The Auto Expo and Jack Hanna

This past Friday I went to the Auto Expo here in Cincinnati. It was a great deal because they had a 2 for 1 special for adults and kids got in free if you got there on Friday before 6:00pm. We ended up going with another couple and their kids and kids they were babysitting. All in all there were 4 adults and 7 kids under the age of 4. Not the perfect recipe for success but I am a Children's Minister so I thought I had everything under control. It took us forever to get in with all the kids but we made it and I was totally underwhelmed. Now I am a car guy and I love going to car shows because they are known for their creativity and innovation. Normally there are concept cars all over the place and other out of this world cars that I may never afford. This was like going to a local indoor car lot and I had to give them $10 to look around. Now don't get me wrong. There were two concept cars there. One was the Chrysler Imperial. Here is a photo:

This was a sharp car but it came out as a concept last year. At least they had it spinning on a platform. The second concept car was the Dodge Kahuna. Here are 2 photos:

They didn't even have it spinning. Of course they came out with this back in 2003. I can tell you right now that the auto industry is hurting. Why do I say that? The environment of the expo stunk. It was lousy. So what did I learn from the Auto Expo. If my environment stinks then people are going to think that my ministry is lacking. Believe me when I say that is the last thing I want.

Tuesday of this week I went to a local elementary school and saw a show put on by Jack Hanna. He is the animal guy who shows up on David Letterman and brings 18 animals on stage at once. Here is a photo:

I got to talk to Jack before the show and ask him some questions. I asked him how long he had been doing his job. He quickly came back with, "Since 1969 when the only people working at the zoo were prison inmates." He went on to say that when he started his T.V. show that he was only 1 of 2 shows about animals on the air. Today there are channels dedicated to animals. He also said that if there was an unpaid intership opening at the local zoo that they would get 500 applications today and back then no one cared. Then it was time for the show and I went out to help bring the animals in from a van. Now I will say this...Jack is passionate about animals. He is a bit on the goofy side but he still has the passion. That passion is what made him start when no one else was doing it. That same passion is what keeps him going today. What did I learn from Jack Hanna? Sometimes you don't have to be the best to make a huge impact. Sometimes you have to be willing to do what others won't and stick with it because you are passionate about it.

Believe it or not, but I think these are 2 of the biggest struggles for Children's Ministry across the nation. I hate going to churches that don't do squat in their ministry areas. The lack of attention to the environment is showing parents that your ministry is lacking in general. The second struggle is a lack of leadership from Children's Ministers that are passionate about what they do. Don't get me wrong. There are maybe a handful out there that are good leaders but most see Children's Ministry as the work that no one else wants to do. How do I know this? Because most churches are handing this off to the youth minister who doesn't care about it. Who blames them? No one because they are stuck in a basement or across the street from the main building trying not to drown and actually get students in the doors. So here are my suggestions for all the Senior Pastors out there.

1. Pay attention to all environments in your church, especially your children's area. Young families will give more and grow your church faster than anything else you do.

2. Hire the most passionate person you can find in every area. Pay them the way you want to get paid and get out of there way. Then maybe if you have an opening you too will get 500 applications to fill an intern position.