Just Love.

Happy New Year! My first post of 2012. I know it’s a little late. Honestly, I have tried to blog  numerous times since Jan 1st and each time…I just stopped. I had Blogger’s Block (which was very frustrating for me!) I wanted to start the year with some vision and some direction – and I just didn’t have it.

But I had some breakthrough today, and I feel God is stirring my heart for 2012.

I think I’ve shared many times what we want our children’s ministry to be all about. We’re following Jesus, and Compass Point Kidz is committed to:

Seeing children discipled in Christ

Partnering with Families

Being a GREAT place for people to serve.

Those are our goals. Within those goals and within the vision of our church as a whole -  we have picked some things that are really important that we really want to go after and pursue this year and I am excited about that. You’ll be hearing more about them in the days to come. But I don’t think that is enough anymore. I think we need to go beyond. I think we need to go deeper.

So, I was thinking today about relationship. About loving one another. About living together in community. Not just being defined by what we DO, but who we ARE in Christ. And I was thinking about love.  An “all out, following Jesus, reflecting him in our lives,completely selfless, totally committed and on fire for him” kind of love.

And I thought – what if we became known because of that love? It’s sounds so simple. And it is.

What if the children that came into our doors each week – just felt blown away by love. What if we walked through the halls and the foyer and sat in church - with the biggest hearts to love one another that we possibly could have. What if each generation in our church purposefully loved those in a different generation. What if we looked for people coming through our doors and those around us in our community that were alone and searching and loved them without judgement.  What kind of transformation could happen with that kind of intentional love?

We’re never going to be a perfect church. Our children’s ministry will never be perfect. I’ll never be a perfect leader. But that is ok with me. But there is one thing we can do – all of us - we can love one another. And that love can define us. I value love over perfection. When we love unconditionally – relationship becomes primary. When relationship because primary - love increases. And when LOVE increases – I believe God really will be at work in our lives, our church and our community…..

I love this passage…

1 Corinthians 13:1-7

  If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.  If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.  If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,but do not have love, I gain nothing.

  Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

I know that I have in many cases I have chosen ”doing” over “loving”. I haven’t meant to. But sometimes we need to get a job done. We have work to do. We have to reach our goals. But I don’t want to be a resounding gong, or a clanging symbol. That sounds both empty and annoying. Without love, I have nothing. I want to see the world around me changed. I want to see our children so engaged in their relationship with Jesus, being TOTALLY loved on by the church so that it’s part of who they are. So they, will be carriers of that love. They won’t want to leave their faith when they get older, they won’t drift because the love that has been shown to them has been genuine and it has created relationship and a connection that is too important for them to walk away….

I’m making a conscious decision for 2012 to love in all areas of my life. It’s my word for the year. Personally and in ministry. In my spirit I see Compass Point Kidz as a giant beating heart spreading life and love as it beats for Jesus.

It’s not a complicated vision for 2012.

Just love.

Merry Christmas!!!!

So, I just wanted to take a minute to wish you a MERRY CHRISTMAS! Hard to believe it is a couple of days away! Tonight I did my bake-a-thon – so I am READY! I pray that you and your families have a blessed holiday together. I also know that Christmas can be a hard time of year for people. I pray that Jesus will feel near to you in the next week – no matter what circumstances you are facing or situations you are working through. He loves you, and he is there for you. This weekend we celebrate that he came for us. He’s the greatest gift, and a gift that changes our lives through his power.

I feel very thankful and blessed to be part of Compass Point. I love our church, and I love that every day I get to come to work and dream big dreams, work with people I love, creatively disciple children, care about families – and be part of what God is doing through us. I don’t take any of that for granted, and as I look into the New Year – I’m excited to spend some time with God and see where he is leading us next. It’s all about him!

Thanks for your continual support. Fabulous leaders, amazing families and rocking kids are what keep me going! Celebrating Jesus and all he has done for us, and wants to do through us!

John 1:9 – The true light that gives light to everything has come into the world!

