Connecting Church and Families with MyIntent Maker Kit
LeHai’s MyIntent journey began with events close to her: a family Christmas celebration and her semi-annual girlfriends retreat.“There’s so many opportunities to make an impact, and all it takes is tokens and stamping. To me, it’s kind of like adult candy. If you ask an adult or anyone, ‘Would you like a custom bracelet and you get to pick a word and stamp it?’ It’s always, ‘Can I make two? Can I make three?’” This passion has led her to share with as many as she can.
Memorable moments also came when she stamped bracelets for First Communion at her church, "I’m Catholic and second grade is what we call a "Sacramental Year" where the children are able to come to the table of God and receive the Eucharist for the first time. So we had a family potluck for all the kids and their families, and at the table was a piece of paper with the names of everyone in your family. The families would open up and share what Their WORDs are, and they would stamp a bracelet for each other. These families were able to have really rich, meaningful conversations that they don't always get to have because everyone is so busy nowadays. These conversations are true to each other that open up our hearts and our vulnerability, really grows the relationship."
LeHai is also a Sunday school teacher, and brought the MyIntent activity to her third graders. She shares,"When I did it with my Sunday school third grade class, the kids reflected on the words, why they wanted that word. Some of the kids were too shy to try stamping, but the words were very meaningful for them. The students that were brave enough to try it, loved how their bracelets came out. One student, he was always ahead of the class. He knew the answer so a lot of times and would be bored while everyone else is catching up with it, but this was a great activity that he was looking forward to doing. He came up to me and said, "This class was the class that I was looking forward the most all year, Miss LeHai."
It’s a message that rises above the noise of our busy lives. We don’t often get a lot of these reminders, be it affirmations of self-worth or encouragement to “smell the roses and enjoy the moment.” We can be our own worst critics. “What I love about MyIntent is it’s positive. It’s enabling. It’s a feel-good uplifting reminder of, ‘Hey, you’re good enough. Actually, you’re pretty great. You got this!’” LeHai expressed with appreciation.
How do you uplift others?
LeHai's Pro-Tip for New Makers:
There’s only so much you can control but that doesn’t take away from the beauty of the final product.
Don’t strive for perfection; strive for connection.