October 21, 2008
The NCLA leadership team is extremely excited to announce that Reggie Joiner will join us for FOCUS 09.
Reggie is the founder of The reThink Group, a non-profit organization encouraging churches and families to think strategically to impact this generation of students from birth through high school. The reThink Group urges ministries to be both relevant and strategic; to teach truth while offering hands-on experiences, to be more together than we could be alone.
He is also a co-founder of North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Georgia, and the co-author of The 7 Practices of Effective Ministries along with Lane Jones and Andy Stanley.
Reggie truly is a champion of children’s ministry! We’re honored to have him at FOCUS 09! This awesome children’s ministry conference will be held March 5-7 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Greenville, South Carolina. Make plans to be there!
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Posted by phil h
August 28, 2008
The NCLA leadership team is gearing up for a great FOCUS 09 conference and in the midst of that hard work we’re excited to announce that Phil Vischer will be with us.
Phil really needs no introduction, but in case you’ve been doing children’s ministry under a rock for the past decade, Phil is the cofounder of Big Idea Productions the company best known for bringing us VeggieTales. Recently Phil has started a new creative shop called Jelly Fish Labs where he and a team work to produce faith-based media for children and families via the internet.
Phil is incredibly creative and has an amazing story to tell. We look forward to hearing from him at FOCUS 09. This awesome children’s ministry conference will be held March 5-7 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Greenville, South Carolina. Make plans to be there!
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Posted by phil h
April 27, 2008
Alright… FOCUS ’08 has now come to a close and it was a great success. WOW! I was blown away by everyone involved. I was talking with someone whose worked with conferences before and they said, “When you show up and everything is running smoothly, it makes you think it wasn’t a lot of hard work, but I know better.” I laughed and said that if the hard work had not been done, when people show up it is obvious to those attending that somebody didn’t plan or work hard enough. Well, the leadership team worked hard and I truly believe it paid off.
Now… my questions to you are: What was your favorite part of the conference this year? For you repeat offenders out there, what keeps you coming back to FOCUS each year? If this was your first time, what will it take to bring you back next year? (And no, I will not be your room-mate… lol… inside joke.) Finally, what two or three ideas did you take away that if you implement immediately will make your ministry better, more efficient, and/or more effective? I look forward to hearing from you!
6 Comments | focus conference | Tagged: children's ministry, focus conference | Permalink
Posted by phil h
April 9, 2008
FOCUS is a place for networking, inspiration, but also resources. Children’s ministry leaders have always been able to find new products and services to enhance their ministries when they return home. This year is no exception.
In fact, we’ve got 3 brand new exhibitors who’ll be with us for the first time:
Additionally, many of your favorites will be back including:
Just a few more reasons you’ll want to be at FOCUS this year!
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Posted by phil h
March 6, 2008
The FOCUS Children’s Ministry Conference is a place of inspiration, encouragement, networking, and resourcing. If you work with kids at your church on any level, you’ll be blessed by attending this conference. The leadership team has worked hard to put together an awesome lineup of speakers, workshop leaders, and exhibitors this year. We feel certain that if you attend, you’ll leave the richer for it! And… if your registration form is postmarked by March 15, you’ll be $35 richer!
To register for this awesome conference, print out the FOCUS Registration Form below and follow the instructions! We look forward to seeing you there!
FOCUS Registration Form
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Posted by phil h
February 26, 2008
Marlene LeFever is Director of Educational Ministries for Cook Communications Ministries. She is the author of ‘Learning Styles’, ‘Creative Teaching Methods’, and her 2002 release, ‘Flowers from God’, is a celebration of what God is doing through children’s ministry workers.
The NCLA Leadership Team is excited to announce that she will be conducting workshops at the FOCUS conference this year. We have tried for several years to get her, but were unable to make it happen. This year, she will be a blessing to all who attend her workshops. She brings a wealth of knowledge, experience, and passion for children’s ministry. Just another great reason YOU need to be at FOCUS this year!
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Posted by phil h
December 13, 2007
Many of you know about Jim Wideman, better known as Bro. Jim. He is one of our guest speakers at FOCUS 08. If you have not checked out his site (which is linked on the right of this blog) I would encourage you to do so. Jim offers many great resources for children’s ministry leaders.
I personally have gained much from being a part of the club. As a member you receive a monthly teaching from Bro Jim and discounts on other Jim Wideman Ministry products. The insights Bro Jim offers in these monthly teachings are priceless and are extremely practical not only in children’s ministry, but in life.
I have found over the years that Bro Jim is a very personable and down to earth guy. He cares greatly for children and has a passion to help those who minister to them. What he has shared through his books, teachings and conversations have impacted my life and ministry more than any source, other than Jesus Himself.
If you are looking for practical leadership helps to assist you on your journey as a children’s minister, Bro Jim has something for you. We are blessed to have Bro Jim as one of our guest at FOCUS.
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Posted by phil b
October 19, 2007
OK! I’ve been asked, “what’s that game we played at Focus?” I mean, really, how could you forget? FARKEL!
I’ve been playing this game for over 10 years. It’s so simple, its almost stupid; except, it brings out so much laughter and hilarity, you have to have it.
If you perform an internet search with the keyword farkel, you will certainly get several versions of the game. The game Farkel was derived from the Farkleberry tree, a small tree native to Texas. When the early settlers came to Texas, they discovered the Farkleberry would harden as they dried. The settlers carved these berries into the shape of dice so that they might play games. Thus, the game Farkel got its name. Some have even called the game Farkleberry, though I doubt that the name ever caught on. While there seems to be several stories about the origin of the game and as many rules, the game is fun and easy to play. Incidentally, there is no such thing as “official rules” for the Farkel game, since it was handed down from one generation to another over the years. Our family, as well as our extended family and many friends, have enjoyed this game for many years. The big winner usually is dubbed the “Farkel King/Queen.” But there is one version, the version we’ve played, that seems to be the “marketed” version. They call it “The Original Pocket Farkel” a game of guts and luck.
I’m proud to announce that “Farkel” has been named the official game for FOCUS. That being the case, I want to encourage you to practice and get your game on before you arrive at FOCUS in April. And in the mean time, you can use this game at your next children’s team outing or other fellowship function. If you can get people to try it, it will be a hit.
For more information about The Original Pocket Farkel click here.
2 Comments | focus conference, misc | Tagged: dice, farkel, fellowship, games | Permalink
Posted by steve b
The NCLA leadership team is extremely excited to announce that Reggie Joiner will join us for FOCUS 09.
