Ryan Frank

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Posted on August 29, 2010 - by rfrank

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-08-29

• Watching Beth shine in front of a big group of preschoolers. http://yfrog.com/4j2u1nj #
• I just had a puppet on my arm for 5 minutes. My arm is officially numb. #kidmin #fb #
• Spending the afternoon on a writing project. #
• Red Bull #
• Sitting in an Awana Executive Leadership Team meeting listening to Jack Eggar lead in devotions. #
• Have I ever mentioned how much I love Pepsi? #
• Ready for a cup of coffee! #
• In an all-day creative session with the KidzMatter team! The creative juices are flowing in this room! #kidmin #
• Golfing with Mrs @r_frank. It's a beautiful night! #

Posted on August 22, 2010 - by rfrank

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-08-22

• Great lunch appointment today with Keith Conner – an awesome guy with a big heart for children's ministry. #fb #
• Beautiful Indiana evening! Just mowed the grass, girls are in bed, and now some QT with Beth. #
• Strategic planning day at KidzMatter! woo hoo! #fb #
• @ evdoyle is updating everyone about the KidzMatter online store. #
• @samluce welcome home!! Looking forward to connecting soon. in reply to samluce #
• Day 2 of strategic planning for KidzMatter. Can't wait! #fb #
• Although Ft Myers with my parents sounds great too. Love you mom and dad! #fb #
• Future-casting session is in full swing! #
• polar pop #
• Playing catch up after being out of the office for two days. arghh! #
• Just returned from lunch with Beth. The best hour of my day hands down! #fb #
• Listening to @evdoyle play weird music on his computer. #
• Cutting paychecks. My staff will be happy. #
• Heading to church for #awana night. #
• Writing a new blog post. #
• Good night world. Someone is going to bed. #
• Hello Friday! #
• Date night with Beth! #
• Luci woke us up at 7am. #ineedmoresleep #
• Excited to teach our adult Sunday School class tomorrow & help Beth lead preschool kids church both services. It's gonna be fun! #fb #
• Getting ready to watch Psych on my DVR. One of my favorite shows! #psych #

Posted on August 19, 2010 - by rfrank

12 people I follow on Twitter and why

Twitter is one of the greatest ways to network in children’s ministry and to learn from each other. I’ll never forget the night Jim Wideman called me and said that he was on Twitter and that I needed to get my tail in gear and sign up. It took me about 16 minutes to do what he said. Every day I spend 20 minutes keeping up with the people I follow on Twitter.

Here are twelve great people I follow on Twitter. These aren’t my favorite people – just some cool ones I picked from the group.

@jimwideman – How could I leave Brother Jim off the list? This man is a great friend and someone who has given me permission to call his cell phone any time of the day or night if I need to talk. He’s a leader of leaders and friend of friends.

@shawnthornton – Shawn is a pastor in California that is from the same state I am – the Hoosier state! Shawn serves on the BOD of Awana and is someone I learn from almost every day on Twitter.

@AllyEvans – Allison is the Next Generation Pastor at LifeChurch.tv. We met at Napkin last year and shared the stage on the same day. She’s a great communicator and leader.

@michaelchanley – Michael (or Chang as I call him and don’t ask me why because I don’t know) is “Mr. Networker”. Beth and I enjoy Michael, Rose and their kids and have spent some time hanging out. Although they lives in the same state that we do, the only time we see each other is before and after events.  Good think I can connect him every day on Twitter.

@FlowerDust – Anne Jackson is the author of the book on the Mad Church Disease (great book!). She’s fun, creative, and when she tweets I pay attention.

@bennyperez – Pastor Benny is one of the coolest pastors I have ever met and knows what it means to walk with God and talk for God. He’s got a sweet Volkswagen 23 window Microbus parked in his garage that I hope he lets me drive the next time I’m over at this house. Benny is someone that I email every once in a while to tell him I am praying for him and he replies in less than an hour and tells me the same.

@evdoyle – I’ve got to mention my boy Evan. Actually, Beth and I often think of him as our boy. We’ve had the joy of watching him grow up in our church from a newborn up and now he works for us at KidzMatter (and does a knock out job).

@kennyconley – Kenny spoke for me at kids camp before he was one of the leading children’s pastors in the blog and Twitter world. I love this guy and wish that I had half the creativity he does. (He’s also the one that started the #kidmin hashtag on Twitter and should have trademarked it!)

@mattmckee – Sweet mobile apps, Orange, marketing guru, loves ministry. Matt in 8 words.

@yancynotnancy – Even though I served Yancy and her mom super-pink hamburgers from my grill last summer, she’s still nice to me. That’s a true friend! Yancy gets it when it comes to kid’s worship and I’ll follow her on Twitter or wherever she goes.

