Forming a Tribe

A few days ago, I was placing my fifth and sixth graders in groups, when I noticed something disturbing. In several instances, as soon as I announced the partnership, there was eye-rolling, heavy sighing, and once, even a muttered, "Oh, great."

This was NOT okay with me. I have eleven students in my class, four boys and seven girls. If there was division this early in a school year, how are we going to make it through the year? And so we had what I like to call a "family chat."

We had just learned in history about different types of governmental systems, so I decided to compare our class to a tribe. The definition of a tribe is: "a social division in a traditional society consisting of families or communities linked by social, economic, religious, or blood ties, with a common culture and dialect, typically having a recognized leader."

I explained to my precious kiddos that they were a tribe. The eleven of them? They gotta stick together. We talked practically about what this might look like. "If I assign partners, you act enthusiastic about whomever you're with!" "If Chris drops his books in the hall, you all help him pick them up!" "If you hear anyone making fun of your classmates, you stick up for them!" We have to have each other's back.

The next time I assigned partners? Bliss. Kids were smiling. They were enthusiastic. I don't even care that some of them were probably pretending. Eventually, their actions will influence their mindsets, and these kids will be genuine in their care for each other. We are a tribe.

Women, isn't this how we should all be with each other? From the baby girl in my sister-in-law's womb to the great-grandmas pushing 100, shouldn't we be a tribe together?

I read a blog today that said we, as society, have failed Miley Cyrus. I agree. She's making poor choices, but the women in our society have failed to surround one another with love, encouragement, and support. Instead, we are critical and condescending. We roll our eyes at each other. We gossip. We spread rumors based on jealousy. And we wonder why little girls, like these former Disney stars, are growing up to make the choices that they are making.

This new adventure I'm on, Shine Movement, is about forming the tribe that should already exist. The target for the conference is tween girls, but in reality, the movement is multi-generational. We want older teens that will come alongside the younger girls and show them what it means to walk in light. We want moms, aunts, grandmas,sisters, teachers, neighbors, and youth leaders to partner with us so that we can guide the next generation in godliness. Little girls need to be told they are beautiful, but not for beauty's sake. They need to know that their beauty comes from being made in the image of their Creator, that their worth is based on the price He paid for us.

Let's come together, ladies. Let's have each other's back. Let's form a tribe.

The Shine Movement

I've talked a lot about the Start Experiment on here, but I've intentionally never mentioned what risk I am taking. The main reason for that is that it's not MY risk. I believe God has used this past month to link me into someone else's risk so that I could help them start.

When I first read Jon Acuff's email about the Start Experiment Facebook group, I immediately asked my friend Deedra if she wanted to be a part of it. I knew she was sitting on some great ideas, and maybe this would be a catalyst to help her launch one of them. One that she was passionate about was a musical that had been floating in her brain for awhile. I figured Start would help her get that off the ground.

I had no idea what I wanted to start. (I'll point out that now I've got about a hundred ideas of things I want to start this year, as I wrote in my last blog.) But a month ago, nothing. In fact, when we were told to write our risks on a Start survey, I wrote the most vague thing I could possibly come up with. It was something about teens and God and writing. It made zero sense.

A few days later, I was talking to Deedra, and I asked her if she wrote about her musical. And she told me no. She said she had decided she wanted to pursue the Shine Conference idea that she'd had a couple years ago, and then she asked if I would want to help by writing curriculum, blogging about it, and making contacts to launch it.

Well, hey. That's about teens. And God. And writing.
I'm in.

There will be lots more information about Shine to come VERY soon. In fact, today we filmed footage for our indiegogo.com video to gain support by crowdfunding. A twitter account was just created (@shinemovement1), and a Facebook page and website will be up and running next week.

In a nutshell, Shine is more than a conference. So we're calling the overarching idea the Shine Movement. It's about teaching young girls to shine by instilling in them values such as purity, godliness, modesty, inner beauty, and confidence. It's about teaching them to connect with the One who created all light. And it will provide an outlet to shine by teaching them about dance and choreography through a two-day event.

Definitely not a finished logo. I'm not an artist.

God has been bringing so many details together. In fact, we're meeting with a Christian recording artist this weekend to talk about bringing her on board for the Shine tour. I'm amazed at all the little connections that have been made, and I'm grateful for the support of my new #startexp friends as this gets going.

How can you help? First, by following us on Twitter. That will keep you connected as different elements are set in place. Next, by putting aside a little money for our first crowdfunding campaign on indiegogo.com. We'll let you know as soon as that's ready to go. Third, by volunteering at one of our events if we come to your area. We are starting with a trial event in November about an hour east of St. Louis. Fourth, by simply sharing this blog post on Facebook, Twitter, or by email. We need to create some buzz. And finally, but most importantly, by joining with us in prayer. We don't want Shine to touch girls for simply a weekend; we want God to move in the girls' hearts so that they are equipped to live a life that shines for Him. We are His servants as we move forward in this endeavor.