Effective Children's Ministry

Posts Tagged ‘inspiration’

“If I could relive my life, I would devote my entire ministry
to reaching children for God!”– Dwight L. Moody

 “We believe that children and young people should be
the single greatest priority for Christian work in the coming
decade.”
“If children’s work is neglected you lose the next generation.
– Patrick Johnstone

“Children are the living messages we send to a time we will
not see.” – John Whitehead

We used to call it a Bumper Bundle. But now the monthly round up of Children’s Ministry blogs by Wayne Stocks (aka Dad in the Middle) has gone MEGA!!

The list of blog posts from around the ‘net is comprehensive, varied, fascinating and above all else, thoroughly useful.

As it is divided into categories, you can browse the list for whaat you are interested in. This month’s list includes:

• Featured Article of the Month
• Kids & the Gospel of Christ
• Kids & Culture
• On Teaching & Working With Kids
• General Ministry Issues
• Discipline
• Leaders and Leadership
• Volunteers
• Family Ministry / Orange
• Special Needs
• Kids & The Bible
• Games
• Internet Sites and Resources
• Coloring Pages
• Other Kidmin Resources (Music, Conferences, Etc.)
• Other General Resources (Bible Study, Theology, Etc.)
• Curriculum and Object Lessons
• Parenting and Marriage Issues
• Devotions for Kids and Families
• Just For Fun

So why not go over now to the October 2010 Children’s Ministry Blog Patrol. There’s a wealth of good stuff to browse and bookmark for later use.

Today, Catherine and I spent some time on our allotment garden, planting asparagus crowns. They don’t look like much now – in fact they resembled rather grubby giant spiders with big white eyes!  Yuk! However, since we are looking forward to a succulent harvest in due course, we followed instructions and over two sessions, have got the plants in the ground. On the way home it became clear that God had highlighted some wonderful lessons regarding children’s ministry.

1. Think long-term
The asparagus bed will start giving of its best in two to three years time, and will be productive for twenty years or so. Unlike other vegetables which must be sown every year, the asparagus grows and grows.

We want the children in our care to lead lives that remain fruitful – both in terms of the fruit of the Spirit and also in winning souls. In a previous post we mentioned what our kidmin friend Wanda wrote:

“As we pray, plan, develop and implement ministry for children do we ever stop and ask who we want that child to be when he is an adult? I believe asking this question will make a big difference in how we do ministry to children.”

In her thought-provoking blog post Wanda lists the goals she has for her kids, when they are forty.  Long-term goals are very valuable in shaping our current ministry.

2. Prepare deeply
Since Catherine and I hope it will be productive for twenty years, we prepared the place for the asparagus trench well. This meant deep digging, removing all the long rooted or perennial weeds, moving barrow loads of soil away to elsewhere on the plot and bringing in barrow loads of compost and well-rotted manure. It had to be good ground, ready with all the nourishment needed for strong growth of healthy plants. And all this was before the asparagus  plants were put in place.

Such a deep preparatory work is essential for effective children’s ministry, too.  Of course we should prepare by choosing curriculum, training volunteers, and nearer the time for the lesson, by preparing lesson plans and gathering visuals and other props. But in addition to all that, I mean the d…e…e…p  stuff! And that means in the depths of me, the teacher!

• I need to be broken up by God, bendable to his will, having yielded every area of my life to his Lordship.
• I need to be clean, living “as holy a life as a sinner saved by grace can live”.
• I need to be empowered by the Holy Spirit, or else all my work is simply human effort.
• I need to be totally dependent on God and giving him all the glory.
  Wayne Stocks, guest blogging over at Ministry-to-Children.com has written a penetrating look at how we might prepare ourselves as teachers, by checking our attitudes and motivation. This article is a Must-Read for all children’s ministry workers.

3. Be prepared for someone else to reap the harvest that comes from your hard labour.
I hope that Catherine and I will live for many more years, to enjoy the luxurious seasonal treat of fresh asparagus. But we may not. We are aged 61 and 68 and perhaps in a few years we will no longer be able to work the plot. Who knows?
The chances are that someone else will enjoy the asparagus after we have gone. We did the hard labour and they get the crop!! But we are totally at ease with that, because we are taking the long view.

It’s just the same with children’s ministry. Paul gave us insight into the true picture:

We are only God’s servants through whom you believed the Good News. Each of us did the work the Lord gave us. I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow. The one who plants and the one who waters work together with the same purpose. And both will be rewarded for their own hard work. For we are both God’s workers.
(1 Corinthians 3:5-9 NLT)

In children’s ministry we may do the long-term planning and the week-by-week preparation; we may dig deep into our own pockets to fund the work; we may sacrifice leisure time and work late into the night on occasions – only to find that some other worker or volunteer is the one to bring children to the point of receiving the Saviour.
Or, it could be that we move on to another place or another role, only to learn that the Lord blesses with a harvest that work which we established. How wonderful, then, that God tells us, “both will be rewarded for their own hard work. For we are both God’s workers.”

If you have lived a godly life and ministered to the children under the guidance and anointing of God, then you will have been a link in the chain that drew them to Christ.

Next spring, when the first shoots of the asparagus peep through, I will be reminded of these three vital lessons. Indeed, I hope I never forget them.

Amplify your message with story-telling

We have blogged here before about the value of story-telling. And today I saw a recent post from Steve Fogg on the same topic.

His post tells of a stunning presentation given by his Pastor, which began with the story of a young man sharing his faith with a friend and ended with…

Well, I’ll let you find that out by hopping over to Steve’s post. I know your heart will be stirred.

He writes on the topic 4 Ways To Use Storytelling To Amplify Your Message.

Brandon Maddux, over at ChildrensMinistryLive.com , recently blogged about an experience he had. He saw a young lad get on a bus and engage in meaningful conversation about the Lord with a girl of similar age.

I thought to myself:

Whoever taught that boy in Sunday School did a good job. 

Whichever children’s ministry leaders or volunteers touched his life - they influenced him for good and for God.
They taught him the need of the lost and how to engage them in conversation about God and his love for them.

They taught him to be bold, and no doubt to trust in the Holy Spirit to help him and guide him in his outreach.

What have we taught our kids this week?

>>Read this touching story, and Brandon’s challenging comments, here.