Children’s Ministry Leadership

Raise your hand if you’ve ever received an angry complaint via email or text message. Now, think about that incident and imagine what the “conversation” may have sounded like if it had happened over the phone. What about in person? The fact of the matter is that when dealing with conflict or complaints a good rule of thumb is to deal with them in person, face-to-face. Here are some guidelines that I’ve learned (mostly by mistake) through

Sunday School is an essential part of many churches’ Christian education programs, providing opportunities for spiritual growth and community building. However, there are varying opinions on the best way to organize and teach Sunday School. In this blog post, we’ll explore the pros and cons of Sunday School by examining age-graded and intergenerational approaches, and the impact of class sizes, mentorship, and curriculum on the effectiveness of these programs. The Benefits of Sunday School Spiritual Growth and

OK If you have ever shopped for a car or a home (or hey, even a new jacket), more likely than not you have come up with a list of properties to look for. Safety, cost value, reliability, comfort, appearance…these might all be factors. Decisions or characterizations, whether with regards to big or small items, usually involve identifying and weighing various elements. Unfortunately, sometimes we tend to carry that attitude over to relationships. Whether with peers or pupils,

All of us who work with kids want the best for the kids in our care. They’re our babies and we love them. None of us would intentionally put a child at risk. We carefully staff the classrooms. We buy the latest Christian books. We paint the walls exciting colors. We plan our programs down to the smallest detail….building the city of Jericho with play dough, finger painting the crossing of the Red Sea, and making fun

Does the idea of hosting a team meeting with your volunteers make you less than enthusiastic? Do your team meetings have a history of being nonproductive? Even if you have never been to a John Maxwell Leadership Training Course you can hold a successful team meeting — one that will produce results for months to come. Today I’m sharing with you the loose framework I use when planning volunteer or team meetings. First it is important to

When a teacher quits or loses his or her position, it is difficult not just for the ministry but for the children in the class. If you happen to be an interim or the next teacher for the class or children’s church you may find it difficult talking to kids about what happened. How do you explain to children when a teacher quits? It is true that children are resilient and wonderfully forgiving however they do tend

We teach it and say it all the time…so much so that it can become only a trite closing to our daily prayer rituals. “In Jesus’s name…” “For thine is the kingdom and the glory forever and ever…” However we precede it, the word “Amen” is an important component of our blessings and communication with God. But what does it mean? Is it important, and how can we express that to our youngsters? The lexical definition of

Pastoral changes are hard on everyone, especially the kids. Imagine how you would feel if you were seven and the only pastor you have ever known decided to leave the church. Whether the parting of ways is truly a God thing or something else, it can diminish a child’s concept of stability–and quiet possibly even his or her ideas about God. I know that sounds extreme but never underestimate the mind of a child! Fortunately, the kids