2 Ways To Take Children's Ministry To the Next Level

You may be pondering how to take your Children’s Church to the next level in 2015. I know I am. Sometimes we get so busy with the weekly maintenance of Children’s Ministry that we forget to seek the Holy Spirit about the next level. I know that I get overwhelmed with what’s in front of me and can’t imagine adding anything else to my plate. But what if we dare to dream with God and trust Him to provide the resources we need for the next level? Here are two ideas I had about taking Children’s Church to the next level next year.

1. Cast Vision. You have brilliant ideas. You have dreams about Children’s Ministry that need to be shared. Some dreams seem so far out of reach that it will take an army to complete it. That vision needs to be shared. People want to follow a BIG vision.

Two years ago, I stood up in front of a bunch of parents and shared a BIG vision that seemed impossible. I didn’t even believe it was possible. I wanted to take a small Children’s Church that only met during services on Sunday morning and grow it into a training center for kids to do ministry. I declared “we will have a kids worship band. They will be so anointed that they will be asked to lead adults in worship. They will write worship songs, make musical cds, and be asked to lead worship in many different churches.” When I announced this declaration, we had no kids band. It seemed impossible. Next I declared, “we are going to train our kids to do ministry. They are going to preach with power. They are going to lay hands on the sick and see people healed. People will come to the kids wing to see the amazing things that are happening back there.” Once I shared the vision, something was unlocked in the spirit realm. Parents wanted to be involved in this impossible vision. Today we have not just one, but two kids bands that are writing music, planning to record, and have been invited to lead worship in several different places. We have weekly kid speakers that share testimonies and teach lessons to the other kids. We have kids that serve on ministry teams that pray for the sick, lay hands on the sad, and lead other kids to Jesus. Share BIG visions, folks!

1. See the kids as resources. Kids are more than a crowd to teach. They have been given spiritual gifts and calling from birth that are irrevocable (Romans 11:29). It is important to work with parents to identify the spiritual gifs and callings of each kid. After you see the value of what each kid brings to the table, the next goal is to plug them into ministry using their natural and spiritual giftings as a guide.

For example, if a kid is having a hard time sitting still and listening to a lesson but instead wants to draw attention to themselves and make people laugh, they may be gifted to speak to a crowd. They obviously aren’t afraid to have the attention, so give them the attention. Ask that child to prepare a lesson/sermon for next week. Encourage their parent to help them prepare. Call them in the middle of the week to give encouragement and tips to succeed. On Sunday, let them loose and give them the floor to share their lesson. If you give children the opportunity to lead and serve, they will enjoy Children’s Church so much more.