The Ignite the Supernatural Conference

Why is the national Ignite the Supernatural Conference so important? Why have a conference that focuses totally upon ushering in a Holy Spirit revival for children and children's ministry?

One picture will tell the whole story. I want the Person of the Holy Spirit who is so important to my Dad and Mom, to Vickie and myself, to my son Jason and his wife Elisabeth, to become so real and imporant in my grandson Joey's life. Through this conference, we can ignite the fire of a Holy Spirit revival to another generation of children. I want my grandson to be able to say like the late Kathryn Kuhlman, "The Holy Spirit is more real to me than you are."

The 2008 Ignite the Supernatural Conference is January 31 - February 2 in Orlando, Florida. Information for speakers, workshops, schedules, hotels, registration rates, and downloadable promo and registration forms are available at http://www.ignite-conference.com/. Hurry, our first pre-registration deadline for the very best registration rate is Thursday, November 1st.

A Parent's Dream Come True

The Burns Men

Michael, Jason and Joey, my Dad Bill Burns, me, and Aaron

After this past weekend, I've come to the conclusion that I need a face adjustment ... no, not plastic surgery ... just an adjustment. Why? Because I've grinned and smiled so big that my ears have become misaligned. Let me tell you what caused my facial disfiguration ....

First, in our Saturday night and two Sunday morning services, I watched my 15-year-old son, Aaron, do an awesome job communicating to Trinity's boys and girls. Believe me, in doing the object lesson, he outdid what I've seen many seasoned children's pastors do. That afternoon, Vickie, Aaron, and I drove to Lakeland to witness and participate in the baby dedication of my grandson, Joey, which was being held at Access. At the service that night, I watched my second son, Michael, lead the 80+ people into God's presence through praise and worship. Michael is a true worshipper and knows how to usher people into His presence. A young girl stood behind me with tears streaming down her face as she worshipped. Then, I sat and heard my old son, Jason, effectively communicate to the Access community (that's congregation for us older folks) about the call of God. I really can't put into words what I witnessed that night as the community of 20- and 30-year-olds, people who had at one time felt disenfranchised by the church, were connecting with God and each other. (You can learn more about Access at http://www.accesslakeland.org/.) And then we wrapped up the service by dedicating Joey to God. No wonder my Texas-size smile has discombobulated my face.

Proud? Probably. Thankful? Most definitely. Thanks God for three sons who love You, love Your Body, and are making a difference in their generation.

I See the Rain A Comin'

I was raised (and often reared ... if you get my drift) in a home where my sister Ruth and I had to be dead three days before missing church. After all, if Jesus rose from the dead on the third day, Mom and Dad expected us to as well. Missing church for baseball practice, going to the movies with friends on a Wednesday night, being up late on a Saturday night and not getting up for church on Sunday wasn't an option. Consequently, in addition to the great foundation laid at home each day, we received consistent, systematic, solid Bible teaching in our Sunday school classes, children's church, and Royal Rangers and Missionettes clubs. Thanks Mom and Dad!!!!

It was through those Bible studies that I fell in love with the story of Elijah on Mt. Carmel. After all, what boy in his right mind wouldn't love a story about the battle of the G(g)ods? What boy doesn’t have pyromaniac yearnings for fire to bellow down from heaven?

This week, that story came even more alive to me. In telling the story each week in Kid’s Crusades for 10 years and from time-to-time in children’s church here at Trinity, I’ve often emphasized the battle and the fire. This week, God placed a special emphasis in my heart about the cloud that followed the showdown.

You remember the story from 1 Kings 18. There had been a God-ordained drought for 3 years. Before the battle on the mount, Elijah told Ahab to prepare for rain. After the battle, Elijah forecasted a heavy rain was on its way. Upon sending his servant 7 times to go look for the rain clouds, the only thing that Elijah saw was a cloud the size of a man’s hand. A big promise had been given. A small vessel was on the horizon for its delivery.

