Engaged Grandparents = Grandparents Who Value the Children's Ministry

As I talk about Grandparenting Ministry, you may wonder how such a ministry really connects with a Children's Ministry . . . well, yesterday I said; "consider this; if you have grandparents who are engaged and focused on passing on a heritage of faith to their grandchildren, these grandparents will become much more interested in the Children's Ministry. They will want to know what is happening in the Children's Ministry. They will care about what happens in the Children's Ministry. They will become much more focused and committed when it comes to praying for the Children's Ministry!"

I looked at how engaged grandparents can make a difference in the Children's Ministry by being focused prayer warriors. Today I want to look at how they can make a difference by encouraging their grandchildren to participate.

Day Three of the Adventure Bible Quest Game!

We are about half-way through the Adventure Bible Quest Game where you could win a great prize package of Adventure Bibles to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Adventure Bible. Today I'm happy to share with you the clue and verse for Day Three of the quest . . . 

Engaged Grandparents = Committed Prayer Warriors

As I talk about Grandparenting Ministry, you may wonder how such a ministry really connects with a Children's Ministry . . . well, consider this; if you have grandparents who are engaged and focused on passing on a heritage of faith to their grandchildren, these grandparents will become much more interested in the Children's Ministry. They will want to know what is happening in the Children's Ministry. They will care about what happens in the Children's Ministry. They will become much more focused and committed when it comes to praying for the Children's Ministry!

Day Two of the Adventure Bible Quest Game!

Yesterday I announced the Adventure Bible Quest Game where you could win a great prize package of Adventure Bibles to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Adventure Bible. Today I'm happy to share with you the clue and verse for Day Two of the quest . . . 

The Adventure Bible is 25 Years Old! Play the Adventure Bible Quest Game and Win a Prize Pack!

When I opened my email this morning I found an invitation to celebrate the 25th anniversary/birthday of the Adventure Bible . . . and host a fun contest where one of you will be able to win a prize package which includes one of each of the Adventure Bible resources! Sounds like fun, so I'm posting it on both of my blogs - with one winner - here goes . . . 

Some Facts About Grandparents and How They Impact Your Children's Ministry

Clearly, from the things I have been writing about lately - especially in the past week or so - I sincerely believe all churches should focus on engaging, equipping and encouraging grandparents to pass on a heritage of faith to their grandchildren. There are reasons I believe this - some of them are . . . 

Equip Those Grandparents - Science, the Bible & Fun!

We have been looking at resources you could use both in classes/small groups to equip, encourage and engage grandparents to pass on a heritage of faith to their grandchildren and ones which you could give to grandparents for them to read on their own. 

Today I want to share with you a resource you could pass on to the grandparents for them to use at home with their grandchildren to intentionally engage them in discovering Who God is, how to pray the Scriptures and how to know God more, all while enjoying fun science projects, games, crafts and cooking. (And once again, in the interests of full disclosure, I wrote this resource.)

Equip Those Grandparents - Great Lessons & Grand Blessings

I have one more book resource I'm happy to share with you today which you could recommend for grandparents in your ministry and use in classes/small groups for grandparents. This one is a book which looks at grandparents and grandchildren in the Bible, written by Dr. Elmer & Ruth Towns.

Equip Those Grandparents - Deeper In 4 Grandparents & Parents, Too!

As we continue to look at resources which are available for churches to use with grandparents and for grandparents to use on their own, I am delighted to share with you a book which will guide grandparents - and parents, too - in praying every day for the children they love! In the interests of transparency, I wrote this book.

Equip Those Grandparents - Courageous Grandparenting

For the past two days I've shared books with you which you could use to equip the grandparents in your ministry, so they are able to pass on a heritage of faith to their grandchildren. These books could either be read by individual grandparents, or used in a Sunday school class or small group.

Today, I'm very happy to share another book with you which your grandparents could use; courageous grandparenting - unshakable faith in a broken world, by Cavin Harper.

Equip Those Grandparents! Extreme Grandparenting

Yesterday I said; "As you read and think about Grandparenting Ministry, you may think the engaging and encouraging parts make 'sense' and are things you could do, but you may wonder if there are resources you could let grandparents know about to equip them. I'm happy to say, 'yes!' there are! This week I'll be sharing resources with you which you could share with the grandparents in your church!"

Today I'm very happy to share with you another book which you could read and share with the grandparents in your ministry . . . Extreme Grandparenting by Dr. Tim & Darcy Kimmel.

Equip Those Grandparents! - It Is Impossible to Spoil Grandchildren; and Other Important Facts for Grandparents and Parents, Too!

