Post Christian Kidz

A recent survey done by Pew Forum on Religious and Public Live has revealed some startling statistics. The number of Protestants living in America has dropped below 50 percent for the first time. This same survey revealed that the number of people who are not affiliated with any religion or faith has risen four percent in the past four years. We now live in a society where 20 percent of American citizens claim no faith at all let alone Christianity.

So much for being a "Christian Nation". We are now a "Post-Christian Nation". The evidence is all around us that at one point in our nations history, the majority of us aligned ourselves with a Christian world view. As we drive on our way to work we see a church every block or so. Sometimes on every street corner. As we scan the stations on our radios we pick up a Christian radio station. During our weekends off as we are out shopping we notice the occasional Christian book store here and there. It is evident that at one point in our nations history, Christianity was a big deal.

That all has changed. While the shadows of a "God Fearing" culture remains, a new irreligious culture is on the rise. The voices of post-modernism, secular humanism, cultural pluralism, and relativism has replaced the voices of our spiritual heritage. This culture finds our Christian world view irrational and out of touch. At times they cannot decide what is more irrational; the doctrines of our faith, or the mere fact that we feel the need to institutionalize it in an organized social system that we call "church".

The result is that we live in a world where Christianity is no longer the standard brand when it comes to world views. It is now only one of many. The Church is going to have to make an adjustment in the perception of it's role in society. We are so used to seeing ourselves as the moral and spiritual authority in society. Perhaps this is the reason we think we have so great a influence when it comes to controversial social issues such as abortion and gay marriage. We incorrectly assume that society as a whole generally understands that when it comes to social issues, the view of the Church is the dominant and more adhered view. That simply is not the case in Post-Christian America. Our views on issues such as abortion, homosexuality, origins of life, etc are one of many competing views in this country. We have often heard that America is a melting pot of diverse cultures, races, and nationalities. This melting pot paradigm now applies to religions. We are no longer the dominant voice and world view, just one ingredient in the pot.

One of the consequences of this world view shift in our nation is that we now have "Post-Christian Kidz". Twenty years ago it would have been strange to encounter a kid who had never heard of common Bible stories such as Noah, David and Goliath, Moses, etc. Now, I am meeting kidz like this more and more often each year. Religious education is simply not a priority for the parents of this generation. It is no secret that adults from 20-35 are an endangered species in the church today, so naturally their kidz are rare as well. The reality we face is that in just a couple decades, Christianity's dominance and presence in society will be all but gone due to the lack of putting into application of the spiritual principle found in Deuteronomy 6:6-9:

"These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."

If we continue to fail to put into practice the discipling of our children, we will loose a generation... unless of course there is revival. It is my belief that God will not let this upcoming generation be lost. I believe we are on the dawn of the greatest revival in church history and I believe it is going to greatly impact the children. In Kidzville we have seen in the past couple months many kidz Baptized in the Holy Spirit with the initial physical evidence of speaking in other tongues. Kidz are becoming more expressive and free in their worship. We have experienced real encounters with God in the midst of praise and worship. Over the past couple weeks, kidz are starting to operate in the supernatural gifts of the Spirit especially the gift of prophecy. 

I believe there are two elements to this coming move of God that are important. One is that this young generation has a hunger for the supernatural. This is evident by their obsession with Harry Potter, Twilight, vampires, ghosts, etc. They desperately want to experience something beyond the human range of perception. The Holy Spirit satisfies this need with a purpose. Secondly, kidz through a supernatural encounter with God will find their identity in such an experience. The result is that as this generation matures they will not be swayed by the many competing world views they will face because their identity as a follower of Christ is not rooted in philosophy or doctrine, but with an encounter with the Living God.

I believe that in the coming years as society eagerly awaits the diminishing influence of Christianity, it is going to be blind sided by a new generation that has not gone along with the herd mentality of society. They are Christian, they are passionate, and they are radical. They are unashamed and they are armed with the supernatural. As the intellectual society tries to reason with this generation with their lofty high sounding ideas they will quickly learn that a man with an experience is not at the mercy of a man with an argument. Yes, I believe God will have this generation but He desires for us to do our part. That is to pray, pray, pray and then pray some more. And to put into application Deuteronomy 6:6-9. Studies have shown that whatever a child religious, moral, and ethical beliefs are by the age 13 they will keep those belief for the rest of their lives. They will not change. We have short window. Lets be part of God's work and reach a generation in Post-Christian world.

