Just the other day my friend shared about her husband’s one and only church experience when he was younger. The pastor pulled him aside and shared that the boy was probably going to hell because he was wearing baggy pants. For many years later, that is what the boy remembered and associated with church. Wow.
Suppose a kid comes to any of your ministries and has zero religious background. What are the most urgent things your ministry needs to help them understand? Sometimes we get caught up in the behaviors and the to-do’s and don’t-do’s. Here are a few basics that kids need to learn first.
1. God is love and He loves them. Before you can share the gospel effectively with any kid, he or she needs to understand this essential idea. An unchurched kid could have any possible view of God, formed largely from tv, movies, or bits and pieces they’ve picked up from other sources. Nothing matters more than that child understanding that the God of the universe loves him.
2. You love them. Before you can share much life-changing truth, you have to earn the right to be heard. All kids need to know that your ministry is a safe place where people genuinely care about them. It is through relationship that we have real opportunities to share the gospel.
3. Sin is real. We do unchurched kids a great disservice when we only tell them half of the story. Kids need to understand that we have a sin problem that we can’t fix on our own. Kids need to learn that our wrong choices are serious because they separate us from God.
4. Jesus. If God sends us unchurched children, and they leave our ministry without at least being initially introduced to who Jesus is, we have failed. Pizza is good. Games are fun. But we miss it if we don’t share with all kids as often as we can that God sent His only son to pay the price for our sin and to make a way for us to go to Heaven.
What do you say? Leave a comment below to add your thoughts to this important question. What do you try to emphasize when children visit your ministry for the first time?
I totally agree! We’ve decidid to not spend as much time on traditional lessons. Our focus is simple, Christ died for you. and his message revolves in two rules. Love one another as you love yourself, for this we need to learn what it is to love ourselves. And secondly, Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind, for this we have to define what ALL means.
Thank you! Thank you for this wisdom and for this wonderful ministry to make my ministry a bit easier :)
I certainly agree, and this does not only apply to children but even adults. Sometimes we are so concerned with “how it will look” and we tend to get down on folks who dont conform to our likeness (dont get me wrong, because right is right and wrong is wrong) but people just want to be accepted. And the thing with children is that they’re impressionable. Spoke to a friend of mine recently, and all he can remember from going to Sunday School is that he was refused a glass of water and he has kept that in his mind for the past 20 years. So, first impression lasts.
I agree and thank for the Love given to chldren
God has burnded my heart to work with children of poverty, circumstance, and those who have not been churched before. The church that I am now working at has commited to a local apartment complex. We spend time on Saturdays with the kids and invite them to come to church with us. I have practiced what is listed above and have seen true life change!
Thank you for posting great things for Children’s Ministry! They always prove to be helpful.
This is such a great idea as well as importans an it good to let kids know that they can play a part in the ministry as well if they become beleivers of christ as well so they know that once they get on board jesus is all way s with them when they become beleiver an theres work for them to do as well and that all man were created equal that they have just as much right as any other kid to be a child of God and brother n sister of jesus christ
Hi,
Thank so much for pointing out these points ! It got awesome insights that can help one to remain focused especially when reaching out to the unchurched kids.
I was just wondering if by any chance you have any free materials that i can use to run a bible study for Teenage boys-grade 6 and 7.
Please advice me,
Stay blessed,
Joseph
Great article! I would like to add that kids need to be taught from a young age that God MADE them. We have to counteract the lie of evolution/Big Bang theory that all the public schooled children will be taught from kindergarten or even preschool. Kids are smart enough to understand that nothing can create itself out of nothing and also that our world is so amazing and complex that it was obviously created by an awesome and loving God!
God is still making the world. Evolution and the Bible don’t contradict each other unless you only read the Bible with a Fundamentalist approach and no sense of context/literary criticism. God made me, but he also made my brain. I don’t need to close my eyes to Science to know God’s love.
Peace,
Margaret
The Theory of Evolution is man’s attempt to disprove there is a God and that we are accountable to Him. Why would we try to make God’s Word line up with man’s blatant attempt to prove His Word wrong? We only make ourselves look like fools to claim to believe half of the revealed Word of God. See creation.com -There are real scientists who believe every Word as plainly written.
By the way, this is a great website!! God Bless and give us His Wisdom.
This is so timely. God has reminded me in my childrens ministry about these fundamental facts. God is good. God bless you for sharing this article with us. Now, im thinking back if i have done all of these and if not, God gives me the chance to do them all asap.
blessings!
I like the list but it might do to be careful with the first because just teaching that God is love would easily lead to a false sense of salvation. You seem to follow up well with # 3 and the reality of sin. However the other two definition statements of john are just as important
Awesome! Thanks! Can I reprint this article (in a booklet form) to pass to my ministry team?
Yes, that’s a great idea.
This is so true! Blessings!
We have a Pastor that needs to read this! As a fairly new Sunday school teacher I am proud to say I have covered all this and am glad that you pointed it out so others can follow it. Thanks !
Very good points. We have to let the children feel GODs love in us and the church especially the visitors. Thank you for the wisdom! God is good! What wonderful revelation!
thank you for writing this. i love how you addressed the need for sensitivity for these children. it is so imperative. whether they come once or continue to come, what they will remember is the love of jesus and the church. thanks again:)
Good points here. Every ministry should include Jesus. Where some children’s ministries go wrong, I think, is pressuring kids to “accept Jesus.” Children need to learn who He is and what He’s done for them, and then let the Holy Spirit prompt them when the time is right.
Great points! We need to show God’s love to visitors. I appreciate the comment “If God sends us unchurched children, and they leave our ministry without at least being initially introduced to who Jesus is, we have failed.” Church should be fun and inviting, but the main focus needs to on learning God is real, we are sinners, and how to apply the Bible to our lives.
Excellent article. I would say these sums up the basics that any child needs to learn. Thank you for calling our attention to what matters most!