Merry Christmas!

Shelly

Spark

I had a great conversation a couple of weeks ago with my Wednesday night elementary small group girls. We were talking about the future and they were sharing their hopes and dreams, I loved it. From professional figure skating to worship leading, to owning a bakery and being a surfer – It was amazing to hear them dream out loud. It all starts with a spark. I told them I couldn’t wait to see what God would do with their lives. That in 10 years, I would look them up on facebook or twitter and be SO excited to see where God has led them, and to see how they were living out their story!

Last week we took this same group of girls to the Sew on Fire warehouse in Burlington (www.sewonfire.ca) Along with some of their moms, we had an amazing night of serving. The girls packed over 400 bags to be sent to children, and us moms got to help in a variety of ways. I was holding back tears all night. I was just thinking and praying that this night would be a spark. I know it rekindled a spark in myself that I have perhaps let fade – and I hope that they left that night with a bigger worldview and knowing that they can be used to make a difference.

I can remember times in my life that were sparks. I remember sitting as a child listening to missionaries share their stories. That was a spark. I remember adults in my church that prayed for me and invested in me. That was a spark. I remember being given the chance to lead and having someone believe that even in my super awkward teenage years – I had something to offer and that God had a plan for my life. Those were all significant sparks in my life. Sparks that changed me.

We all have the opportunity to be spark starters for the next generation. A spark needs a starter. It won’t start on its own. You’ve seen those guys out in the wilderness trying to start a fire. They don’t use one stick, they use two. Once started a spark has the potential to grow into an amazing roaring fire that can be an all-consuming life changer. Our children have giftings and passions  in them that need to be ignited. Things that they might not even realized about themselves. Let’s look for that. Let’s invest in that. Let’s be encouragers and equippers. Let’s look at a room full of children and just imagine what they can do for God and give opportunities for him to work in their lives.

It only takes a spark! That might be a new theme……

Shelly

 

Joy. Spread.

So, it’s been a few days now since Main Street Christmas has ended……I’m going through my post-event letdown and exhaustion (nothing that a couple of days off won’t cure!) and just reflecting on how good God is. We come to him as imperfect people who want to serve him the best that we can. So we go for it. We dream big and sometimes wonder how it will all come together.  And somehow – he uses us! He’s amazing. So really – we have to give him thanks above all!

I did want to take this opportunity to say a huge THANK YOU to all who were involved with this weekend. From the prep, to the set up, to the clean up, to serving over the weekend, to using your talents in so many ways, to our awesome Compass Point Kidz – this was a community event that was made possible because of our Compass Point community coming together in a big way.

We wanted to see people invited – people came!

We wanted to partner with different community groups – we partnered!

We wanted to see people serving – they served!

We wanted to see JESUS proclaimed at Christmas – he was!

Our tag line this year was SPREAD THE JOY. I pray that it stays in our hearts and we keep spreading that joy all through the year as we serve and love – dreaming about other ways we can shine our lights bright.

Merry Christmas, and thank you!!!

Shelly

The TRUE light that give light…

 There is a lot of excitement happening right now at Compass Point as Main Street Christmas is just one day away! In the middle of all the craziness, I just wanted to take a minute today to remember the whole REASON behind this event. It’s Jesus. It’s about him. This week I was reading in the book of John, and I have been reading the following passage over and over again….

John 1:9-14

The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

The part of this passage that has resonated in my heart is, The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. It’s so amazing to realize that Jesus came for us, for you and for me. And he is the TRUE light that gives light to the world. To all of us! I’m so thankful and overwhelmed – it’s the greatest gift ever given to you and to me.

We’re going to have a fantastic weekend with so much fun, but my heart is singing today not because of Main Street Christmas, but because a true light came into the world for me. It’s all about Jesus and this weekend, we celebrate HIM!!!

Shelly

The Shortcut Blog, know as a list….

