"We are all the product of our childhood."  Art Murphy
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"It is better to build children than to repair men."  Francis Schaeffer

 

"Children are a gift from the Lord..."  Psalm 127:3 [???]

 

"The key to growing a healthy children's ministry is not how to do a big event with "flash," but how you do personal relationships with excellence."  Art Murphy

 

"It is better to accomplish a few things with purpose and excellence, than attempt many things with mediocrity."  Art Murphy

 

"I hear too many church leaders say, 'no one wants to serve in children's ministry.'  Well, that is NOT true.  However, if you feel that it is true, keep your mouth shut.  If you say it twice, people will start believing you. Believe...and expect...that others want to impact the lives of children with God's love."  Art Murphy

 

"Most church leaders, after attending a conference, will go home and add new activities to there current programs.  That is one sure way to kill your ministry.  Instead of adding to your present list of programs/activities, replace them with better, more purposeful programs."  Art Murphy  

 

"Busyness is not the equilavent to effectiveness."  Art Murphy

 

"You cannot build a strong ministry by doing everything yourself.  The key to a strong ministry is how you build people...specifically leaders.  Build the right team of leaders and you will build an army of volunteers."  Art Murphy

 

"There are three groups of people with whom we work.  The leaders above us, the teammates beside us, and the volunteers who follow us.  Normally, each group communicates differently, and has a different list of expectations.  It is important to know your groups and prepare yourself to communicate effectively."  Art Murphy

 

"Strive for excellence, not perfection."  Art Murphy

 

"You cannot prepare and serve a meal if you are busy spinning plates."  Art Murphy

 

"Our goal is not to manipulate children to make (premature) decisions.  Our goal is to raise disciples."  Art Murphy

 

 

• "Children are like arrows...totally dependent on us to sharpen, aim, empower, and launch them in the right direction."

• "One of the biggest reasons churches are not growing is the lack of children's ministry volunteers...and you SHOULD/CAN change that."

• "Healthy, growing churches elevate children and family ministry to a priority level in their overall strategy."

• "Jesus raised the value of women and children from slaves and possessions to valued treasures."

• "The Bible gives us several powerful instructions for raising children.  The church has the opportunity to reach families when they provide parenting tools for parents and child-friendly environments for children."

• It has been said that it takes a village to raise a child.  However, I would like to modify that statement. The best support a family can have is a church that values children and provides Biblical principles for parenting.  In other words, it takes a healthy church to reach/rescue the families with children in their community.