We learned this really cool statistic during a conference session presented by Reggie Joiner of North Point Community Church in Atlanta. CM volunteers have on average 40 hours each year to influence a kids life. Parents, on the other hand, have an average of 3000 hours a year to influence their kids' lives. That's a pretty HUGE difference and we wanted to make that HUGE impact on Crossroads families. So we made two cup towers - pyramids actually, one of 4o red plastic cups and one of 3000 plastic cups. Now let me tell you, the theory is good. The reality was a whole beast unto itself. I tried several ways to hold the cups together, so they wouldn't fall apart when moved, and the most stable way was to hot glue each cup. In the end the 3000 cup pyramid was made out of 3 sections, each with 7 layers (think like a snowman). (And yes if you do the math it was a few more than 3000 cups.) It took a total of 16 hours, only 3 of those I did not have a hot glue gun in my hand, and approximately 30 man hours, to build. The thing ended up being 7 feet square and 9 feet tall! That created the whole issue of how to get it out to the front of the stage (trying to get around 3 seperate sets). Finally we had about 6 people carry it behind two sets and out between 2 sets, with the top layer being added at the end by the Jester. I was behind the stage, but it was fun to hear the gasps as people started to see it come out! I've got to say it made a HUGE impact! You can see pictures on the Crossroads website photo gallery.
But what really made the whole building experience worth it, was seeing the guys jump off the stage and into the pyramid after everything was over. (I saved the top layer as a souvenier.) I've laughed more in this last week than I have for a very long time.
But don't miss the bottom line here: The 40 hours we, as children's ministry workers, have a year with kids is a big deal. But.... the 3000 hours we, as parents, have with our kids will make the REAL difference!
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