Here’s what God shared with me about this story. In addition to being the children’s pastor of a great church, my mission or assignment right now is to travel around the nation and globe prophesying about a mighty rain of the Holy Spirit. In pulpits and in conferences I stand as Peter did on the Day of Pentecost declaring that “This is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel …” I am convinced that this is the day of the Holy Spirit in children’s ministry. And yet, what I see in doing meetings both here and abroad are small pockets of people, the vessels that this rain will come through. Here’s what God told me through this story … here’s the shouting material … according to 1 Kings 18, the size of the cloud didn’t determine the amount of the downpour! Right now, the cloud may be small. There may be pockets of people across the nation crying out for a Holy Spirit deluge. After this encouragement from God, with confidence I too like Elijah will boldly continue to say that I see a HEAVY rain in the forecast!!!!

Be encouraged. The size of your ministry might be smaller than what you’ve dreamed of. The size of your budget might be less than what you need. One more time … remember that the size of the vessel doesn’t determine the amount of the downpour. To quote T.D. Jakes, “Get ready, get ready, get ready.” I see a cloud the size of a man’s hand!

The Fruit of Our Labor

By no means do I consider myself to be a cityslicker. The city that I grew up wasn't much of a city. With a whopping 6 traffic lights, "fine" eateries consisting of the likes of Dairy Queen and a greasy spoon called Grothe's Restaurant, and 3 grocery stores, West Columbia, Texas wasn't much to brag about. Still, it was home. Neither do I consider myself a country bumpkin. We did have a few chickens in a fenced-in area for a while when I was young. We did raise tomatoes, cucumbers, okra, and squash each summer in our little garden in our back yard. I guess that I'm a fine mixture of both ... a misplaced wanna' be big city boy with a touch of country flavor mixed in for good measure.

I do remember one thing from our gardening days. You never planted the seed and expected a harvest the next day, or the day after that, or the next week. You knew that there was a process that the seed had to go through. We confidently knew that the harvest would come in due time.

This weekend, I had the greatest experience. I had some dear friends in to minister for Trinity's children. In between services Sunday, I took my friends over to visit with our senior pastor. Along the way to his study, teenager after teenager would stop me, give me a big hug and talk to me for a minute or two. I would then introduce the teenagers to my friends and tell how Vickie and I had been their children's pastor for their entire life. It was so thrilling to be able to then state that the teen was now a master teacher in our 2-year-old nursery class, another one of "my" teens was now the praise and worship leader for our Saturday night children's church, another one of "my" teens was now working in the media ministry running a video camera each weekend.

Sadly, few children's ministry leaders get to enjoy that experience. They stay in one ministry or church for a few months or years and then move on to "greener" pastures. They haven't learned from the wise farmer how to enjoy the benefits of their labor. For over 18 years, Vickie and I have planted seed. It was great this weekend to walk through the hallways and see our labors showcased throughout the church! Here's to longevity ....

Children's Ministry 101 as Taught by Gideon

I love the biblical account of Gideon's victory over the Midianites. From my early days in Sunday School, this story has ranked up there right alongside David's battle with Goliath and Joshua and the battle of Jericho.

This story found Judges 6 and 7 provides three great leadership principles for Children's Ministry leaders.

1. The number of your army (staff) may not be what you want. Gideon didn't appreciate God whittling down his numbers. Through Gideon's example, God proved that being understaffed wasn't a deterent to Gideon's victory.
2. The members of your army (staff) may not be the ones that you'd pick. The ones that Gideon wanted left to return home for various reasons. It's amazing that the "left-overs" under God's anointing saw a mighty victory. Believe it or not, God has commissioned your "left-overs" to join arm-in-arm with you to fulfill your God-given assignment.
3. The weapons of your battle (teaching tools) may not be what you want. The weapons that you use each week aren't the latest, greatest on (or off) the market. For now, they are all that God has provided for your ministry. So, grab your trumpet and an empty jar with a burning torch inside (teaching tools that others would laugh at) and get ready to do God's business.

What an encouragement. God knows my battles (weekly ministry assignments) and has provided both the staff and tools to see the victory that He has prepared for me. The key is to see things as God sees them and start moving towards the course for my victory!