Build My Throne!

"God inhabits the praises of His people". This is a very popular verse amongst Pentecostal circles. A more accurate translation of Psalm 22:3 however would read, "Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel." ESV

Praise and worship is a very important ministry in Kidzville. We don't believe it is just another part of "Kids Church" that we need to have, we believe that praise and worship is essential to leading kidz to an encounter with God.

God spoke to me very clearly concerning this verse as it relates to our praise and worship ministry. God showed me that His throne is the place from which He reigns. From the place that He reigns He also sends out judgment, redemption, restoration, and healing. It is from the place that He reigns that He sends out His Spirit. It is from the place that He reigns that He raises valleys and lowers mountains. From the place that He reigns He breaks strongholds and tears down walls.

If God is not seated on His throne however, He will not act on our behalf.  God showed me that the praises of His children are His throne. As the verse says, He is enthroned on the praises of Israel(His people). God is calling on us tell the kidz that God says, "build my throne"(His praises). When the kidz build His throne, He will come and sit and send out decrees, mobilize angels, and defeat their enemies.

Psalm 8:2 says that God has ordained praise to come from the mouths of children in order to stop the enemy. How does this happen? When the throne of God (His praises) is created He can sit on the place from which He rules and fight on our behalf from that place. But none of this will happen if the children do not first build His throne.

This is why in the atmosphere of praise and worship we see healings, miracles, signs and wonders. During these intense moments of worship prophetic words are given out, kidz are set free, filled with the Spirit, delivered, called into the ministry. etc. It is because God's throne has been built and He sits on the place from which He reigns and acts on their behalf.

Praise and worship is not simply another part of a kidz service that we need in order for us to have all the parts of a Kids Church service. It is the ministry which God has ordained for the releasing of His power in the lives of the little ones we serve. Let us all inquire of the Lord as to how He desires for us to build up this ministry and as a result, Build His Throne!

Why is an Encounter with God so important?

Why is an Encounter with God so important?

Tear Down the Wall

Every morning somewhere between 7:30 and 8:00 I go into Kidz Zone, turn on the stage lights, turn on my Jesus Culture, and just go after God. I take this time to pray for the volunteers, the ministry, and especially the Kidz of Kidzville.

 As I was praying for the kidz I asked God to prepare their hearts to receive whatever He had for them. I asked God that if their hearts were hard like stone, He would melt them and make their hearts like the dark, deep, rich, fertile soil. While I was praying about this God showed me a wall. He showed me that a lot of the kidz have either consciously or subconsciously built a wall around their hearts.

Now the reasons they have built this wall around them varies from child to child. Some have built the wall because they have been hurt too many times and are using the wall as protection. Some have built the wall because they don't like who they are and don't want anyone to see them for who they truly are. Others have built the wall because of a hard past and don't want anyone to see it.

 Whatever the reason, this wall is a major hindrance for these children. You see this hinderance in praise and worship. The children will not step out and be as expressive in worship as they might like too because of the wall holding them back. The wall keeps them from form important relationships with other children and their leaders and volunteers. Most importantly, this wall that they have built around their hearts has hindered their relationship they have with God. They are not as open with God as they could be or open TO God and all He desires to do in and through their lives because of this barrier that is, the Wall.

After God had shown me all this, He then showed me that this wall is like the wall of Jericho. The city of Jericho is the children's hearts. God wants this city(their hearts). He was commissioned us the Kidzville volunteers and leadership team as His army. He has called us out of the desert to approach this city and march around it. He has called us to bring down this "wall of Jericho" and take the city that He has given us for Him.

But practically, what does this look like? Quite honestly, I do not know. I mean, how do we tear down the wall around a child's heart? What I do know, is that Joshua and the Israelites did three things to prepare themselves for the taking of Jericho.

• They prepared themselves spiritually Joshua 5:2-15
• They didn't take the city all at once, they first made their presence known and established a pattern of surrounding the city with worship Joshua 6:4-14
• They let the worshippers, and the Ark (symbol of God's presence) lead them in war, not weapons, defenses, or the infantry.

