The 2014 Orange Tour covered 13 cities and wrapped up in Tampa, Florida, earlier this week. Over the last several weeks, we’ve rounded up some of Reggie Joiner’s quotes about saying yes to tension, the pivotal role of the small group leader, and God’s plan for telling a story of redemption and restoration through our lives.

1. Small Group Leaders, you can impact how kids see God, how they see themselves, and how they see others.
2. The best way for a kid to know God is to know someone who knows God.
3. If you believe two influences make a greater impact, it will change what happens this week.
4. You are not called to be God to kids. Let God be God. You aren’t called to change kids, but to love them.
5. If you believe two influences working together is greater, it will impact who you influence.
6. Small group leaders, you are on the front lines. You are our best chance at helping kids know and love God.
7. Take a small percentage of your time and efforts to influence parents, and your influence will exponentially multiply.
8. You have the opportunity to change the way families see the church by changing the way you see the family.
9. God doesn’t use perfect pictures; He uses broken people.
10. God can use you as a platform to tell His bigger story.
11. When our kids leave, we want them to take the “big rocks” with them: know God; the Bible is True; trust leads to faith.
12. How you live is connected to what you believe. What you become is connected to what you believe.
13. Sometimes a truth can lose clarity when it’s divorced from the reality of the other truths that amplify it.
14. Tension doesn’t make a truth less TRUE, it makes it more REAL.
15. Sometimes a truth can lose clarity when it’s divorced from the reality of the other truths that amplify it.
16. Sometimes in our zeal to fight for what is true, we don’t fight for the tensions that actually connect those truths to what is real.
17. We need to make sure we don’t dilute the truth by how we handle it.
18. Some of us don’t like tension. We are threatened by tension. God is not threatened by tension.
19. Truth and tension: You can become a Christian in a moment; it’ll take forever to figure out what that means.
20. Create a ministry that speaks to the heart of a child in a way that makes them want to go to church.
21. Tension is a good thing. The tension of doubt builds a stronger foundation for faith.
22. Your beliefs matter. People matter more.
23. If your belief system causes you to be mean to people, you need to reconsider your beliefs.
24. How you live is connected to what you believe. What you become is connected to what you believe.
25. Trust leads you to stronger faith AND doubt leads to stronger faith.
26. Act like God is bigger than you, your church, your family, your faith, your perspective, your Bible, your world.
27. Say yes to the tension that exists between what is core and what is dynamic if you want momentum in your ministry.
28. You are driven by a mission. You succeed because of a strategy.
29. Your mission will not determine your success as a church, but your strategy will.
30. How do we (the church) start building our reputation as a positive influence in non-church people’s lives?
31. Inspiring volunteers will motivate them to serve. Empowering volunteers will keep them serving.
32. Say yes to the tension that exists between content and context if you want to be relevant in your message.
33. There’s a gap between what you know and the real world that kids live in. It’s your job to bridge that gap.
34. Truth helps someone believe. Application helps someone win.
35. Understanding theology helps you teach what is true. Understanding life stages helps you translate what is true.
36. Principles build understanding; stories build hope.
37. A well-crafted statement can make truth memorable; a well-reasoned question can make truth real.
38. Better presentations can amplify what matters; deeper relationships can solidify what matters.
39. Jesus had all the answers, yet He asked LOTS of question. He understood that that is how truth becomes real for us.
40. I will do for a few what I can’t do for many. I will not let the ones I know become unknown to me.

Volunteering is not a requirement, it’s a passion! And Orange is hosting an event just for children’s ministry volunteers called Live to Serve to help them understand their role in the bigger picture, and to thank them for their hard work. Join us in Birmingham (2/21), Nashville (2/28), Cincinnati (3/7) or Norfolk (3/14). Registration is open now at www.LivetoServe.co.