Have you ever made a last-minute trip to every possible store, looking desperately for sand dollars, gum drops, toothpicks, alum, swim noodles, that one book you needed for the lesson? Have you ever stayed up way too late at night to study your lesson? Have you ever had so many responsibilities on your To-Do list that you just couldn’t figure out … More Children’s Ministry Resources
Oftentimes in children’s ministry, I come across a blog or a magazine articles that laments the fact that people think of children’s ministry as childcare. Well, I am here to tell you that that is exactly what is. Yes, yes, if you are committed to it and doing it right, children’s ministry is all about leading kids to Christ and … More Children’s Ministry Resources
As I write this, it is Thursday morning, and I am coming off of another exhausting night of running games for the Awana program at our church. I should start by saying that doing that is one of the highlights of my week each week despite the fact that it leaves me thoroughly drained and exhausted. As I walked into … More Children’s Ministry Resources
The following is a guest post submitted by Sam Luce. If you have something to share with our readers, just email us. I don’t know if you are like me and you have been totally overwhelmed after going to a conference, doing a site visit at another church or even just reading online some of the stuff people do in … More Children’s Ministry Resources
If you’ve ever paid attention to my email signature line, then you’ll know about 3 John 1:4. It’s a greatly under appreciated Bible verse, especially overlooked when talking about kids ministry. “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” 3 John 1:4 ESV One of my Sunday School teachers surprised me this … More Children’s Ministry Resources
It’s been a few years, but I still remember the first time I read this encouraging poem about children’s ministry. It came in an email to me from a friend. It really spoke to me about the struggles and joys of being a kids pastor. Later I learned that poem was written by Roger Fields of Kidz Blitz ministries. It’s been available on their … More Children’s Ministry Resources
With all the buzz about the new year, I wanted to offer some insights from God’s Word as we look forward to the new year. I hope this will be encouraging for you. Click here to share on Facebook. #1 The Bible will have all the answers (that we really need) The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but … More Children’s Ministry Resources
The weeks after Christmas are some of the toughest in your ministry year. Long winters bring discouragement and dull the passion of even the most devoted. Let me share a few ways I am preparing my heart to make it through discouragement in the ministry this winter. Feel free to comment and add to the list. 1. Focus on the … More Children’s Ministry Resources
I’ll admit that I groaned as we drove to the conference. You know the kind of grumble which smiles on the outside? Yes, that kind. It was way too early for one thing. For another, I had taken the day off of work to come. Days off can be hard to come by. Though I have always been an advocate … More Children’s Ministry Resources
It’s happened to all of us. We spend hours and hours and hours preparing for Sunday morning (at least I hope you do). We study our Bibles, we outline the lesson, we plan the crafts. During the final days, we put on the finishing touches, get the props together, and plan the transitions and “special effects.” We practice our delivery, … More Children’s Ministry Resources
“One of Those Days” Have you ever had one of those days in Kidmin? You know the kind, the day where you can feel yourself losing all semblance of patience. The kind of day where you find yourself praying during your lesson that the Holy Spirit will give you love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control? Today … More Children’s Ministry Resources
At the 2010 Desiring God National Conference, Francis Chan gave a moving talk on humility and loving people. As part of that presentation, he listed seven question that he asks when preparing to teach the Word of God. I think they are the critical questions any children’s minister should also consider as they prepare to teach God’s kids. Those questions … More Children’s Ministry Resources
I was working on reviewing some curriculum the other day for Dad in the Middle, and I needed to come up with some sort of framework for evaluating it. I came up with the following and thought it might be useful for other people. Whether you are writing curriculum reviews or just searching for a curriculum for your children’s ministry, … More Children’s Ministry Resources
At my church, we use Awana for our Wednesday night program. My nine year old son started in Sparks a little over four years ago now, and my seven year old daughter started in Cubbies at the same time when she was three. We have watched them memorize a multitude of verses during that time, and I’ve picked a few … More Children’s Ministry Resources
I realized a couple of weekends ago that I had stopped praying each week before kids’ service. It wasn’t a conscience decision, just something that happened in the hustle and bustle of the weekend. I realized that when I stopped praying that coincided with those weeks that I didn’t feel went very well after they were over. That got me … More Children’s Ministry Resources
I do not work in the preschool ministry at my church. My time and efforts are geared towards kids kindergarten and above. That said, we do have a great team who does handle the nursery and preschool ages. I know that because my kids have been through the program and I have seen the fruits of these efforts. Last night, … More Children’s Ministry Resources
You’ll love these clean church jokes I found in my email. I’m sure they’ve been floating around the Internet for a while, but several were new to me. I’m not always a fan of Christian jokes or church humor, but these made me smile. I’m posting them just in case you need a little laugh this morning. Click here for … More Children’s Ministry Resources
I saw a tweet the other day extolling the virtues of summer volunteers because they bring excitement and enough nervousness to rely on Jesus (thanks @mattguevara). That tweet set me thinking about my own approach to children’s ministry. I constantly talk about the need to be prepared, the need to invest the time, the need to memorize your lesson, and … More Children’s Ministry Resources
With all the content on our website, it can be easy for new readers to miss some great articles. In this post I want to highlight some of our most encouraging writings. Like always, you can print these off to share with others and even publish them in your church newsletter. If you have a blog or church website, you have … More Children’s Ministry Resources
I will preface this post by saying that this is not a post with a whole lot of answers (to be properly read….none). Instead, this post focuses on a series of questions that have been bouncing around my head recently when it comes to teaching kids about God. I recently came across the following quote from Richard Baxter, and I … More Children’s Ministry Resources
It’s been a few months since our last Think Tank discussion. These are occasional forum-type posts where I ask several Children’s Ministry leaders to respond to a difficult question. The responses are always helpful and bring insight from several different directions. For this session of the Think Tank, I posed a question that affects my own ministry. My congregation has … More Children’s Ministry Resources
Have you ever had “that moment?” The moment in kids’ ministry when you’re in front of a group of young children trying to explain the gospel to them, and God gives you words that you know must have come from him because you’re not smart enough to explain it that way? I had that moment this past weekend. In that … More Children’s Ministry Resources
For my husband and I, serving in the local church is a regular part of our lives. We’re integrated, involved, and intentional about our role in the body of Christ. God has impacted us that we might impact the next generation and we love it. However, sometimes we mostly I have a difficult time balancing family and ministry. It’s so … More Children’s Ministry Resources
The other night marked the end of our yearly AWANA program for the summer. We did our awards ceremony and had a cupcake banquet after. I had a great year coordinating games this year and getting to have fun with the kids. As game leader, I had the privilege of leading a couple of hundred Kindergartener through Sixth graders in … More Children’s Ministry Resources