On the first day of May, we have so much to celebrate and so much to look forward to.
Our family ministry team just got back from the Orange Conference in Atlanta, GA. My wife, Amy, along with Stephanie Watson, Brenda Pannell, and Angela Jennings joined more than 4,000 church leaders at this year’s event. They came back on what I like to call a “conference high.” There is something contagious about being around 1,000′s of like-minded leaders who have the same passion and philosophy of ministry. You always walk away feeling that you are not insane for what you believe way down deep in your soul.
My wife will spend the next several weeks “downloading” to me about the conference. It started last night and continued into breakfast this morning. Let me give some of the details in bulleted form…
1. In the church, 90% of salvation decisions take place before the age of 18.
2. Therefore, children’s ministry needs the priority in budgets and staffing.
3. The home, not the church, is the single greatest influence in the life of a child.
4. We must parent beyond our capacity by having 5 key adults in the life of our child to help influence and guide.
5. We need only passionate influencers serving in our children’s ministry (no more warm bodies).
I could go on, but our church has been validated in our strong vision and emphasis on family. WHFC exists to inspire the family to become fully devoted followers of Christ. We exist to partner with families to influence mom, dad and children.
We have much to look forward to this May and summer. On Mother’s Day we launch a brand new series called “Men at the Cross.” This is a pre-launch of our summer series “Dear Son”, a verse-by-verse look at the book of 1 Timothy. These two series will help dads and moms disciple their children and help us raise up leaders in the church.
Thank you Woodland Hills for your continued support of Haiti! I am looking forward to being a part of rebuilding that country and helping the families and children in that part of God’s world. If you wouldn’t mind, head to our website’s online giving page and give a gift to Haiti right now. Let’s help these kids and give them a shot at life!!!
Blessings,
Ted C
