RELEVANT CHILDREN'S MINISTRY

As children's ministry leaders, we are constantly trying to find ways to spark faith conversations between children and their parents during the week.

Some of the current methods are...

• take home papers
• apps
• websites
• social media platforms

But we may be overlooking the most effective way to extend the lesson.

A new U.S. study by Pearson has found that 60% of Gen Z kids prefer YouTube for learning over printed materials.  More specifically, they prefer YouTube over the take home papers we give them.

Here's something else to consider.  Most kids and families are not going to go to another website to engage in conversation.  But they will engage with a website/platform that they already go to daily.

Let's talk about YouTube.  Why should you use YouTube to extend your lessons?  Because that is where Gen Z is.  47% of Gen Z spends 3 plus hours each day on YouTube.  55% say YouTube has contributed to their education and development.  The company is the most popular brand among kids ages 6 to 12.

What if you created a short video (2-3 minutes) each week about the lesson?  It doesn't have to be a major production.  Just grab your phone and shoot it.  Promote the video to the families in your ministry and provide them with a link.  Emphasize that it is on YouTube. You can create a channel if you want to archive the videos from previous lessons.

When it comes to making disciples, God tells us to go to them rather than waiting for them to come to us.  Look at Matthew 28:19-20.


You can live this out by going to where kids and families are...YouTube...and helping them deepen their faith by initiating parent and child conversations that are sparked by your videos.

Our message doesn't change.  The command to go and make disciples doesn't change.  But how we go and make disciples must change to be relevant to the culture that we are ministering in.  If we can grasp this and live it out - maybe we'll stop seeing take home papers on the ground after service is dismissed.  Maybe, just maybe, we can see kids and parents engaging in faith conversations at home as a result of watching a short video that sparks the conversation.

Your turn.  The floor is yours.  Are you using YouTube to extend the lesson into the home?  If so, put the link in the comment section below, so we can check it out. What other ideas do you have to extend the lesson to weekdays?  Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below.

How would you like to have your children's ministry services, videos, announcements, parent connection videos, etc. on television?

I know what you're thinking..."I'd love to, but our ministry doesn't have the budget to purchase air time on television."

I've got some good news for you.  You can afford it even if you have little to no children's ministry budget.  How?

Here's the deal.  There's a new trend that's growing quickly that puts television well within your reach.

With the rise of smart televisions, Roku, Apple TV, video game systems, Google Chromecast, smartphones and a host of other options...kids and families can now watch YouTube on their television.  And guest what?  They are! 

The most recent reports show that people are watching over 100 million hours of YouTube videos every day on their TV sets.  This is a 70% increase over last year!  More and more kids and families are using their televisions to watch YouTube.

Here's what that means.  You now have the ability to put videos on YouTube and then encourage kids and families to watch the content on their television.

What if you grabbed a camera....(a video camera or even something as simple as your smartphone camera)

and then you...

created a short video to recap the lesson from church...put it on YouTube...and then encouraged kids and parents to watch it together during the week on their television set?

or

made a monthly memory verse video that parents could watch with their preschoolers to help them memorize it?

or

filmed a monthly announcement video so parents and their kids could get excited about what's coming?

or

recorded your elementary large group time and encouraged kids to watch it during the week with their parents?

or

created a quarterly family worship experience that kids and parents could do at home together? 

or

made a video with a clue that preschoolers worked with their parents to figure out and then revealed the answer at church the following weekend?

or

created videos for pre-teens about relevant topics such as bullying, self-esteem, peer pressure, etc. and encouraged parents to watch it with their child?

or

created a Gospel presentation that kids could pull up and show their unchurched friends when they are at their house?

______________________?  There are so many possibilities.


A few tips when making videos....

• keep it short (2-3 minutes max)

• keep it simple (you don't need a big budget, a studio set, etc. to do this, it can be as simple as standing in front of  a backdrop)

• keep it strategic (have a clear purpose for each video)

This watching YouTube on television trend opens the door for you to have a significant impact on kids and families during the week in their homes.  If you can get on their television screens, you can extend your ministry's influence in their lives and help them grow in their faith. 

Your turn.  The floor is yours.  Are you doing this yet?  If so, what are you doing?  What other ideas do you have for getting on the television screens of kids and their families through YouTube?  Share your thoughts, ideas and insight in the comment section below.