So often people think that Children’s Ministry is just babysitting. They see it as a way to get kids out of “big church” so they won’t disrupt the service. But what really happens during One Life Kids, in the nursery, or any of the other ministries that involve kids?
Well, I believe that Children’s Ministry offers 3 main things to kids and their families: Growth, Community, and Fun. These go way beyond just simply babysitting kids for a half hour or so. I am going to break down these 3 ideas and explain what exactly children’s ministry is here at One Life Church.
Growth
In Children’s Ministry our mission is to help kids grow up to become fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ. We are a piece of the puzzle in setting that solid faith foundation. Along with what parents are teaching their kids at home, the church has a responsibility to help guide kids in their faith.
Along with teaching kids bible stories, we also teach them how to grow in their faith on their own. We encourage scripture memorization, bible skills, and more. We want kids to not only have the head knowledge of the Bible stories but we also want to give them skills that they can use long after they ‘graduate’ from One Life Kids to continue in their faith.
We also hope that kids learn more and more about who Jesus is and how much he loves them. As kids grow physically, we want their faith to grow as well. We want to teach them, in an age-appropriate way, about who God is, how much he loves them, and how the Bible is relevant in their lives today.
Community
In addition to learning and growing in their faith, we want kids to be part of a faith community. We want them to build relationships with both adults and other kids that will encourage them in their faith. Kids need to be surrounded by people who believe in them, want to see them succeed, and care about their eternity.
The world is trying to teach kids things that do not line up with God’s Word. Our kids need to be surrounded by people who will remind them what God says even when the world gets loud. We want kids in our ministries to know that they are loved and prayed for.
One Life Kids is also geared to help kids build friendships. It can help a child-no matter what age they are-to have kids at their school that they see at church. When kids have a solid group of friends that are also being raised in the faith, they have a much higher chance of staying in the church as they grow up.
Fun
Children’s Ministry isn’t just kids sitting quietly listening to a bible story anymore. There is a ton of hands on and interactive pieces to each lesson. There are crafts and games that teach important bible truths. Kids are active and loud during kids ministry times.
Walk into One Life Kids, VBS, or any other kids ministry here at One Life and you will understand what the term “controlled chaos” is. The kids are learning and growing in their faith. They are making friends. They are also having a lot of fun!
We don’t want kids to come to our services and feel like it’s all stuffy and boring. They would never want to come back. If kids are safe, they are learning about who Jesus is, and they are having fun, then I truly believe we are doing our job in kids ministry.
So it isn’t just babysitting?
I can honesty tell you from a planning and teaching standpoint that children’s ministry is far from babysitting. Children’s ministry is teaching kids about Jesus. It’s about kids making friends and building relationships with adults. It’s about having fun. Kids get to be kids as they learn all they can about God, the Bible, and church at a young age.
Direct your children onto the right path,
Proverbs 22:6
and when they are older, they will not leave it.
Kids only get about 52 hours a year, maybe a few more, often much less, in church. We only get a limited amount of time to pour into them. We wouldn’t be following God’s call for our children’s ministry if we allowed it to simply be babysitting.
Interested in knowing more about our Kids Ministry at One Life Church? Check out our Kids Page to find out more about our weekly services, yearly events, and more!