Mark R. Rank of the George Warren Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis co-authored a study analyzing the financial circumstances of U.S. kids (ages 1-20) over a period of 30 years. Key findings include:

• 49% of all U.S. kids will be in a household that uses food stamps at some point during their childhood.
  >> 90% of black kids
  >> 37% of white kids
  >> 91% of kids in single-parent homes
  >> 37% of kids in married homes
• Nearly 25% of all U.S. kids will be in households that use food stamps for 5+ years during childhood.
• 97% of U.S. kids by age 10 who are black and whose head of household is not married with less than 12 years of education reside in a food stamp household.

Even limited exposure to poverty can have detrimental effects upon a child’s overall quality of health and well-being.
- Mark R. Rank :: George Warren Brown School of Social Work

While these findings encompass decades of ups and downs, do not forget that current food stamp usage is at record levels (10%+ of the total U.S. population). Simultaneously, 80% of food banks can not meet demand (based on May ‘09 research).

Churches can help fight this hunger.

(via USA Today)

Reggie Joiner of The reThink Group discussed the importance of family at Catalyst’s second pre-lab. Here is what he said:

Most of us (attending Catalyst) have been influenced by the church. Yet although some of us have been influenced by the church, we have all been influenced by our family.

God uses 2 entities – church and family – to teach the gospel to a child. If you can influence a family, you can influence in an exponential way.

1. We are influenced by family.
2. Somewhere along the way we develop a picture of what we think family looks like.
   A church may use a stock photo of a family, but it likely is an unrealistic representation of a family.
3. If we hold to tightly to an ideal picture of family, we set families up to be disillusioned.
   Things don’t work out the way we thought they would.
4. God never gives s a picture of an ideal family in the Bible.
   God isn’t trying to give you an ideal picture. He is trying to tell a story through your family and my family. God is trying to unpack something that is much more bigger than family, bugger than church, and much, much bigger than a nation. Your calling as a leader should not e to get families to conform to a common picture. Your calling is not to build better families. Your calling is not to build a bigger church. Your calling is to lead people into a relationship with Christ. Our purpose is not to build better families but to use that family to influence the world.

Two ways to influence families:

1. Present an ideal, “better” picture of how families should be.
2. Encourage families to cooperate with the story God wants to tell in their lives regardless of their mistakes.

Parents don’t need a better picture; they need a bigger story. Never forget that the approach and mindset we have in ministry towards the family can disillusion them or give them hope. An ideal picture can make you feel like a failure. But reality is God has chosen to use us.

God is at work telling a story of redemption in your family. Never buy into the myth that your family has to be picture perfect. God doesn’t use perfect pictures. He uses broken people. Give us a generation of leaders who are authentic and broken.

Moses had a bigger story approach in Deuteronomy 6. When you have a bigger story approach, you:

1. Imagine the end.
2. Fight for the heart.
3. Make it personal.
4. Create a rhythm.
5. Widen the circle.

Somewhere along the way, the church has to switch from a Sunday mindset to a daily mindset. A church has 40 hours a year to reach a kid, but the parents have 3,000 hours.

Boys are different than girls. As previously discussed, boys prefer a dramatically different learning environment and style than how girls prefer to learn.

The social preferences of boys and girls are also sharply contrasted according to new brain scan research from the National Institute of Mental Health. TIME summarizes the research nicely. Essentially, girls want one-on-one close friendships, and boys prefer to interact in groups.

As girls progress from early puberty to late adolescence, certain regions of their brains become more active when they face a potential social interaction. Specifically, when an older girl anticipates meeting someone new — someone she believes will be interested in her — her nucleus accumbens (which is associated with reward and motivation), hypothalamus (associated with hormone secretion), hippocampus (associated with social learning) and insula (associated with subjective feelings) all become more active. By contrast, boys in the same situation show no such increase in activity in these areas. In fact, the activity in their insula actually declines.

This research combined with our knowledge of gender learning preferences, gives insight into how we can create youth ministries that maximize both a teen’s learning and social enjoyment.

For Boys:

So when teaching boys, keep the group large but controllable (i.e., 12-24 boys) and in even numbers for team competition. Stand and move around while speaking forcefully and realistically. Allow the boys to occasionally move and keep the room at 69 degrees Fahrenheit. Use cooler colors in your environment and teaching. Play sports and competitive games, so the boys can naturally bond via social competition.

For Girls:

So when teaching girls, keep the group very small and intimate and allow for one-on-one interaction or even mentoring. Sit in a circle with the girls and speak descriptively and in a nurturing tone. Keep the room at 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Use lots of colors, particularly warmer colors, and use visual and/or tactile textures. Create a secure yet stimulating environment where they can feel comfortable in taking risks that you encourage them to take.

For Discussion:
- If you teach kids and youth, what has your experience taught you about their preferences?

