I got an email from my dear friend Danielle Bell yesterday. She said I'd been in her dream the other night--and I was pretty upset the entire time. So she was just checking in with me.

I had to admit that I have been pretty upset lately. Trying to figure out how to work in one certain area keeps me pretty tied up in knots.

But I also had to remember something my friend Rick Lawrence taught me years ago. (Okay, he's my dear friend, too!) He told me to always remember that "there are no monsters here!" And when working through issues of conflict, that has served me well to focus on the real problems instead of the person. In fact, conflict usually comes from misunderstood expectations or a lack of clear communication.

I'm continuing to grow in my weak areas. But I'm bolstered by the fact that there are no monsters here!

I spoke to my Marine son, Grant, this weekend about how his Marine Combat Training is going. He said he's learning amazing battle strategies for the war in Iraq, but not Afghanistan. I asked him why and he said that they can't train them for what they haven't experienced yet. He said that strategy comes from failure and they haven't fought enough or failed enough to develop the best strategies.

That was very compelling to me. So often, we're afraid to fail, but look at all the lessons we miss!

We're getting such amazing feedback from How2 Children's Ministry Leadership Experience alumni!

One gal emailed me that she got more out of the conference in a day and a half than she has in other conferences that lasted four days. Seriously! You get so much for your investment--the meals, the networking, the training. Then you get EVERYTHING to do it all at home with your team. Bring your team and renovate your ministry this year!!

Check it out!

“I have been equipped, connected and motivated to continue to dream and work out a growing children's ministry.” 
   —Heidi Rogers, Elmhurst, Illinois

“The HOW2 Conference has made a lasting impact on our children's ministry. We are implementing some of the ideas right now. God has used this conference to mold our ministry into the one He wants.” 
   —Brad Bennett, Kansas City, Kansas

“A must for all struggling Children's Ministries for encouragement and how-tos. A must for thriving ministries to keep you on your toes.” 
   —Stephanie Whittenhall, Medinah, Illinois

Go to how2conference.com to find a city near you! (And if you want a special rate because you read this blog, just let me know!)

I read this in (of all places) Habakkuk this weekend:

“Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my savior. The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights.” Habakkuk 3:17-18

So, even if our portfolios are shrinking or drying up....we will rejoice in the Lord!

I'm writing a new resource that I'm very excited about--it's Celebrate Recovery for Kids, and it should be available this August.

When I first started considering freelancing this project, I was unsure. I haven't freelanced since my first husband's death. I just haven't had it in me. And, even now, I'm not sure I have it in me. (Pray for discipline!)

But I sensed that God was calling me to this project. And the fact that I am an adult child of an alcoholic, I figured that God wanted me to also walk through the 12 steps in the program. I have been ministered to by the principles in Celebrate Recovery (CR) already.

The other thing I find so amazing, though, is that God can take all the pain that I experienced as a child and transform it into helping children whose parents have hurts, habits, and hangups. That's very cool of God! And, like John Baker's dream, God can take a resource like this and help children avoid the patterns of hurts, habits, and hangups. That's very cool of God, too!

I remember so many times as a child praying and asking God to help my dad stop drinking. That prayer was finally answered in my dad's 70's...kind of. So the fact is that regular Sunday school lessons about "God answers prayer" just fall short of what a child in a situation like this faces. Children like me need something different...and I think CR for Kids will provide it. I'm eager to work with the CR folks to create something that'll help children continue to cry out to God--even when their parents' pain may be too deep for quick answers.

I love what John (founder of CR) said when we met with him months ago. "We've translated CR into nine languages; we need you to translate it into 'child.' " I am a translator.