I feel like my pre-Main Street mind is not really capable of writing a really in-depth literary blog today. So I thought I’d cheat and go the list route. This week’s list is called  – The Sunday Report – Thing’s Shelly wants to write about that were great about Sunday.  But she is tired and eating cookies, and thinking about the Main Street Llama. So, here’s a little list, my short form thoughts…

• I think 99% of ALL our amazing leaders showed up early Sunday (I think the donut bribe helped..)  THANK you for being so amazing and serving our children with love and care every week. Thanks to those who are helping me in some extra areas in this busy time and going the extra mile - we are so blessed to have great people on our teams!
• I loved listening to the preschoolers practice their Christmas song, it’s so adorable and beautiful. Can’t wait for them to sing at Main Street! They will melt your heart!
• One preschooler went home and told her parents that “King Salt was a very bad man!” Ha!
• We’ve had a fun month learning about Gratitude – something so important for us all to be reminded of and to show to others. I feel very full of gratitude for many things right now – thanks God!
• We had a great turn out for our police check morning. It’s important to be diligent and provide a safe and secure environment for our children. Thanks to Jenelle and George for all your help!
• Had a great conversation at small group about how we can have significant faith conversations with our kids (saving this for another blog)
• I only lost my keys one time
• Our Christmas kids choir is sounding amazing! If only I could get the actions all right! I still have 10 days!

So much to be thankful for! It’s a busy stretch the next 10 days. I’m praying I don’t do anything too silly. There is usually one incident during this time. As long as I don’t lock myself into the prop trailer with a Llama and a group of festive carollers, I’ll be good. Hope you are all Spreading the Joy! God is doing great things all around us, and it’s a great time of year for us to introduce others to the joy that JESUS can bring to their lives!

Have a great day

Shelly

Spread the Joy!

Well, it’s pretty hard to believe but it’s almost time for Main Street Christmas again. It’s also the exact time every year when I get a little stressed out and think HOW is all this all going to come together??? I do Christmas choir actions in my sleep and I drink vitamin water by the gallon (thank you Jenelle for stocking up my fridge!)  In the midst of the crazy, I am reminded that I serve a really BIG God and he has never let me down in the past – so I am confident he will see us all through the next 2 1/2 weeks!

Someone recently asked of me, do you ever just feel like a glorified event planner? The answer is absolutely not. My heart beats for community. My hearts desire is to see us open up our church doors and bless families. My heart is to see Jesus celebrated at Christmas. My heart is to see our church serving alongside one another and building relationships with one another. And those are some of OUR reasons for being passionate about Main Street Christmas. It’s all about him. And this year we are committed to being people that “Spread the Joy!” at Christmas time!

So, please be in prayer for this weekend. And get involved! There are lots of places that you can help out – even for a couple hours and I promise you will have a great time. You might even get to chase a runaway Llama, or make a child smile as they decorate a cookie, or greet someone as they park their car, stand in a giant room of frozen french fries, do a flip in an inflatable, serve some salty popcorn, or stamp a passport in the prize room – you never know what opportunity you’ll have on Main Street!

See you there!

Spread the Joy!

Shelly

Gratitude!

This month our elementary students are learning more about the virtue of GRATITUDE…what a great thing to focus on, all the things we have to be thankful for. After a really busy and long week at work, I came home today and decided to rake up all the leaves in the front yard with my kids. It was a beautiful day and I just had this sudden burst of energy! (thank you Tim Hortons coffee). As the three of us worked together, I was just so thankful for that time with them. Talking, sharing about our day, throwing leaves at each other, taking goofy picture (oh and we even got 4 giant bags of leaves done!) I was filled with gratitude for that time with my kids. It was the best part of my whole week!!

