You Are Not Alone — One year after becoming the children’s director of a very large church in New York City, I sat down with CDM and GCP staff members, Sue Jakes and BA Snider, to talk about children’s ministry. I was young, new in my role, and craving any help I [...]
A Revised Heirs of the Covenant— Revising Heirs of the Covenant was not on my to-do list. I was amazed it was still in print after almost thirty years and never thought about a revision. It was Stephen Estock and Karen Hodge who saw the need and the potential of the book. [...]
First Things, First!— In our first article on Advent, we looked at the reasons why the Church reserves Advent as an important part of the Church calendar. In Advent, we prepare our hearts by remembering Jesus’s first coming, and we look hopefully to His second coming. We are reminded to lay aside [...]
Busy or Beholding?— Busy. The word usually follows a justification regarding an absence, a lack of service, or a dropped responsibility. It is often a bedfellow of self-absorption as well. “I’m sorry that I didn’t put more thought into your birthday, I’ve just been so busy.” “I’m sorry that I forgot to [...]
The Delight of Having Children in Corporate Worship- Have you noticed that there’s no mention of Children’s Church or Sunday school in the Bible? We know people in the early church had children, so where were they when Christians “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship to the breaking of [...]
A Children’s Ministry Perspective on Intergenerational Discipleship- Heirs of the Covenant by Susan Hunt is a 30-year-old book that has been read by many. Recently, Stephen Estock and Karen Hodge have joined Susan in updating this book that will be available at the end of 2025. In this refreshed book, a framework [...]
Practical Ideas for Intergenerational Discipleship— She scooped him up from the pew in front of her and sat him in her lap. Patiently, she walked him through the words of the closing hymn, “O Love That Will Not Let Me Go.” Caroline sits behind our wiggly row of preschoolers when they return [...]
Hope for the Suffering- All of us have experienced moments of stormy trials. These can be difficult, forcing us to consider where the anchor of our faith lies. Some experience moments of suffering, while others experience prolonged seasons of valley trudging. Our faith shaken, our prayers faint whispers of desperation for the [...]
Being Led Before Leading- My husband is the true teacher in our relationship - really gifted in retaining knowledge, delivering truths, and teaching in his job, at church, and at home. As we served as volunteers in our former church, he longed for the leaders of the children’s ministry to be able [...]
Quiet Prayer in the Midst of Children’s Ministry— And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. – Mark 1:35 First Catechism Q. 109 What is prayer? A. Prayer is praising God, giving thanks for all [...]