I've been writing about Grandparenting Ministry and how important it is for us to engage, equip and encourage the grandparents in our ministries to pass on a heritage of faith. As you read and think about Grandparenting Ministry, you may think the engaging and encouraging parts make "sense" and are things you could do, but you may wonder if there are resources you could let grandparents know about to equip them. I'm happy to say, "yes!", there are! This week I'll be sharing resources with you which you could share with the grandparents in your church!

The first resource I'm sharing with you is one I wrote . . . a book; It Is Impossible to Spoil Grandchildren; and Other Important Facts for Grandparents and Parents, Too! In this book along with sharing some of my "cute-grandson stories", I talk about important things for grandparents to think about and keep in mind as they focus on passing on a heritage of faith to their grandchildren. I talk about -

Grandparenting Ministry . . . How Do I Start?

I've been writing about Grandparenting Ministry and how equipping, engaging and encouraging grandparents in your ministry to pass on a heritage of faith to their grandchildren. Engaging grandparents is important and will impact the children in our ministries, because even if we have the most amazing Children's Ministry possible, we only actually connect with children, at best, about 208 hours in a year - which is about four hours a week. Since most children do not attend every week, this number is far less for the majority of children.

Grandparents can have a huge impact on the faith of their grandchildren, because they can speak to the children from a place the Children's Ministry can not. And while grandparents do not typically spend day-in-day-out time with their grandchildren; like parents do, they can have a relationship which gives them the opportunity to have great influence in the lives of their grandchildren.

When grandparents are engaged, equipped and encouraged to influence their grandchildren, the impact can be significant. So, this week I want to speak to the equipping portion of this "formula" and will be sharing with you some excellent resources with which you can equip the grandparents in your ministry.

Children Must Know & Walk With God Themselves

I was reading in Judges 2 and read some of the saddest verses in the Bible. It said, "10 After that whole generation had been gathered to their ancestors, another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel. 11 Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord and served the Baals. 12 They forsook the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods of the peoples around them." 

Throughout Judges we read where the people of Israel did evil and forgot God. God sent other nations to test and see if they would obey Him, when the people called out to God for help, He sent a judge to fight those who were oppressing them. The people turned back to God - for awhile, then they did evil, forgot God and this pattern continued.

When I look at the world around me it is clear new generations are doing evil and forgetting God. Why is this? In Judges it said a generation came along who did not know or experience how God saved them from Egypt. They did not have a relationship of their own with God. So, they did what they wanted and forgot God. Isn't this what we see happening around us today?

Our children have heard about our relationship with God, but if they do not know and walk with God themselves, they will at some point, turn to doing what they want and will forget God. This tells me several things . . . 

Who/What Influences Kids and How Does This Change Your Ministry?

I'd like to share another George Barna video with you today - in this one he is talking about seven major influences in our life. Take a moment to watch it . . . 

Can Manners Help Us Be Real in How We Interact With Children, Volunteers and Parents?

Maralee McKee is the Manners Mentor - she speaks and writes about manners on her blog, the Manners Mentor. I recently was browsing and noticed a post about how to be Real and Polite. In it Maralee said, "Etiquette and manners are two different things. They tend to be lumped together. To be understood, they must be separated. Manners are the language of our truest self. Their foundation is anchored in our heart. They can’t be faked. Kind manners are our regard for the feelings and comfort of others. Manners are the hidden fruit our spirit yields. Hopefully it includes a healthy crop of kindness, gentleness, self-control, patience… the list continues. Don’t be fooled; when expressed properly, manners never cause us to become a doormat. Instead, we’re a beacon in an unsteady world." 

Let's Let Our Actions Speak!!!

If you are like me, you grew up hearing from parents, grandparents, teachers, etc. how our actions speak louder than our words. While an old saying, it is true so, today I'd like to consider how just a few actions can communicate our love, so much better than any amount of words. 

Every church has children who have a difficult time "connecting" with other children. What can we do to help these children feel like they genuinely belong? Consider the following -

Let's Pray So Our Children Grow in Jesus and Come to Know and Walk With Him!

I've been posting about doing the most important thing . . . praying for "eyes to be open" in our children's ministry. So . . . today I'm sharing another prayer for the children in your children's ministry - let's pray they will grow in Jesus and come to know and walk with Him!

Do You Really Know?

I've been writing a fair amount about Grandparenting Ministry - not necessarily ministry to grandparents, but rather, ministry which engages, equips and encourages grandparents to pass on a heritage of faith to their grandchildren. You may think this is really not something which is needed in your church, and not something to add to the Children's Ministry "plate", but have you taken the time to talk with the grandparents in your church? Do you really know what they are thinking? Do you see how engaging, equipping and encouraging grandparents can make a difference with the Children's Ministry and multiply it's impact?