Fall Ministry

As we return to full-blown Fall ministry, we will no doubt see an influx of new visitors. Visiting a church can be psychologically stressful and emotionally difficult for people who have just made a major move to a new city, or who haven’t been to church in a long while (or ever for that matter). When newcomers enter our churches, the preschool and kids ministry areas are often the two first points of contact. The initial interactions we have with them will create lasting first impressions, good or bad. 

Let’s do everything we can to make our churches places that have eyes to see and welcome new people in a warm environment that connects them in a loving community of faith and shows them Jesus.  

Let’s seek to create in our churches a culture that is oriented towards onboarding the uninitiated.  

This Fall, make your kids and preschool areas places that connect kids and their families to your church so they can all know, love, and live for Jesus.  – Chuck Peters Click To Tweet

This kind of radical welcome doesn’t passively wait for visitors; it actively watches for them. It notices newcomers and speaks value over visitors. It greets them before the door. It guides them through hallways and into friendly meeting spaces. This welcome doesn’t begin when a child is delivered to a classroom, it meets them in the common areas, it greets them at the exterior doors, it permeates our parking lots, and it stretches out to the streets that pass by our buildings.  

Radical hospitality and extravagant welcome are personal. They look people in the eye and call them by name. They connect the disconnected into friendships. They let everyone know they are seen, known, and valued here. They go the extra mile to create a compelling context of biblical belonging that connects the disconnected into friendships and with Jesus. 

This Fall, make your kids and preschool areas places that connect kids and their families to your church so they can all know, love, and live for Jesus.  

Chuck Peters is Director of Lifeway Kids. Before his role at Lifeway, Chuck had a prolific career in television and video production. He is a 3-time Emmy Award Winning producer, director, writer and on-screen talent. A graduate of Columbia Bible College, Chuck, and his wife, Cris, have served in Student and Children’s Ministry for many years.