@blitzchicky – Terra has a super crazy dad (shout out to Roger) and has a big heart for kids with the Gospel. We have enjoyed working with Terra at KidzMatter for quite some time.

@CindyFiala – Cindy is a great children’s pastor and is one of our newest K! mag editors. You’ve got to start following her on Twitter if you’re not yet.

@samluce – Last, but definitely not least, is the man that I play phone tag with the most – Sam Luce. Sam is a great friend is one of the coolest children’s pastors around. He is a growing voice in children’s ministry and has a super humble heart.

That’s my twelve. Who would you add to the list?

Posted on August 15, 2010 - by rfrank

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-08-15

• Luci's first day at Kindergarten. What a big girl. http://yfrog.com/55khisj #
• Writing like mad this morning for K! Magazine. Why do I always wait until the last minute? #fb #
• Don't pray that God will do this or that for you. Instead, pray for God's will to be done. #
• 5 minutes from my favorite place on earth… home! #fb #
• Setting up for kids church with my beautiful wife! #fb #

Posted on August 9, 2010 - by rfrank

Win a FREE Registration to the LifeWay Kids Ministry Conference!

I can’t wait for October 11-13. I’m so excited to be joining my friends from LifeWay and hundreds of other ministries at the LifeWay Kids Ministry Conference on those days. Their all-new conference features over 50 workshop options, a VBS spectacular, exhibits, networking opportunities, and much more. They’ve brought in some of the nation’s tip-top guests for this conference. You’ll get to hear from Rick Burgess, Angela Thomas, Anthony Evans, Thom Rainer, Jeff Slaughter, Yancy, and tons of other great guests (including yours truly). There’s even going to be a late night event for those of you who like to take a walk on the wild side.

Like I said, I’m stoked about this one. LifeWay is even offering a chance to win an iPad to everyone who signs up between now and August 15. So bring yourself and your whole crew down to Birmingham to drink in all the LifeWay Kids Ministry Conference has to offer.

But wait! That’s not all! LifeWay has partnered with me to give you a chance to win a free registration to LKMC. That’s right, as in no charge free. Entering is easy. There are 3 ways to win:

1. Commenting. That’s a pretty easy one. Just leave us a comment on this post and let us know how many children’s ministry conferences you attend in an average year. That’s your first entry.
2. Tweeting. Just tweet (click the link to tweet it automagically) ”Enter to win a free registration to @LifeWayKids Ministry Conference at http://ryanfrank.com”. Then come back here and leave a second, separate comment telling us you did that. That’s your second entry.
3. Facebook. Like KidzMatter or LifeWay Kids on Facebook, and we’ll give you a third entry. Again, leave a separate comment letting us know you liked us. Just that easy. That’s your third entry.

I’m excited about this contest! The contest runs through 3 PM Eastern on August 16. Get your entry in today. I’m can’t wait to see you at LifeWay Kids Ministry Conference!

Legal stuff everybody hates:

1. Estimated prize value $350.00. One (1) DVD package is being given away.
2. Contests ends 3:00 PM Eastern, August 16, 2010.
3. Family, friends, employees, and business associates of KidzMatter and LifeWay cannot enter. Very sorry.

Posted on August 8, 2010 - by rfrank

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-08-08

• 3 things every public speaker needs to do. Tell them what you're gonna tell them, then tell them, then tell them what you told them! #fb #
• Sitting at the Denver airport waiting to fly home. Thanks @kidzmatter2me for picking us up in Indianapolis! #
• @themattpage glad to mention you in K! mag. I enjoy following your tweets! Keep up the good work! in reply to themattpage #
• Flight home is delayed. It's going to be late night! #fb #
• Back in our Marion, Indiana office after 12 days of being gone. Where do I start? #fb #
• Evan made me start my day by looking at the KidzMatter email that is now going out. #fb #
• Join me at LifeWay's Kids Ministry Conference in AL Oct. 11-13! Register before Aug. 15 and possibly win an iPad! http://ow.ly/2gORO #
• Email, email, email. Is there ever an end? #
• Date night with Beth! #fb #

Posted on August 5, 2010 - by rfrank

Back to School Worship Giveaway

Can you believe it’s almost back to school time? In just a week or so it’s going to be time for kids to head back and start filling their heads with another year’s worth of learning. For us in ministry, it means time to set in stone our fall and winter programming. One of the most important parts of ministry to kids is effective, exciting worship.

