Jana Magruder

October 26, 2020

How to Help Our Kids Adapt to Change Amidst Pandemic-Living

Here we are in October, the reality of month eight of the Covid-19 pandemic settling in and clearly staying a while. As parents or ministry leaders, we are shifting gears into a new season as school is in session, we will surely have to shepherd the children amongst us through new things – different things and sometimes, difficult things. There are many contexts we find ourselves in this fall season. Some of us parents are working indefinitely at home alongside our kids who are now doing school at home. Or, some of us may be watching our kids get on the bus with new school supplies that include jumbo hand sanitizer tubs for their classroom (which they may not get to leave for lunch or recess). We know that after-school sports and clubs have either been cancelled or constrained to new regulations, that schools may at any time be cancelled due to outbreaks and that the possibility of virtual school may soon be a reality for everyone – not just those of us in the big cities. These changes in normal rhythms are hard on us – and they can be hard on the kids in our lives. We are living through a pandemic and the changes and fallout because of this reality are endless. As the grown-ups, however, we can help the youngest of these adapt to change and maybe even learn some major life lessons for their good in the meantime. Afterall, we serve a good God and when we place our trust in him, we can teach our kids that he is in control and will be our helper. Through that lens, here are a few things that can help our kids adapt to change while living through a pandemic:

Create Routines with Flexibility: Children (and adults) thrive on routine because they bring a sense of safety and security. While it may be impossible to keep set routines like we’ve had in the past, we can still have expected rhythms to set in motion. For example, mealtimes might be all over the map if kids are on different school schedules – but you can still have a touch point with them at breakfast, lunch (if they are home) and dinner. You can still provide their expected, favorite foods – even fun surprises with a treat here and there. Wake-up and bedtime routines should be as constant as possible, regardless of school and work scenarios. For example, if kids are schooling at home, they should still have a set bedtime routine. Even if they think they don’t like it, ultimately it will help their sleep and any anxiety that can creep in during unknown seasons like the one we are all in.
Look for Growth Opportunities: Our kids are no longer living the same old status quo lives they are used to living. While it may be uncomfortable for them to be flexible about things they love, say getting to sit with their friends at lunch, it can also be an opportunity to stretch them and help them grow in various ways. Encourage them to take risks where appropriate, such as learning to be kind to the kids around them that may not be their usual running buds. For virtual learners, embrace the fact that while they are in front of screens more, they are indeed learning to navigate digital platforms, upload assignments, and manage their time – much like the workplace environment today. Let’s not miss these rare chances to help them try new things, take some chances, and work outside their comfort zone. It’s been said many times that kids are resilient – and they are; so, provide opportunities for growth as you see them.
Pursue Spiritual Development: As we watch our children go back out into the world in spite of the Covid-19 virus, we as adults wrestle with our own anxiety and insecurities. In many ways, we are more anxious and nervous than they are. Experts are pleading with us to not express or process our anxiety in front of our kids because they are looking to us for safety. They take our cues from watching us so if we are pacing the floor with worry about catching the virus or stressed out at the thought of working from home while kids are schooling from home, you can bet our kids will be anxious and stressed as well. Even worse, they may think that our disappointment in the situations we find ourselves in, is an expression of disappointment in them. We do not want to send these signals. Instead, let’s pursue our own spiritual health and work out our fears and anxieties with the Lord through His Word and a strong prayer life. Let’s lay our very valid concerns before him and truly model to our kids how to live life with peace and joy knowing that God is in control and that he never leaves us. Child therapist, Sissy Goff says, “kids need a safe and non-anxious adult in their life in order for them to not be anxious.” Therefore, we must pursue our own spiritual health so that we can use this time to help our kids look to God for their own peace and contentment. Truly, a wonderful life-long lesson could come out of this season if we model what it means to look to the Father for everything we need.

All in all, our prayer should be that this pandemic would not be wasted by holding our breath until it is over, that we wouldn’t put our head in the sand or worse, articulate our fear and worry in front of our children. Our prayer should be that this would be a teachable time in spite of significant changes in our lives. Even our little ones will know that they can count on us when we have resolved to place our hope in Jesus and completely depend on him for all of our needs.

The Lord is my shepherd; I have what I need. Psalm 23:1 CSB

Jana Magruder serves as the Director of LifeWay Kids. She is a Baylor graduate and offers a wealth of experience and passion for kids ministry, education, and publishing. She is the author of Kids Ministry that Nourishes and Life Verse Creative Journal, which she co-authored with her teenage daughter. She and her husband, Michael, along with their three children reside in Nashville.