As we prepare to take this city(the children's hearts) for God, we should all prepare ourselves spiritually for the task by seeking God in prayer and in His Word. Let us also "surround" the wall by not forgetting our strategy; to build relationships. Let the children know that you are there. Spend time with them. Surround the wall. Finally let the Spirit of God guide you. I pray the God will show you how we will accomplish this task of tearing down the wall.

Social Media and Technology in the Church

Facebook now has over 1 billion users. If Facebook was a country, it would be the third largest country in the world by population. Twitter has over 500 million users. Thats more people than there are living in the US. YouTube, the 2nd largest search engine uploads over 60 hours of content per minute with 4 billion videos viewed per day. There are over 13 million articles on Wikipedia. There are 60 million professional users on Linkedln.

 1 in 5 couples meet online. Generation Y and Z consider email to be a thing of the past. To the point where some universities have stopped issuing email accounts. Its too "old fashioned". The mobile device will be the worlds primary tool for connecting to the internet by the year 2020. Kindergartens are learning on iPads, not chalk boards. 11 is the average age that children in America receive a cell phone. 10% of parents say that their children received a cell phone between the ages of 7 and 9.

 With these trends needing to be updated at an increasing faster pace, a question then arises. Should the Body of Christ be heavily plugged into social media, social networking, and new technologies? It can be a heated debate depending on who we ask. One side would say that we need to stay out of the world and not get into the toxic environment that social networks can bring or involve ourselves in the distractions that surrounding ourselves with technology and mobile devices can create.

Proponents of the Church engaging in social media and technology would argue that sites like Facebook and twitter give us a method of influence never before achieved. I would like to argue for a more digitally connected church from a different perspective. Look back in church history and what do we see? Historically the Church has always led the way in innovation and progress.

The Gutenberg Bible was the first book ever published by a printing press. From then on the Church led the way in literature and poetry. In music, the monks developed the foundation for modern western musical notation. Likewise in art, much of the renascence art now famous around the world was commissioned and promoted by the Church. Even in the areas of philosophy and science the Church was on the forefront promoting progress in these areas.

 The Church historically has led the way in education. Centuries ago the most literate among the people were the clergy. Sunday School was started in the 1700's as a means of educating the poor. In Americas infancy, the Church and religious institutions were responsible for educating the public. The Church has led the way in nearly every area of progress and innovation in society EXCEPT social networks, social media, and technology. Instead we resist it, speak against it, and now at the last minute are trying to play catch up.

The world is leading us in this area instead of us leading them. Why? God has called the Church to be His body on this planet. We are Kingdom ambassadors with the local church being the Kingdoms embassy. We the Church should be leading the way in this new area of progress and innovation. Not only do social networks and technology open new doors for evangelism and outreach never before imagined, it keeps the Church's tradition of being the leader and example in our society alive.

The Kidz Pastor: Called to Die, Transform, and Empower

What does it mean to "called"? Well, the simple answer is that being "called" means that God has specially chosen an individual to do a certain task. It means to be set apart. Numerous volumes of books have been written on "The Call", but what does the call of God look like when you narrow it down to a specific ministry? What about Kidz Ministry? What exactly is a Kidz Pastor called to do?

The answer to that questions varies depending on who you ask. I would like to take a few moments to share with you what my calling means to me personally. As it relates to the ministry, God has called me to do/be three things...

1. To be a crucified servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, kidz and their parents.


First and foremost I am called by God to put to death anything that seeks to exalt itself above the Glory of Jesus Christ. That means my dreams, my goals, my desires and ambitions. The Ego itself must be crucified to the point that all that remains is a humbled servant of Christ.

Leadership in the Kingdom of God does not model after the pattern of the world. In the world, leadership is about position, power, and success. It's about climbing up the ladder, doing just a little bit better, and always moving foreword with the understanding that the higher you go, the better life gets.

Leadership in the Kingdom of God is not about power but service. To be a leader in God's Kingdom means to take on the humbled position of a slave. It can be compared to a drink offering being poured out as an act of sacrifice. The higher you go "up the ladder" in leadership, the more of a servant you must become.

2. To be an agent of transformation in the lives of children

My calling as a Kidz Pastor is not simply to facilitate kidz services or to oversee a children's program. The fruit of my labor should be life change. This is not to say that I am the one who changes children's lives. The Holy Spirit through the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the transformer, but it pleases Him to use ministers as His agents of life transformation.

