Mickey and the Church

"It's about what kids want, not just what Disney thinks they want. They want to connect with the stars, they engage with characters...it's all about watching TV and going online and listening to music. It's part of their world"
-Adam Sanderson, Disney Channels' senior vice-president on guardian.co.uk


I found that quote strolling through this month's "Children's Ministry" magazine and it stopped me in my tracks. Does the church have that mindset? Should the church have that mindset? Do you have that mindset?


Let's change the word "church" in the place of "Disney". Here goes: It's about what the kids want, not just what the church thinks they want. 


I think Disney is right on with this concept. Kids love Disney! My 2yr old freaks out every time we go past the Disney store in the mall. He asks to watch Goofy on YouTube. He jumps out of my lap to do the "mouserize" dance on Mickey's Mouse Club. Does he get excited about church on Sunday...yes! Our volunteer leadership has created an awesome atmosphere both in our preschool and elementary ministries and we are seeing the fruit of it. But Disney, that's a whole other level of excitement that our children's ministry hasn't achieved yet!


Of course Disney has all the money in the world (and they use it wisely in marketing!) but they think out of the box. They aren't afraid to fail. They get out of their business suits and think like a kid. Do you remember the movie "BIG" that Tom Hanks starred in years ago? His character thought like a kid, and look what happened to the company! That's the mindset that churches need to grasp. We need to stop thinking of what would make for a good hourly lesson, and think more of how we can effectively reach this generation. Maybe we need to lose our dress shoes and exchange them for funky toe socks?! OK...so that might be a little much, but it might take something drastic like that to get into the mindset of a child!


So how could this work? I don't know, I'm still brainstorming myself! This afternoon I have been bouncing some questions such as: how can we promote our ministry more effectively online, how can we make our children's ministry visible outside of our ministry walls, how can we get the parents excitement level up, how can we create a Disney atmosphere, how can we...well you get the idea (I had around 20 questions cued up but I digress).


While I'm brainstorming, would you like to join me? No idea is to big, crazy, ridiculous, or insane...that's the beauty of brainstorming! Parents, what is something the church could do that possibly you could help with in order to create a Disney experience? Leaders, what's a way to make your small group full of energy and discussions (minus the Monster drinks!)?


It's about what the kids want, not just what the church thinks they want. Yep, I really like that mindset!