Some Thoughts About Deuteronomy 6 & Psalm 78

Children's ministry matters because children matter. God gave very specific directions to parents, grandparents, and to His people in general about how important it was for them to love Him and then pass this love for Him to their children. 

Equip Children to Know Their Real "Super Power"

When the grandparents in your ministry look back at raising their now grown children, they will likely have things they wish they knew to do differently. I do. The biggest is I wish I knew how to talk with God then, so I would have been able to help them learn how to talk with God. Looking back, I know now how much it matters to help the children we love learn to be people who talk with God on their own, people who watch for how God answers, and people who remember what He does in their lives. It is absolutely the most important and essential thing for the ones we love to grow to love, know, and walk with God.

Learn, Be Prepared, Hand Down Confident Faith with the little answer book

 

There are grandparents/ parents in your ministry who have people they love who have turned from the faith they once had, so it is essential for you to recommend resources to them which will equip them with the  answers to the question - why should I believe? I  discovered there are solid answers and compiled them into a simple book - the little answer book.

 Why might they want this book? consider the following . . . 

Re-evaluate & Make Your Ministry More Effective

Sunday mornings have changed in many churches, quite a bit, from what they were when I was a child. In some ways this is a positive thing, but in others, not so much. When we make changes which result in making things more difficult for parents and grandparents, then we need to re-evaluate what we are doing.

Be Aware of the Impact You Make

As a leader in your church's Children's Ministry, you matter. What you do matters. The decisions you make matter. You and these things matter, because you, the things you do, and the decisions you make impact the lives of the children and families in your church. For this reason before you do something or make a decision, please consider the following things you may not think to consider . . .

See a Need; Fill a Need - Grandparenting Ministry!

Sunday School began in 1780 as actual school for poor children which used the Bible as a text book. Religious education was a staple for children right up until the 1960's when parents stopped going to church so much themselves. Today most churches have a Children's Ministry because they understand how important it is to reach children for Jesus and help them grow to know and walk with Him. Churches saw a need, (for Children's Ministry) and filled the need.

Teach The Essential Part - It Matters

One of the roles and responsibilities of people who serve in Children's Ministry is for them to help equip, encourage, and come alongside parents and grandparents as they hand down confident faith to the children God has entrusted to them. Children spend from one to eight hours every four weeks at church - and more and more of them spend just an hour or two every four weeks - but they live with their parents; and if their grandparents are engaged they are spending significant time with them as well. Obviously we will be most effective as people who serve in Children's Ministry when we equip, encourage, and come alongside parents and grandparents to help them hand down confident faith.

Results from Ligonier Ministries and Lifeway Research Show People Do Not Believe the Bible - Use Anchored to Help Children & Families have a Confident Faith

I often refer to the study from Barna which shows Gen Z is turning away from their faith to atheism at double the rate of any previous generation - you will find it at this link and a couple months ago I shared the new Gallup Poll which shows fewer people in the USA now see the Bible as the literal Word of God as only 20% of people believe the Bible is the literal Word of God - you will find it at this link.

Who Benefits & What Does This Mean?

Which of the families in your ministry will benefit from having grandparents who are engaged, equipped, and encouraged to focus on being intentional in the way they pass on a heritage of confident faith? While the answer may seem obvious, this is a serious question with a serious answer, because the truth is each and every family in your ministry will benefit from this, including . . . 

Equip Families to Hand Down a Confident Faith

June 2015 in a town not far from where I live, a tornado hit; four churches in this small  community were seriously damaged. One church was 160 years old. The members of this church were understandably quite dismayed and disheartened to see the significant damage to their church. However; their sadness turned to rejoicing a couple months later when the builders who began the work to rebuild brought them shocking news. As these builders surveyed the damage and began the work, they discovered nothing was holding up the floor of this old church building. The years had taken their toll and unbeknownst to the church members, their church floor was unsupported and about to collapse. The tornado actually saved them.