Mike Johnson

Are Movies Becoming More "Christian"?

I love movies! And it looks like Hollywood might be getting the message that the movies that bring in the most money are those that a family can go and see together. Since I have always loved going to movies with my girls, I like the trend that I am seeing. Read on below...

Movieguide® has recently released statistics about changes that can be seen in the movie industry over the last 20 years.

Here are a few of the statistics:

• Since 1991, there’s been a 425% increase in the number of movies with Christian, redemptive content that reflect a Christian biblical worldview – with a 20% increase in just the last five years.
• From 2005-2009, movies with a very strong Christian and redemptive worldview averaged $65.3 million, while movies with a strong negative or anti-Christian worldview averaged only $23 million.
• In 1995, movies with a strong Christian and redemptive worldview were earning an average of $21.14 million, but by 2009 that number had increased to $80.3 million.
• In 1996, 12 of the Top 25 movies at the Box Office were R-rated; in 2009, only two of the Top 25 were R-rated. Conversely, in 1996 only three of the Top 25 movies had a strong Christian and redemptive worldview, but in 2009, 18 of the Top 25 had a strong Christian and redemptive worldview – a 500% increase.
  

For the complete list of Movieguide® statistics, click here.

Elevate: Roanoke Jones Logo Development Process

I thought you might like to see how we create the logos you see for each Elevate series. This is the development process we went through to get the Roanoke Jones logo.

Step 1 - Different logo concepts were sketched out and we chose the one that fit best.

Step 2 - The sketch was recreated digitally.

Step 3 - More detail was added to the logo and different variations were created.

Step 4 - The best attributes of each variation were merged into the final design.

Step 5 - Texture and shading were added to the design to arrive at the final logo.

I hope you enjoyed this look at our development process. I am very excited about Roanoke Jones and can't wait for you to see the rest of it!

FC Kids Up All Night - Lock-in

Have you ever spent the night with 20 3rd-5th graders? How about 100? How about 430? 

It doesn't really matter how many kids you have because this is how it usually shakes out, see if any of it rings a bell...

Random Ramblings from a “Lock In”

7:00 PM		Yeah! This is gonna be fun…stay up all night and play play play!
7:15 PM		“Hey! Put that down! Would you do that at home?”
7:16 PM		Whoaa…this is gonna be a long night!
8:00 PM		I like most of these kids.
9:00 PM		Well...maybe some of these kids.
10:00 PM		Is there a correlation between going past bed times and craziness?
11:00 PM		How come my kids got energy drinks and I didn’t?
12:00 AM		My vision is a little blurry, how concerned should I be?
1:00 AM		Where did that wall I just hit come from? Must be my blurry vision.
2:00 AM		Praise God! There is such a thing as a second wind!
2:30 AM		Hey! That's a golf club…not a sword…and why do you have three of them?
3:00 AM		Feeling a bit strange…odd mixture of energy and nausea.
4:00 AM		OK, now it’s just nausea…
4:30 AM		Whoa…think I nodded off for a second there…hey, how did I get in this go cart?
5:00 AM		My head hurts, am I responsible for these kids all night, or can I go lay down in the corner?
6:00 AM		Who’s the knucklehead who set the pick up time for 9:00? I’m ready NOW!
7:00 AM		I guess I’m not the only one feeling nauseous… who’s gonna clean that up?
8:00 AM		Donut’s and apple juice – Ordinarily…no touchy! 8:00 am– BRING IT ON!
8:59:59 AM		Where are all the parents? Why are they NOT HERE yet?!!
10:30 AM		Ring, Ring… "Hi Joe, this is your son Billy’s Lock-In leader. Do you plan on coming to get him anytime soon?"
11:00 AM		I’m going to go home and go to bed for a month… or at least until 4:00 pm so I can come backfor the 6:00 Saturday night service.
12:00 PM		zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
1:00 PM		zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
2:00 PM		zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
2:59 PM		Bed head and puffy eyes – I look like I’m 90…
4:00 PM		Hot shower and strong coffee.
5:00 PM		Who’s up for ROUND TWO!
6:00 PM		I'm actually glad to see these kids again! Weird huh?
10:00 PM		Why can’t I sleep?

Anyone have a lock-in experience they wish to share?

Sometimes Our Work Looks Like Play - Paper Airplanes

 

Can you really complain about a job where you get to make paper airplanes? I can't! Here we're testing an activity for an upcoming Elevate Family series. The point? We need to hang around friends who will help us make wise decisions and keep our lives soaring for God. 

We get to make paper airplanes and teach families about God, all at the same time! How great is that?! Guess who's plane went the farthest? All those years sitting in the back pews making paper airplanes out of church bulletins finally paid off!

What does your office say about you? - Conclusion

I learned early on in ministry that keeping my office in great shape is a huge help in forming positive thoughts in people’s minds about me and the Children's Ministry at Fellowship Church.

I want people, when they walk into my office, to think of me as someone who desires, and will even demand, excellence. If they walk into my office and go “WOW!!” (instead of “...ohhh my”) they will make an assumption about how I want things to run in this ministry.

You can talk all you want, but nothing speaks louder than the environment you call your home away from home. Remember, your office speaks for you…even when you’re not in it!

So the question is...What does your office say about you?

 

Welcome to the Elevate Dojo!

The series we currently have in production is Dojo, the first series of Elevate peak 4! Check out these iPhone photos taken during some of our shoots. The folks you see are a mix of FC Kids staff and volunteers. You'll even see some real live kids!

     

 

          

Final Elevate Year 4 Map - Can You Guess It?

Here is the final version of the Elevate Year 4 map, minus the titles. Notice the previous maps in the background. Cool, huh?

This is your last chance to guess the themes and win a prize! Whoever gets closest to all seven themes will win a $25 gift card to Amazon.com. In the comments on the last map, someone gets every theme almost right, except the top right corner. No one has that yet! If you follow @elevatekids on Twitter, you should know the bottom right theme (it's the one we are working on now and will be the first released in year 4.)

Give your answers in the comments by April 12 and you just might be the winner!

Behind the Scenes: New Elevate Jr. Song

This is an iPhone video of our songwriter, Ryan McMackin, playing a new Elevate Jr. song during a deadline meeting for our next series, Dojo.  After hearing it, I decided we should shorten the song by 15 seconds and change the “play, play, play” lines to lyrics about learning. Can’t wait to hear the final version!

 

 

Children's Ministry - The Fun Factor

When it comes to teaching children, you have to capture their eyes and ears so that the Holy Spirit can capture their hearts. To do that, you need to make sure they are having fun. Fun is the currency of a child. If they think something is fun, they will want to do it. If they don't, then they will not want to do it. It's that simple. Just ask any kid if he or she would rather go to the doctor or Disney World. You'll get your answer quickly. So it stands to reason that if you want a child engaged, attentive, and involved in your ministry, you need to make sure they are having fun.

I don't believe that having fun in church means "making fun" of the Bible or the applications of the Bible to our lives. I just believe that having fun while learning is the best way to create an experience that can increase the retention of knowledge and encourage the children to return.

So, if you want to make a church experience meaningful for kids, make it fun.

C3 Kids West Starts Today!

Hey everyone, here we are in Sunny San Diego for C3 Kids West! If you 
can't be here (sorry) then be sure to follow along on Twitter under 
the tag #c3kidsWC. All our "twitterers" will give you minute by minute 
coverage!

If you couldn't make C3 Kids Dallas either, make plans now to attend 
C3 Kids East Coast in October. Dates and location will be announced 
next week!

It's all about volunteers...