Family, Family Ministry

September 14, 2020

Reaching Families at Home

By Jana Magruder

If you are in kids ministry, you know that one of the most critical pieces of your role is connecting the Church with the Home. Many times, we think of the Church first, meaning how we engage kids when they are with us for small groups or Sunday school, VBS, etc. and then thinking that the purpose is to link what you are teaching kids at church to the home. Your strategy in doing this may be to connect with parents about which Bible stories kids are learning and how they can continue the learning at home. All of that is completely fine and good—until a pandemic hits! Suddenly, the whole model most of us have established is completely flipped. So now, we think of home first. Even if kids are starting to come back to church, we know that this next year is going to be uncertain, and we want families to be discipling at home, because this has really been our goal all along. We know the “why” behind family ministry is to equip parents to be the primary discipler of their children because it is a biblical command in Deuteronomy 6. Most of us have been banging this drum for a long time, and now is our time to truly call the families we serve to action whether at church or at home. And right now, especially at home. How do we do this? Here are 3 guiding principles for you to implement in your ministry right now:

Make it easy and accessible. We know parents are busy and even overwhelmed right now. Many of them are working full-time on top of monitoring kids learning at home. So, if we want them to disciple their children at home, we need to make it as easy as possible. One idea for this is to send them one link per week. What’s in that link is up to you! It might include Bible story videos with follow-up questions, family activities, or a prayer prompt. Whatever you choose to send them, consolidate your resources to one link and either email it to them or use a social media platform for them to access it.
Give them God’s Word! Research tells us that the number one thing that affects spiritual growth in both kids and adults is reading the Bible. Let’s challenge families to gather together and read Scripture. Now more than ever, we need the comfort, wisdom, and truth about the authority of God over our lives. An idea for how to do this is to ask families to commit to reading a book of the Bible together over the course of a month while choosing one verse to memorize. It would help if you went ahead and chose that book and verse for them—maybe even sending them a daily reading plan in that one link from point 1. Have fun with it! You can even create a calendar and fun social media posts reminding the parents you serve to read the Bible with their kids.
Connect back to the gospel! We want our families to talk about the gospel together—often! So we need to equip them to be comfortable with having gospel conversations throughout the week. Everyday situations usually have a connecting point to Jesus. The idea here is to use a simple format to help parents explain the gospel to their children. This could be done in the format of a video of you modeling a gospel presentation or a printable PDF explaining the gospel in age-appropriate ways.

The best way to reach families at home is to make it easy, give them God’s Word, and connect back to the gospel. If you need more tangible ideas for how to do some of the things suggested, check out our At Home resources that come with any of our curriculum resources including The Gospel Project for Kids, Bible Studies for Life: Kids, or Explore the Bible: Kids. Each of these have specific, one-link resources for you to send your families to engage their kids with the Bible and ultimately point to Jesus. Let’s face it, He is where our hope comes from, and the families you serve need the hope of Christ now more than ever.

Parent Helps, Parenting

April 8, 2020

Tips for Working and Schooling (and all the things) at Home

By Jana Magruder

First of all, I want to acknowledge that it truly is a perk, if not luxury to be able to work from home, and therefore, be home to help educate my kids during this time. While many of us have complained about trying to do “all the things” at home, I believe we should take the posture of gratitude since there are many moms and dads who have to report for work outside the home and therefore make other arrangements for their children who are out of school. That said, for those of us wearing multiple hats at the same time—here are some tips for this season:

Have a schedule, but hold it with loose hands: Structure can help kids stay on track with expectations for the day. For example, waking up at the same time each day has helped our family. This means, if you have a child who would like to sleep later than the time identified, go ahead and get them up! Likewise, stick to the same bedtime. Once those two things are established, you can look at other times in the day as blocks of time that serve a purpose, such as: schooling, working, cleaning, playing, cooking, etc. Within those blocks can be a lot of flexibility. Sometimes the schooling block might be reading outside, while other days might be doing assignments from teachers. You might skip the cleaning block one day to extend learning time and vice versa. The point is, keep a schedule, but keep it open enough to accommodate the needs each day presents.
Get “school” started with each child, each morning: Depending on the ages of your children, they will need you or your spouse to help them get started on learning time each day. Hopefully this leads to a block of time where they stay on task and you, parent, can do some work. Trading off in this role is super helpful if both parents are at home. My husband and I tag team “conferences” with each child every morning to go through emails and assignments from teachers, make a plan, and answer questions. In the evenings, each child reports back with what they accomplished. Having checkpoints throughout the day is also helpful to see if they are staying on track. For younger children, this is more challenging as they need to stay busy and need to be monitored at the same time (which makes those Zoom calls pretty interesting!) Plan multiple stations throughout the house that have things for them to do—much like a preschool classroom. Puzzles at the coffee table, art project at the kitchen table, legos or blocks on the floor, and a fort set up in their room with extra toys!
Keep technology use to a minimum: This one is hard for any age because when parents really need to crank out a deadline without distraction, the temptation is to put on a movie, or pull out the Ipad. While there is a time and place for this, try not to double-down on it during this time. I’m speaking to the choir on this one since my boys LOVE to play video games—and sometimes it’s just easier to say yes to an extra 30 minutes (or hour or more)!! The heart behind this is to not beat yourself up if you do have to use technology for an activity, but have other things planned for learning and playing to find a great “balance”.
Keep the weekends! As all the days run together, it might feel like the weekends disappear. I encourage you to mark the weekends with Sabbath rest as much as possible—meaning no working and no schooling; sleep in a bit, watch a movie together, play outside if possible, do something fun! Certainly on Sundays, watch a church service together and participate in any church activities offered through streaming apps or downloads for family devotionals. Above all else, worship together during this time. Your family needs to read the Bible together, pray together, sing together—now more than ever.
Give yourself grace: The energy we had when the Covid-19 crisis began is more than likely waning at your house—as it is indeed at ours. There are some days that go better than others—and that is ok. We need to all realize that while we may have to live this way for a while, it was never intended to be sustainable long term. If you need a day to “not do school”, take that day—or week. If you need to take a day off from work, you can hopefully do that too. If your child cries during your online meeting, excuse yourself and go care for your child. Your co-workers will understand. We all have our stuff we are dealing with and grace abounds all around us. If nothing else, grace abounds.

