Family Rhythms— For most, summer is a welcomed break from some of the daily tasks that the school year brings (packing lunches, checking homework, early bedtimes, etc.), but as a person in charge of children at church, rhythms are still something I love. Rhythms can bring predictability, comfort, and order; they are [...]
Our Great God— 2023 Grow Virtual Conference "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…” Proverbs 1:7a I’ve been thinking about this verse a good bit lately. The beginning. The starting place. The foundation of knowledge…is the fear of the Lord. Reverence and humility. Our right response to our covenant [...]
Following When Leading— I stepped into our weekly staff meeting thinking, “I really don’t have the time to be here.” I was feeling the tug of my to-do list. So many things were on my plate. Personally, we had an extra family member living with us, two kids starting a new school, [...]
The Legacy of 3 Pastors Who Encouraged Discipleship of Children— I have loved reading and hearing stories about the impact of three influential men who died recently. I know there are many more faithful pastors who have blessed the children, but losing these three in the same week has encouraged all of [...]
Caring about Child Protection— I remember the very first training I attended that focused on the safety and protection of children. Two churches in our city partnered together to create a weekend training that was done really well. It was encouraging to see the elders and leaders from both churches modeling to [...]
Classroom Management—Who’s in charge around here, anyway?— Besides the children pushing around toy cars and building towers with blocks, three other things are always at play in our classrooms: the effects of sin, the effects of the work of grace, and the hope of supernatural power. When things are going rough, too [...]
Save the Date for LEAD Retreat— At CDM, we love connecting people to people and people to resources. My favorite time to do this is at our annual children’s ministry retreat. One quote that was shared with a children’s ministry team member after this year’s retreat was, “It’s the one place [...]
Creative Ways to Teach the Apostles Creed— The Apostles’ Creed is a great tool to teach children about God, what we know to be true about him and the promises he makes to his people. The structure in which the Creed is written–Father, Son and Holy Spirit–also provides a helpful framework for [...]
Don’t Neglect the Catechizing of Your Covenant Children— Teaching by use of a catechism has fallen on hard times in the church today. I have known conservative evangelical Christians who think learning the catechism is a thing only the Roman Catholic Church does. Even many Presbyterians only contemplate catechism as a series of [...]
Honest Grief and Hopeful Joy— It’s been one week since the tragedy at Covenant School in Nashville. The grief is still fresh, and we all feel deeply for each family impacted. Worship felt a little sweeter yesterday, and Holy Week will have special meaning as we remember the six lives taken too [...]