Gratitude. So much to be thankful for. I thought I’d make a list, since we are encouraging our children to be grateful this month on Sundays (and through the rest of the week!) that I should be too. Here’s a few things I thought of…

• Thankful for Jesus most of all. He’s everything to me.
• Thankful for my husband and kids – they are my world.
• Thankful for my extended family and friends that love and support me – no matter what.
• Thankful that I get to work in a job that I love, with people who I love, in a church that I love.
• Tomorrow is Remembrance Day. I am so grateful to live in a free and beautiful country, and I am thankful for those who fought for that freedom
• Thankful for a roof over my head, and food in my fridge and lights that come on when I flick a switch
• Thankful for a vehicle that gets me where I need to go
• Thankful that I can worship God freely and that I have a Bible
• Thankful that I have running water in my house that is safe to drink
• Thankful that we have access to education
• Thankful that if I need medical care, there are doctors within minutes of my home

This list could go on and on. Sometimes I don’t feel as thankful as I should – because we all have those days, and we all have those times when things aren’t really how we would want or choose them to be, but in the midst of it all – no matter what is going on in our life – we can find things to be grateful for! Here is our verse for the month….

1 Thessalonians 5:18 – Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Spend some time today and make a gratitude list! God is good to us!

Shelly

Penguin Sweater Creativity…..

I was watching the news last night and I was quite fascinated about a story I saw about Penguins and Sweaters. Yes, you read that right. There are women all over the world (and maybe some men too) knitting cutesy sweaters for penguins. It’s pretty adorable, AND it’s also pretty ingenious and TOTALLY creative (we are talking about creativity this month with our elementary students.) Now, I’m not gonna lie – I LOVE sweaters. Especially this time of year – I am all about sweater weather. So the little cute penguins in their fashionable sweaters just caught my heart. (some of them had sweaters cuter than mine…totally not fair!)

It was pretty inspiring. And it reminded me, that no idea is ever stupid or too crazy. These sweaters are for a PURPOSE – they are for penguins affected by oil spills. These sweaters are saving their lives. It. helps prevent them from shedding their feathers and injesting oil. But I am pretty sure that way back..when someone came up with the idea – it sounded a little out there. I wish I could have been there to hear this……… 

“Hey National Society of Penguins, I have a great idea. Penguins all over the world are dying. Let’s get a band of knitters to make them adorable little sweaters. They will look cute AND it will save their lives!”

Fortunately, after the laughs and chuckles – someone had the guts to try it – and it worked! Crazy ideas for an important purpose – I love that! Our virtue of Creativity this month is all about using your imagination to do something unique – I think the Penguin Sweaters capture that perfectly!

So I’m inspired. I know I can’t knit – so I am not going that route. But as someone created in the creative image of a creative God (read the first chaper of Genesis), I am certain the next “Penguin Sweater” idea for me is just around the corner! So I am praying for God to release his creativity even more in my life, and in yours – for his kingdom purpose!

Let’s dream big and see what God can do in our lives!

Shelly

 

Perspective….

Sometimes in the craziness of things around me right now, I can run into the trap of losing perspective on what really matters. It’s easy to get caught up in “things” that need immediate attention. But, then I head out to small group with a great bunch of grade 1-5 girls on a Wed night (in a ferocious rain storm, ironically on a night we are talking about Noah….) and perspective returns. I sit in my office with these awesome girls, eating sour keys and LIFE together happens….

 

“I prayed about something, and God answered it. That’s when I believed he was real” .

 

Or

 

“We need to pray for my skating coach who has cancer and needs surgery”

 

Or

 

“My dog died a year ago and I am still so sad”

 

Or

 

“A boy in my school died”

 

Or

 

“I have a praise report! My grandpa had surgery and he is doing good!”

 

This is really what matters. Sharing life together. Growing in Jesus. Increasing our faith. Developing trust and relationships. Letting children know they are LOVED and CARED about. That Jesus is their best friend and he is right there with them, in all these situations they are facing. He is alive in them!  He walks by their side. There is nothing they can’t do. They are made in God’s image. He has a plan for their lives…..and countless other truths from God’s word.

 

That’s perspective. That is why we do what we do every week.

 

I’m so grateful for this reminder today – our God is good!

 

Shelly