That’s why I’m so excited for the next giveaway right here on my blog! We’ve partnered with our friends from God’s Kids Worship to giveaway their God’s Kids Worship Modern Worship Summer Quarter DVD Collection to one lucky winner. God’s Kids Worship DVDs are designed to fit in easily with any children’s ministry curriculum. You’ll get the 3-DVD Summer collection with great modern worship songs by Hillsong, Chris Tomlin, Israel Houghton, David Crowder and more. Each DVD has 14 music & lyrics music videos, 4 pre-arranged worship orders, 2 countdown clocks, and teaching time video wallpaper.

Entering is easy–and dare we say, maybe even a little bit fun. There are 3 ways to win:

1. Commenting. Now, we don’t want just any comments. We want you to tell us about your “worship horror stories.” Tell us about that time your stage exploded in the middle of a song. Tell us about any time something went horribly wrong. Hopefully your new worship music can help you avoid those issues from now on.
2. Tweeting. Just tweet (click the link to tweet it automagically) ”I’ve entered to win a quarter of free worship from @r_frank and God’s Kids Worship! Enter yourself at http://ryanfrank.com”. Then come back here and leave a second, separate comment telling us you did that.
3. Facebook. Like KidzMatter on Facebook, and we’ll give you a third entry. Again, leave a separate comment letting us know you liked us. Just that easy.

I can’t wait to see what you have to say! The contest runs through 10:59 AM Eastern on August 12. So get your entries in today!

Legal stuff everybody hates:

1. Estimated prize value $60.00. One (1) DVD package is being given away.
2. Contests ends 10:59 AM Eastern, August 12, 2010.
3. Family, friends, employees, and business associates of KidzMatter and God’s Kids Worship cannot enter. Very sorry.

Posted on August 5, 2010 - by rfrank

Take a break and remember the important things in life

Recruiting volunteers.
Choosing curriculum.
Preparing your lessons once you choose your curriculum.
Engaging parents.
Planning special events.
Trying to raise extra money for that new idea you’ve got.
Keeping in tune with your pastors’ vision and leadership.

These are just a few parts of your job as a children’s pastor. The list could go on and on.

Children’s ministry is very rewarding. I remember a few months ago one of our children from the bus ministry came up to me after kid’s church, tugged on my pants, and said, “I wish you were my daddy.” Rewarding.

Children’s ministry is also discouraging at times. The very next Sunday after the little boy tugged on my leg a volunteer, decided to dump all of her frustrations (about me, my pastor and the church) on me… a few minutes before church. Discouraging.

This is why you need to schedule breaks. Vacations, a couple extra days off, a personal retreat, and so on. Last week I took 8 days with my family and we went to the Rocky Mountains. It was an awesome trip. (Some of my pictures are on Facebook. If we aren’t Facebook friends, friend request me!)

I was reminded during those 8 days about what really matters in life. My ministry was not on the top of the list. What made the top? My relationship with God and my family. This is why breaks are so important. It’s easy to forget what really matters between Walmart runs and setting up classrooms for Sunday.

Posted on August 1, 2010 - by rfrank

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-08-01

• Great morning! My brother taught Sunday School and knocked it out of the park. I preached in both services on Elijah at Zerapath. #fb #
• Watching Luci play outside in a fountain! http://yfrog.com/j3q1kmj #
• Just hit a bucket of balls with two of my brother-in-laws. Fellowship great. Golf not-so. #fb #
• @r_frank Does your church run Awana during the summer, Ryan? (via @Awana) // yes but a modified program. #
• Walmart's are a cash cow. Thought I would state the obvious for you. #
• It's a beautiful morning in Breckenridge Colorado! #fb #
• Golfing with my brother-in-laws in Breckenridge. Nice! #

Posted on July 25, 2010 - by rfrank

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-07-25

• Watching our awesome first service volunteers in action at church this morning! #fb #
• Downloading Jim Wideman's iPhone app. Do you have it? #jimwideman #fb #
• Starting KidzMatter staff meeting with a devotional on the life of Dr. Henrietta Mears – an amazing lady! #fb #
• Sitting on the couch next to a 10-week-old gift from God! Daughters are the best! #fb #
• Amazon reports it sold more e-books last month than paper books. Wow! (via @Brian_D_Dollar) #
• In a meeting with @evdoyle talking about this week's email blast going out later today. #
• What a sight! http://yfrog.com/nastgj #
• At the dentist…There are few things in life I hate worse than the dentist. #fb (via @samluce) // Amen to that! #
• Watching 75 Cubbies and Sparks engaged in a great Bible lesson! #awana #kidmin #
• Hot and humid. Two words that don't go good together. Welcome to Indiana! #fb #
• Writing my sermon for big church on Sunday. Title: "Looking Up with the Market Goes Down!" Liberty Baptist Church, Sweetser, IN. #fb #
• "I've held many things in my hands… and lost them all. Only that which I placed into the hands of God, that I still possess" Martin Luther #