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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 flings, and summer VBS. The rhythm of your family ministries includes yearly events for your children and parents. So, why not use the same seasonal themes to nurture your volunteers? It’s a natural way to keep your [...]

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 in the development of their children’s faith and to communicate our vision for the next year. There are so many ways to kick-off, blast-off, and jump-start a new ministry year. It doesn’t matter when or where in [...]

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 of our homes already have rhythms whether they are intentional or not, but how do we encourage rhythms of family worship? Family worship time is simply that—worship with your family. And just as no two families are the [...]

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. Those of us who teach children must start here. We must start with our own knowledge of who God is. It is a privilege to share our great God with others! How can they worship a God [...]

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 ministry, I was juggling being full-time, overseeing both the nursery and elementary children’s ministries of our large church, and caring for families and volunteers with big needs on top of that.   As we started the staff meeting [...]

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 Reeder, and Tim Keller. I’m struck by the stories that include the impact on the children in their churches. Stephen Smallman’s communicant’s workbook has been used by over 400 children in my own church. I’ve seen pictures [...]

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 work. After a Friday night and a Saturday morning of learning, I came home feeling the weight of these hard topics. I went straight to my back porch to spend some time reflecting and praying. I remember [...]

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 often we only see the effects of sin and forget the other two. So before using any of the practical tips in this blog, please pray for your children, your helpers, and for yourself to be filled with grace to help us teach, respond, and react according [...]