Talk Story: Rennie Mau

Kahu Rennie Mau is, and always has been, busy.

He’s the kind of guy who has numerous projects in the works, numerous meetings scheduled, numerous people to visit, and somehow, manages to see them all through to completion — and on time, too.

Consider this brief summary of his career:

He has been in ministry 45 years, 35 as an ordained minister. He has led church revivals. He has guided churches in cities, in towns, in mountains and in slums. He has been there when families recovered from fires that claimed their homes, and he has helped them keep their faith. He has planted churches, been a part-time and full-time minister and developed programs to support education, food banks, community gardens, senior health care, housing and job training.

He is executive producer of Gamekids.com, an award-winning web and TV program on creative and imaginative play with children and teens. From 2005-07 his educational show was aired throughout Hawaii.

His strongest impact may be on youth.

As a publisher and producer, he has produced more than 450 recordings and media products for a variety of educational curriculum companies for children and teens.

He has been a producer and organizer of various festivals and workshops in the media arts in Hawaii and California.

He is a husband and father of three daughters. He is an author, has worked as a teacher and served on state commissions.

Today, he is pastor of Koolauhui’ia Protestant Church in Anahola.

He is a strong believer in using social media and technology to interest youth in faith. He’s quick to post online, utilize the Internet and send messages of faith and hope, which he is confident will raise awareness of and interest in today’s churches.

“I have known Rennie for over 35 years and have been delighted, encouraged and amazed with his creative innovations using visual and cultural arts to convey and portray God’s love for all people,” said Kahu Curt Kekuna, senior pastor of Kawaiahao Church of Honolulu.

Dr. Aldo Fontao, former director of Haggai Institute, Kihei, had this to say: “Kahu Rennie is one of the sweetest ministers I have met. His tech knowledge and love for children and culture is outstanding. Good preacher and friendly manners make him a wonderful pastor. He has always been there when needed.”

Mau, born in California and raised on Oahu, recalls that when he started in ministry he was the only man in a children’s ministry class attended by 80 women.

“When I sat down, the teacher looked up and said, ‘I never have a male take this class.’ It was children and family ministries in the ’70s. So, she stopped and asked, ‘Why are you here?’”

Mau knew.

He was there to learn. He was there to develop his skills. And he was there because he felt led by the Lord. His career today remains as interesting and challenging as ever. And he’s still following God.

“I don’t know what I’m doing,” he said, laughing. “The Lord is just leading me.”

It’s a familiar path these days.

“I feel like I’m going back in time to do what I was doing in the early ‘70s. My background then was more focused on family ministries, publishing. I’m getting back to that today.”

Mau sat down recently with The Garden Island in the middle of his usually busy schedule and fielded a few questions.

What influenced you to go into ministry?

I went to a Catholic high school, St. Louis High School in Honolulu. They had a program they would take the kids on, these eight-week-long trips across the United States, camping out the whole way. You’d see pretty much the whole country. It was a big tour, seeing places of American history. What happened was during that trip, every day they had Mass, and every place we went to we stayed at religious campsites or schools. And some of those brothers, those people, made a big impression on me at that time.

Later, it was real awkward because I was a Protestant in a Catholic school. So they asked me to put together a fellowship of Protestants and Catholics at the school, which was very new for the church.

How did it go?

It spread to 30 high schools. It went to almost every Catholic school in Hawaii. I think that gave me a lot of organizational skills, just learning to appreciate both sides of the faith, Catholic and Protestant, working interfaith-wise. There was still at that point some animosity between the Catholic and the Christian and the Protestant, so that was really fascinating for me.

When I graduated, the faculty gave me an interesting reward. It was called the “Non-Catholic religion award.” I think I was the first and last person to ever get it.

When did you start working more in children’s ministries?

At the church I was attending, I started working with children and put together a children’s group. They just grew so they were featured on the radio and a lot of community events at that time. That led to me being involved in more children’s ministries and working with youth.

What’s the key to successful youth ministries?

A lot of time when people think of youth ministry they think of young people. But I would say that 80 percent of youth work is working with adults. The key is if you work with adults the adults respond and then the youth respond.

What I saw over the years, I guess you would call them ministry-centered programs, that’s when key people in leadership positions left, the program fell down. I think my style of ministry is to empower the people to do it on their own.

Where do you see your biggest impact?

I have so many different hats. It depends on which audience. Some people, they see me in the church, but I work in the community, too. I work in publishing and publishing is affecting million of kids around the world in music and art.

What are some of your strengths?

I try to bring out the best in others. I try to bring out the gifts of song writers or writers. If you talk to some of them, they would all say I helped bring out their best. I like to see others do well and do what I can to help them succeed and develop their skills. People have skills they aren’t aware of until you kind of help them along.

Did you see anything in your career that bothered you?

I learned early on there was a lot of money behind a lot of things. I saw a lot of executives come and go fast. Fast money made by people in the ‘90s.

What do you enjoy most about what you get to do as a pastor?

I work with a lot of kids. But the biggest joy is watching the parents of these kids who have gifts realize that they need to nurture their kids and guide them along. I love to see parents involved with their kids.

Is ministry work easier or more challenging today?

More challenging. I think a lot of churches, more traditional, are in survival mode. The contemporary churches have an entertainment thing and also I feel like organized sports has gotten out of hand. It consumes so much time.

Do you have to teach kids about sports?

I always say we do unorganized sports. You always hear that families that pray together stay together. We also say the families that play together stay together.

How do you keep kids interested in church? Seems like most don’t go back after getting old enough so they don’t have to go with their parents.

Find out their interests. If they like singing and dancing, work with them and see what you can do. It can be hard. A lot of kids are really into themselves and their cellphones. You have to get them to understand the bigger part of the church and why it matters to them.

Are you confident you’re making a difference with kids today?

Yeah, but you never know. You don’t see it until 20 years from now.

What will it take for churches to get back into growth mode?

I feel the churches have to get back into a family mode. I think it’s embracing family ministries. Some churches don’t know how to accommodate the different families. I have a lot of kids who live with two or three sets of parents. They all have different churches they go to. Churches have to be ready to reach the needs of families.

Is it happening on Kauai?

I see a lot of collaborative stuff going on. There are some really good organizations working together to help the community.

If you could tell the community one thing about yourself or your faith, what would it be?

I really do feel our God is a God who wants to play with us and explore our faith in different ways. I love it when I see creativity allowed to happen in the church.