Intergenerational Relationships in the Church— This year will be my tenth year getting to serve with my church family in children’s ministry. As more time goes by, I see over and over how I can do nothing without Christ and without my church family. The body of Christ is powerful! Can I be frank with you? I am not creative. I don’t [...]

Seasons of Nurturing Volunteers— Psalm 1:3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.  Seasons are a wonderful guide to our ministry year. You plan events and activities for each season of your church—fall events, Advent focus, winter fun, spring [...]

Welcoming Children and Families into a New Year of Ministry— “Promotion Sunday” “Movin’ on Up” “Upgrade” “Step-Up Sunday” “Open House” Whatever you choose to call it, just do it! This is a time of transition and a milestone in the life of a child, and we should celebrate as a church family. It is also a way to intentionally partner with families [...]

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 defined as “regular recurring sequences of events, actions, or processes.” Most [...]

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 keeping, relational, redeeming God! This is the beginning of knowledge. [...]

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, and an 18-month-old who was still struggling to walk. In [...]

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 us to think about the legacies of Steve Smallman, Harry [...]

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 everyone that this was important work. It was also heavy [...]