worship.”
“I’ve been doing ministry for two years and developing relationships has been the one thing that changed my game across the board—from kids to parents to volunteers to other Orange Leaders!”
“My Game Changer was having an involved children’s team with a leader who is passionate about leading a children’s ministry in the direction we need to go, passionate about their own spiritual relationship, and the need to instill that in our kids, too.”
“A huge change happened in my ministry once I realized it wasn’t all about the number of kids I have, but the effort I put into making sure the kids that I do have are being taught the gospel.
“I just recently found out I am expecting a baby and it was changed my perspective on the work I do with children and parents.”
“When we started faithfully going to church, we wanted to serve somewhere. But the first thing my wife and I said was, ‘Not in the children’s ministry.’ But then I overheard what the youth pastor said as she was looking back at her life, ‘Who am I to tell God where I want to be in the ministry. I want to be wherever God leads me or needs me, for however long.’ That idea changed my life. We are now children’s pastors at our church.”
“I realized that ministry related mistakes don’t define me as a leader. Instead, they are opportunities to learn, grow and improve children’s ministry.”
“I pray that I’m in the middle of it. I’ve decided that I can be more effective by earning my living and volunteering as a minister. I’m working now to reproduce leaders so I can step aside and help transform the church from the inside instead of as a paid, professional church member.”
“My Game Changer was when I decided that ‘because we’ve always done it’ was not the reason I wanted to keep doing things.”
“We responded to a request from children who didn’t want to be in the children’s service but instead wanted to be taught to serve as junior helpers in birth through kindergarten small groups. They see their parents serve and they demanded to serve, too. We have parents who are now volunteering so that their children can be junior helpers.”
Want to hear more? Be sure to join us at a meet up and at OC12!
Do you have a Game Changer you’d like to share with us? If so, please send it to gamechanger@rethinkgroup.org.
