Tim Postuma

We've been watching this with our kids (10, 10, 6) and have all cringed at some of the violent scenes. But they're eventually going to see this kind of violence on a screen, and I'd rather it be in this context with us than at a friend's house watching some Hollywood movie.

Other than the violence, they LOVE it and are begging to watch the episodes we've recorded. It's really helped the Bible stories come alive and has triggered good conversation (case in point, last night we watched the episode with David and Bathsheba!). I'm grateful for the series and the discussion opportunities it provides. I appreciate that they show the characters as fallen people used by God.

For years, we've been part of intergenerational small groups (with families, singles, couples). We alternate between meeting with kids (a fun but chaotic soup supper, with some time to sing, share, and pray together) and without kids (calmer with adult conversation, in-depth sharing and study).

I've been AMAZED at the effect of that on our young kids. They truly love their small group and have formed real connections with the other adults. If my wife and I are busy during the service, they'll occasionally sit with them instead. One is a Sunday school teacher, another a kids club leader, others occasionally babysit - all of which adds other dimensions to the relationship and, through that, to our church and their faith.

But it takes time to form those relationships. And, at least in our experience, intergenerational small groups have really helped provide that time.

Thanks, Paul. I hope you'll continue to share your wisdom in this section and across the site.

Our pastors are very open to feedback and, a few years ago, we decided to use Calvin Seminary's sermon evaluation form as the feedback tool. Our intention was to create an ongoing feedback loop, rather than an overall assessment of their preaching (that should be part of the annual evaluation). The biggest issue has been getting us elders to actually take the time and fill it out. But the tool itself, seems good. And I think doing it as some kind of ongoing feedback loop is healthier than just talking about it when there's a complaint.

Here's a link to the form.

Wow, some of that is hard to read but thanks for keeping it real, Mark. Great post.

Great point. Yes, we definitely want to keep those "attendees" in mind as well.

In fact, just looking at stats of our first few webinars the number of people who watched the recording are higher than the number who attended live. And those numbers will continue to grow.

Another interesting aspect is to see how many people huddle around a computer to watch the webinars together. That's something we ask about in the followup survey and it's cool to see how many do. What a great way to learn and discuss together.

Here's a story Christianity Today just posted about this.