Switching blog hosts...

For those of you that read this blog - I want you to be aware that I am in the process of switching blog hosts. You can find this blog now at www.preteenedge.wordpress.com

The reason for the switch has nothing to do with Blogger. I have been very happy with this host, but for other reasons I must switch blog hosts. I will maintain this blog only for a little while longer.

Joe

Transitions...

When I think about transitions, I think about the picture on this post... This is a picture of my cousin and myself (I'm the one in the orange shirt getting hosed by the squirt-gun) having a water gun fight. What started as a simple and fun squirt-gun fight ended up being a serious game of strategy and purpose. In preteen ministry we must find the balance of making ministry to preteens simple and fun to something that is strategic and with purpose. The tricky part is transitioning from one mindset to the other, because it is easy to loose one mindset for the other. In the squirt-gun fight, my cousin and I shifted gears so fast that we totally lost focus of what we originally set out to do (That was shoot at our kids). When we got serious I lost interest, because I wasn't ready for serious strategy and such. He lost interest, because I didn't want to have a serious outlook to what we were doing. Our transition from one extreme to next was all messed-up, so we lost interest and quit. This happens too many preteens when it comes to their walk with God and their interest and involvement in church. This is why one of the keywords that is the backdrop, motivation and driving force for preteen ministry is "TRANSITION."

While a big part of preteen ministry is focused on reaching preteens where they are currently at, a lot of what happens in preteen ministry is geared towards preparing kids for the next level, whether that is preparing them for the 6th grade ministry, Jr. high/Middle school ministry, the student ministry, or preparing them to leave elementary ministry and enter into preteen ministry (This all depends on how your church is structured by grading and grouping). The reason for this is that the preteen years are by nature a transitional time in a person's life: puberty starts to take transformation in many preteens lives (Yes, this includes the smelly odors and such). The way preteens start to think is also beginning to transform, such as from concrete thinking to abstract thinking. Emotionally and spiritually, preteens begin to transform their thinking about the opposite genders, friends, and God in more serious ways than before. What's funny is that I have had some people tell me that not all preteens begin to show or demonstrate these changes. However, that is the funny nature of preteens - they are all over the place, they are all at many different transitional starting points in life!

Research has shown that poor transition leads to many kids not connecting with key relationships or the identity of the ministry at the next level they are entering into. What this means is that they will eventually fade from that ministry and most likely loose their connection with God. What we must do as leaders is make transition for preteens, who are both entering in our ministries and exiting our ministries, purposeful, intentional, and exciting (ie... full of anticipation). Over the next couple of blogs, I will shown you what we do at my church, I will show you what others are doing, and I will give you ideas on what you can do in your situation. Please feel free to chime in on this discussion - which is so important to preteen ministry.

Joe