Ken Ham of Answers in Genesis commissioned America’s Research Group to investigate why young people leave the church. The findings are published in Ken Ham’s new book Already Gone. Some insights include:

Among 20- to 29-year-old evangelicals

• 95% attended church regularly during elementary school
• 95% attended church regularly during middle school
  >> 40% first had doubts about the Bible in middle school
• 55% attended church regularly during high school
  >> 43.7% first had doubts about the Bible in high school
• 11% attended church regularly during college
  >> 10% first had doubts about the Bible in college

Oddly, the study discovered that those who attended Sunday school (61%) are actually more likely than non-attendees (39%):

• to not believe that all the accounts and stories in the Bible are true
• to doubt the Bible because it was written by men
• to defend keeping abortion legal
• to accept the legalization of gay marriage
• to believe in evolution
• to believe that good people don’t need to go to church

Clearly, most children’s ministries are failing at producing long-term disciples. So what will it take to change this?

On the one hand, I believe that every children’s ministry can absolutely improve what they do. There is always room for improvement, but I also think these failed children’s ministries are the byproduct of failed churches.

If you want to reach and disciple children, you must reach and disciple their parents. Church going kids spend only 1% of their time at church, 20% at school, 30% sleeping, and much of the rest watching TV and playing. Children’s ministers can determine the 1%, but it is the parents who have the power to decide what reaches their kids during the other 99%. If you disciple the parents, you disciple the kids.

For Discussion:
- How can children’s ministries better disciple kids in the Sunday school classroom?
- How can churches better train parents to disciple their kids during the rest of the week?

(via)

Last year, I blogged about special needs ministry for children with autism. It has become a forum of discussion for parents and children’s ministers to discuss the challenges of church for children with autism.

I stressed the importance of developing a unique approach and relationship with each child. I highlighted research from the University of Wisconsin-Madison that discovered, “autistic children shy from eye contact because they perceive even the most familiar face as an uncomfortable threat.” But the greatest insight comes from the answers to my question:

What advice do you have for ministering to special needs children?

Here is a summary of the insights.

WHAT WORKS

• Buddy System - children with special needs are paired with trained adults to assist them at whatever level is needed. Experienced volunteers trained by child psychologists and educators are a plus. (Example: Joy Zone)
• Childcare Nights (respite care) - childcare for children with special needs and their siblings so the parent(s) can relax. On-site doctors, nurses, and OT/PT’s is a plus. (Example: Revive)
• Community Outreach - go beyond the church walls and minister in the community because some parents will not attend church because they believe their child with special needs will disturb others or cannot be entrusted to others.
• Dual Classrooms - sometimes children with special needs participate in the same class as their age group, and other times the children with special needs are in a quiet room especially designed for them as not to be overwhelming or too stimulating.
• Separate Classroom - children with special needs are separated from the standard children’s classrooms but their parents and siblings are welcomed.
• Zachariah’s Way - trains churches how to better minister to people with special needs and their families.
• Prayer

TIPS

• Labeling their Identity - Do not refer to people by their disability. Say “children with autism” rather than “autistic children” because it can subtly change one’s perception of a child with autism.
• Every Child is Different - Determine how to reach each child. Children with autism don’t like too much stimulation. But children with other disabilities may thrive on it.
• Give Expectations - many children with special needs behave better when they know what is expected of them.
• Be Visual - Include inanimate objects need to be included in lessons. Things like puppets, pictures, and videos take the focus off the teacher and engages the child without intimidating him.
• Use Music - children with autism love music.
• More than Chairs - children with autism do not like to sit for long periods of time.
• Keep It Small - children with autism like small environments
• Ask & Research - do not tell the parent what you think. Ask the parents about the child then do some research.
• Don’t gossip.
• Love the child.

WHY IT MATTERS (stories from parents)

• I have a stepson who is autistic, and I tried to take him to church, I really miss going to church. My problem is I spent more time in the child’s room than I spent at church because the people who teach there are simply not educated in the needs of an autistic student. I have been looking into getting a tss or a pca to come and help during church but to no avail. It would be wonderful if more people truly understood instead of staring and whispering. (Stacy)
• I have a 20 year old son with Asperger Syndrome who loves the Lord deeply. Sadly the church environment has been the one place he has never been welcomed or encouraged to return. The secular world has been far kinder to him. Though he desperately wants friends and fellowship, the lack of encouragement within the church body has caused him to retreat further into his own world. He now refuses to try again. (Rhiannon)
• I have been very grateful for a Special Needs Sunday School class that was started. I feel comfortable with leaving him there and I am at least getting to hear a sermon once a week! (Sheryl)

For Discussion:
- What advice do you have for ministering to children with special needs?

Keep the insights coming!