3. To build up, equip, train, and empower children whose lives have been transformed by the Gospel to go out into their world and do like wise.

This third part to my calling can be summed up in one word; Discipleship. While it is fulfilling to watch kidz come to the alter week after week and watch their lives changed by encountering God, that must not be seen as the over all goal. Life change and transformation are essential and important to the ministry but we must move beyond that initial moment of transformation.

Those who have been transformed by the Gospel must then be discipled and helped to integrate this new found life change into the rest of their everyday lives. We must show them how the power of God applies to life outside of the four walls of the church or the safety of the small group.

Once this has been accomplished, then they must be empowered to go out into the "Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria" that God has called them to and do the same thing. Twelve individuals had an encounter with Christ. It was a life changing moment of transformation for them. They spent three years with Him learning from Him, being trained and discipled by Him. After He had risen from the dead He told them to go out and do the same thing. Lead people to God, and disciple them. Then tell them to go out and repeat. 2,000 years later, here we are.

There is an unwritten fourth element to my calling. It isn't so much part of my calling but more a method of applying my calling. That is "by any means necessary". The Body of Christ is known abroad at times for being traditional. There is a certain way ministry is done, and its done that way because we have been doing that way for a long time. Thats just the way it is. Its tradition.

God is challenging me with that line of thinking as of late. God is challenging me to throw off everything I know about church and how it works, to throw of all traditions that have been engrained in me since birth and simply accomplish the mission set before with whatever method that works. If that method looks like nothing else ever seen in a church before, then so be it. Its not about the methods, its about the mission, and the mission is people. The mission is kids.

This aspect is challenging for me because I have at times been described as traditional and even "old school". But if I have to throw away generations of tradition and "church culture" in order to do and be all that God has called me, then I must let it go. I must die so that I can transform, and transform so that I can empower.


Joseph Reeder

Why is it so important for Kidz to have an "Encounter"?

This is our vision for Kidzville.
"Our vision is for Kidzville to be a ministry in which kids regularly encounter the presence and power of God and experience the moving of His Spirit".

When people hear this they sometimes ask the question, "why is that so important?" People want to know why we focus on helping kids encounter God and experience His Spirit rather than on teaching, programs, and activities.

We have entrusted into our care an entire generation that is going through an identity crisis.
Here are the conditions that have created this crisis. Often cited is the high divorce rate in the United States. While there is disagreement on how accurate the numbers actually are, the general consensus among experts is that if current trends continue, the divorce rate will soon exceed 50%.

This high divorce rate has created an environment in which many children in our nation are now growing up in either single parent homes, or are coping with the lifestyle of being shuffled around between parents. Whats even more erratic for children is adapting to the new relationship they may have with a step parent. An fortunate effect this has on children is that now many children are growing up without a father or positive male role model in their lives.

On top of all this, children in this generation are involved in so many sports and activities all at the same time. They are forced to balance these extracirriculars with school and family. The result is that children walk through life with a performance driven mentality.

This is not to say that being involved in sports or extracurricular activities has a negative impact on children, but that when focus is performance driven children may grow up with the mindset that unless they are being the best athlete, musician, performer, student, etc, they are not truly accepted and loved by their caregivers.

When you combine all these factors with the natural physiological and psychological development of a child, the result is confusion, insecurity, low self esteem, and an identity crisis. Children walk through life not knowing who they are or who they are supposed to be.

Colossians 3:3-4NLT says, "For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory."
This verse tells us that our identity is in Christ. It is in Him that we discover who we truly are and who we are called to be. When children are going through an identity crises, an encounter with God can reveal to them who they truly are. Once they discover their Kingdom Identity and begin to embrace and walk in it, it will give them the solid foundation that they can build the rest of their life on.
In addition to helping discover, embrace and walk in the identity that God has called them too, an encounter with God provides the consistancy and stability that children need in their lives. People and environments are always changing in a child's life often with a negative impact.Christ is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. He never changes, His love is unconditional, and He has promised to never leave them nor forsake them.

At Kidzville we believe that an encounter with God is of the upmost importance. Not so that children can have an "experience" and not so that we can say that ours is a "Spirit Filled" ministry, but so that children can discover who God has called them to be in the midst of self confusion, and walk in that identity to change the world for Him.