I’m a mom of two “littles,” ages four and two, with two more on the way. When my oldest was two, my husband and I decided to begin bringing her into corporate worship. We had been learning more about the benefits of having children in worship early through people in our church and through reading Jason Helopoulos’s Let the Children Worship. We wanted to be aware of her age and teach her that corporate worship was for her, too.

We started with small steps. She would come in for our time of praise, and then we’d take her back to her class. This felt safe. If she made noise, it would be harder for people to hear her, and she’d be less of a distraction. As she got older, we started giving her two options: you can stay with us after we sing, or you can go back to class. Again, we wanted to be conscientious of her age without teaching her she couldn’t stay with us. We never wanted to use sending her back to class as a punishment, so when we needed to take her out to redirect her, she would always come back in with us.

When she was about three and a half, we asked her again, “Would you like to stay with us today, or go back to your class?” This time, she said, “I’d like to stay with you!” I must admit, this wasn’t exactly exciting to me. This time, she’d be in service with us during the sermon. If she made noise, people would hear her. But we couldn’t say, “no.” Now, she has been sitting through all of corporate worship with us since that day. Some days are better than others, and occasionally, we still have to take her out to redirect her. We’ve all learned a lot about why we’re doing this, and the Lord has been kind to show us some fruit of our labor.

When my youngest turned two, she began joining us in corporate worship as well. Right now, she still leaves after the special music, but I’m sure that one day she’ll be there with us for the whole time, too!

While it has certainly been hard, it has been so sweet to have our girls with us as we worship with our covenant family. It has provided ample opportunity for gospel conversation. When one of my girls asks a question about what’s going on or what someone said, it is not a distraction, but an opportunity for discipleship. Instead of simply telling her to be quiet, we quietly answer her question. Not only has this led to more gospel conversations in our home, but we’ve also seen the sweetness of covenant community over and over again as people love us and our children well in corporate worship. Each week, we sit with my parents, and occasionally my grandmother will join us. There are other couples who sit around us and have provided consistent encouragement. I’ll never forget the couple that who turned around during service and said to my four-year-old daughter, “We’re so glad to be worshiping with you today!” Just recently, an elder at our church told me he remembered when my oldest cracked up laughing at a story our pastor told during his sermon. He said, “It just shows that she is listening!” Both conversations were a balm to my soul in the craziness of discipling during worship.

Having our girls in worship is worth it, but it’s not always easy. At least twice, couples have moved to a different pew or asked why my daughter wasn’t in class. Instead of being offended, I was given an opportunity to explain that we value corporate worship and that it is for her, too!

Both of my daughters now look forward to worshiping with us. Many weeks, we miss a few minutes of the sermon to answer questions or take them out for a break. It’s a sacrifice we’re making as their parents, but it’s for their good. Now, it’s a shared family experience we can talk about later in the day or prepare for together on the way to church. Sometimes my duties as Children’s Director mean we have to miss the service. When we do, my girls are always the first to tell me they missed worshiping with us. While I can’t speak to the benefits in the long run, I can speak to the benefits to my soul over the last few years. I’m honestly looking forward to continuing to worship with them as they grow and to adding their new siblings to the mix!