Environmental design for churches has changed drastically over the last two decades (at least on the fringes). It has become much more than church interior design. It has evolved into creating entire worlds and environments.

For example, when Cornerstone Harvest Church (Lima, OH) recently revamped their Heir Force youth ministry, they hired Little Mountain Productions to develop the environmental design. The result was a youth ministry design that featured a lifesize M-1 Abrams tank and 40 foot wing span plane coming out of the walls.

To complement these installations, Little Mountain Productions also added acoustic panel military graphics to the room.

In case you are wondering how they did it, here are some production shots.

OooRah!

The University of Texas School of Public Health recently discovered that middle school sex happens more often than most think. According to their study:

• 1/3 of students experienced precoital touching behaviors
  >> 43% of these students experienced sexual intercourse
• 12% of students experienced vaginal sex by age 12
• 7.9% of students experienced oral sex by age 12
• 6.5% of students experienced anal sex by age 12
• 4% of students experienced all three types of sex by age 12

Among sexually active middle school students:

• 1/3 experienced vaginal or anal sex without a condom within the past three months
• 1/4 had four or more partners

Obviously, this trend is alarming morally. But researcher Christine Markham also states:

These findings are alarming because youth who start having sex before age 14 are much more likely to have multiple lifetime sexual partners, use alcohol or drugs before sex and have unprotected sex, all of which puts them at greater risk for getting a sexually transmitted disease or becoming pregnant.

I think middle school ministry is usually too soft. It is a difficult age to teach because some students are still years away from puberty while others are already beginning to experiment with sex, drugs, alcohol, and porn. Children’s ministers don’t like to touch taboo topics, but when 1 in 3 students are feeling each other up, how can they afford not to?

It takes tact, grace, and wisdom to discuss these things with students without offending or embarrassing them or their parents. It is challenging but worth it. It is much easier for a middle school minister to teach a preventive message than it is for a high school minister to rewire students’ established bad habits.

For Discussion:
- At what age does your church begin approaching tough topics?
- What do you think is the best way to teach tough topics to young students?

Generation Z is everyone between 2001 to 2021. They are who your children’s ministry will strive to reach for the next two decades.

While it is difficult to forecast how Generation Z will evolve, I think we have enough data to predict that these children will have their innocence robbed at earlier ages and engage in sexual activities earlier and more often than previous generations.

THE POWER OF LYRICS
The University of Pittsburgh surveyed ninth-grade students and discovered:

Exposure to lyrics describing degrading sex was one of the strongest associations with sexual activity.

Compared to those with the least exposure to lyrics describing degrading sex, those with the most exposure were more than twice as likely to have had sexual intercourse. Similarly, among those who had not had sexual intercourse, those in the highest third of exposure to lyrics describing degrading sex were nearly twice as likely to have progressed along a noncoital sexual continuum compared to those in the lowest third.

GENERATION Y STATS
Currently, the United States has 750,000 teenage pregnancies each year.
One in four (25%) U.S. teen girls have sexually transmitted infections.

GENERATION Z TODAY
Obviously, pop lyrics have digressed from the days of the Beatles (i.e., “I wanna hold your hand.”) to the era of Beyonce (i.e., “I know you want my body. Tonight I’ll be your naughty girl”).

Many of today’s Generation Z kids already listen to mainstream pop music. In fact, 44% of UK parents sing their babies pop songs and TV theme tunes rather than nursery rhymes. And if they do not listen to provocative pop music yet, media conglomerates will package it to them and tell them to listen.

Look at the some of music nominees for Nickelodeon’s 2009 Kids’ Choice Awards:

• Beyonce
  “Now take it off while I watch you perform.” (Suga Mama)
• Chris Brown
  “Let’s get and make love on Venus.” (Gimme Whatcha Got)
• Alicia Keys
  “So maybe we can go to first base because I feel you.” (Teenage Love Affair)
• Jesse McCartney
  “Spend the night with me and I’ll rock you.” (Rock You)
• Katy Perry
  “I kissed a girl just to try it. I hope my boyfriend don’t mind it.” (I Kissed a Girl)
• Pussycat Dolls
  “I can get off when you ain’t around.” (I Don’t Need a Man)
• Rihanna
  “What you got up in them jeans? Put it on me, or get lonely.” (Lemme Get That)
• Kid Rock
  “that little p**** l***** finger f***** h* a** c***.” (F*** U Blind)
• T-Pain
  “She was s***** on me. And I was l***** on her.” (69)

Considering a large part of Nickelodeon’s audience is Generation Z, the future looks rough for these kids, particularly those who are already listening to Kid Rock, T-Pain, the Pussycat Dolls, and Katy Perry.

For Discussion:
- Where do you see hope for Generation Z?
- How can ministries best help Generation Z from becoming the probable statistics of teen pregnancies and STDs?