RELEVANT CHILDREN'S MINISTRY

We talk about change all the time.  And we know change is a must if you want to continue to be relevant with kids and families.

Music styles change.  Games change.  Teaching methods change.  Theming decor changes.  Colors we paint the walls with changes.  Technology changes.  Outreach methods change. 

But today, let's take a look at 10 things that will never change in children' ministry.  Things that will remain the same over the years and decades that are ahead of us.

The Gospel.  The Gospel is at the center of everything we do in children's ministry.  Jesus died.  Jesus was buried.  Jesus rose from the dead.  Even though it happened thousands of years ago, the power of the Gospel will never diminish.  As leaders, we must make proclaiming the Gospel our top priority.  And we can do so with the confidence that the power of the unchanging Gospel is still at work today.

Relationships.  Relationships matter now.  Relationships will matter in the future.  Every child needs to be connected to a caring leader who personally knows him or her.  A leaders who invests in the child, challenges him or her and listens to him or her. 

It is through relationships that spiritual growth happens.  It is through relationships that kids are made to feel important.  It is through relationships that kids get connected to a local church.

God's Word.  The B-I-B-L-E.  It is the inspired Word of God now and forever.  It's a love letter sent to children.  It's a manual for spiritual growth.  Though people may try to discredit it, the Bible stands true forever.  Man's unbelief cannot change that. The Word of God will never change.

Volunteers.  You need more volunteers now.  And you will always need more volunteers.  Children's ministry is powered by the strength of volunteers.  Especially if you are a growing ministry.  Effective ministry happens through volunteers.  If you need to know how to grow your volunteer team, then check out my book "The Formula for Building Great Volunteer Teams."  It's available at this link.

Sin.  Everyone has sinned.  Everyone owes a penalty for their sin.  Jesus died for our sins and paid for them on the cross.  That will never change. 

While some may say to stop calling certain behaviors "sin,"  God hasn't changed His mind about what sin is.  We must continue to warn children of the pitfalls of sin.  Even when it is not "politically" correct to do so.

The Fun Factor.  Kids are wired to have fun.  They are wired to laugh, run and play.  And they hear the same question each week when mom or dad picks them up.

"Did you have fun today?"

The need for kids to have fun at church will not change.  Even when you try to hush them for long periods of time. 

And if you stop and think about it - the question "Did You Have Fun Today?" has a deeper meaning.  Parents are seeking to find out if their child was engaged with the lesson?  Did their child learn something new from God's Word that they can apply to their life?  Did they connect with a leader and other kids?

That question will always be asked.  How kids respond is up to you.

Parental involvement.  Parents will always be needed for effective ministry.  Their involvement greatly influences the spiritual growth of their child.  No matter how great the lesson is at church, the impact will be diminished if the child's parents don't talk about it during the week. 

You will always need to encourage parents to be their child's spiritual leader. 

Prayer.  Kids need to pray.  Volunteers need to pray.  Leaders need to pray.  The power of prayer will always be effective.  The "prayer of a righteous man (woman) " is just as powerful as ever.  Teach kids to pray.  Pray FOR the children.  Pray WITH the children.  

God's love.  Nothing can ever change God's love for the children in your ministry.  His love never fails.  Help kids understand just how much God loves them. Help them see His love for them is unending.

Leadership.  Children's ministries are led by leaders.  Volunteers rally to strong leadership.  The success of your ministry rises and falls on the strength of the volunteer team you build.  Your leadership is needed now.  Your leadership will be needed just as much in the future.  Especially if you are reaching kids and their parents which is resulting in growth.

So, there you have it.  10 things that will never change in children's ministry.

Your turn. What are some other things that will never change?  Share your thoughts and insights in the comment section below. 

Last week I spent some time at Cross Church.  Cross Church is located in Northwest Arkansas.

I was the children's pastor there for 7 years back in the early 2000's.

The church now has 4 campuses and ministers to over 8,000 people each week.

The church has always had a heart for the next generation and has invested in creating engaging environments for kids.

Here's a look at some of the amazing spaces they have created for kids at their campuses.

Why do families decide to attend a particular church?  Recent research by George Barna reveals that the majority of parents decide which church they will attend based on the church their children like. 

58% of parents say the children's programming is the biggest reason they choose the church they are attending.

This reaffirms the fact that children are a big influence on where their family attends church.  Kids may be small, but they carry a lot of weight when it comes choosing a church. 

I can't emphasize this enough and I hope you realize what an important role you play in reaching families.  You oversee the biggest growth engine in your church.

Kids definitely have what I call "pester power."  They will pester their parents when they really want something.  Have you ever bought a child a toy that requires batteries and you forget to purchase the batteries? 

It happened to me once...and I learned my lesson.  One Christmas, I bought my son a toy that required batteries and I forgot to purchase the batteries.  He opened the toy and was so excited...until he saw we didn't have batteries.  He asked me to get batteries.  I told him we would, but that it would be tomorrow before we got the batteries since most of the stores were closed on Christmas day. 

30 minutes later, he came and asked me again about the batteries.  I told him it would be tomorrow. 

But he was back again in a few minutes asking about the batteries.  After being asked about 10 times, I said, "Okay, let's go find some batteries."  And we found a store that was open and got the batteries. 

Our goal should be this - make church such an engaging experience for kids that they pester their parents to bring them back. 

There have been times when I heard someone say, "We were going to stay home and watch the service online today, but our kids wouldn't stop asking us to bring them and so here we are."

Remember this...

After the two days he left for Galilee.  (Now Jesus himself had pointed out that a prophet has no honor in his own country.)  When he arrived in Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him. They had seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, for they also had been there. 

Once more he visited Cana in Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine. And there was a
certain royal official whose son lay sick at Capernaum.  When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to death.

“Unless you people see signs and wonders,” Jesus told him, “you will never believe.”

The royal official said, “Sir, come down before my child dies.”

“Go,” Jesus replied, “your son will live.”

The man took Jesus at His word and departed.  While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living.  When he inquired as to the time when his son got better, they said to him, “Yesterday, at one in the afternoon, the fever left him.”  Then the father realized that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” So he and his whole household believed.

Notice what happened.  The man came to Jesus for one reason.  His son was sick and needed healing.  And through that it says, "So he and his entire household believed."

It happened then and it can happen now.  God can use you to bring children and their families to Jesus. 
   
Walk in this calling.  Live out this calling.  Bear fruit from this calling.  Be the catalyst that God uses to see entire families transformed by His grace and love.

10. Know what's happening.  It's obviously important to know what is happening in your area of ministry.  But if you want to provide excellent customer service, you will know what is happening in other ministry areas in the church as well.

This can be accomplished by providing key volunteers with the information they need to be in the know.  Give them a card that contains a list of all the events, programs, classes, etc. that are happening that day / week.  This will enable them to give proper information instead of having to say, "I don't know...that's not my area." 

We know this...people decide on their first visit if they are going to return or not.  If you can provide excellent customer service, it greatly enhances the chance that they will return.

I've been traveling a lot in the last few weeks.  One thing I love to highlight is the children's and family ministry facilities when I visit a church. 

A couple of weeks ago, I was at Battle Creek Church in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area.  The pastor is Alex Himaya.  When Alex arrived, he was met with around 120 people.  The church was meeting in a former shopping mall. 

Under Alex's leadership, the church started growing.  They now ministry to over 6,000 people each weekend with hundreds of those being children and students.  They have done an amazing job with turning the former shopping mall into a church space. 

Here are some pictures from my visit.  Enjoy and may they spark some new creativity and passion for our ministries.