Indeed, we have all received grace upon grace from his fullness. John 1:16a

Crafts, Easter, Fun

April 4, 2020

Easter Recipe: Resurrection Rolls

By Jana Magruder

My kids love to cook and bake with me. Each year we look forward to baking Resurrection Rolls for Easter! It’s a creative way to tell the story of Jesus’s burial and resurrection. Here’s the recipe and the story to tell while assembling the rolls. Enjoy and have fun celebrating the truth that our Savior is risen!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2 cans of crescent rolls
16 large marshmallows
½ C melted butter
¼ C granulated sugar
2 TBSP cinnamon

The story (Note: you may want to modify for younger children)

Jesus is God’s son who was sent to earth to pay the price for our sin. He never sinned. The white of this marshmallow represents the purity and sin-free nature of Christ.

After Jesus died his body was prepared for burial. After he was buried, his friends prepared him to be buried with oil and spices. Dip the marshmallow in butter, then in sugar and cinnamon.

Jesus was wrapped in linen and placed in a tomb with a large rock rolled in front. Wrap the marshmallow in one triangle of dough covering it completely like a ball (rock).

Complete the process for all 16 triangles and marshmallows.

Place in the oven for 10-12 minutes.

Allow rolls to cool. Say after 3 days, his friends went to visit the tomb but the rock was rolled away and two angels said, “why are you looking for the living among the dead?”

Reveal that when you cut open a roll or take a bite that the marshmallow has disappeared, leaving an empty “tomb.”

Remind children that the rolls are sweet just like the love God has for us.

Follow-up by reading the Easter story together from the Bible so that children know that it is true and that Jesus died for them and wants to be their savior. Pray with children, thanking God for the gift of Jesus.

Encouragement, Family, Kids Ministry, Parent Helps

March 25, 2020

How to Have a Family Worship Experience at Home

By Jana Magruder

Many churches are pushing pause on gathering their congregants for weekly worship services during this season of coronavirus risk, including children’s ministry classes and groups. While many of us might be tempted to enjoy a break from church, that’s the last thing we really need. At times like this, we desperately need God’s Word to reassure us that He is in control; we need to sing songs that remind us of His power; we need worship.

The Bible teaches us to “watch out for one another to provoke love and good works, not neglecting to gather together (emphasis mine), as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:24-25, CSB) We know, as Christ followers, that we are called to gather together as the Church—the bride of Christ Himself. However, as we retreat to the safety of our houses under city ordinances and precaution, we should look around and recognize that the very people we live with in our homes are part of that same calling—our family. We should continue (or start) to gather together to worship as a family.

Whether you are a parent, a grandparent, aunt or uncle, or friendly neighbor, you can still gather together for a worship experience. This may sound intimidating to you, like something you are not equipped for, but it doesn’t have to be difficult. In fact now is the perfect time to start doing a family worship time, and to keep doing long after coronavirus leaves us.

If you read the portion of Deuteronomy 6 sometimes referred to as the Shema, it’s easy to see that family discipleship is a scriptural command: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up (emphasis mine).”(Deuteronomy 6:5-7, CSB) So, let’s face it. Many of us will be “sitting in our houses”—with our kids or other family members—for longer periods of time than we are currently used to, as some schools may close and workplaces may go to a temporary remote work model. Chances are, your family might be experiencing some anxiety in this unprecedented situation. Use this extra time wisely and talk about God’s Word—the ultimate soother of our souls and healer of our hearts!

Try this to get you started: read, pray, sing—repeat! In his little book, Family Worship, Donald S. Whitney gives a simple formula for how to have a family worship time. Most of us are capable of doing this. Just gather your crew, open your Bibles, read a chapter or two aloud, say a prayer, and sing a song!

Read: You might choose to go through one of the Gospels together, or read a Psalm and a chapter from Proverbs. The ages of your children might dictate the content you choose. If you have younger children, consider grabbing one of their Bible storybooks and selecting a Bible story to read aloud while showing pictures. Older children and teens can help read aloud portions of Scripture. Everyone can add to the discussion by asking questions and offering comments. And guess what? If you don’t know the answer, that’s ok. Acknowledge the great question and offer to do some research and report back next time. Of course kids and teenagers are really good at asking questions that we would all like to know, but simply won’t have the answer this side of Heaven. It’s okay if that’s your answer too.

Pray: End your Bible reading and discussion time in prayer. You can ask your family what they would like to pray for. Are they worried and fearful about the coronavirus? Are people you know in your community actually sick with COVID-19 and need prayer? Is anyone in your family lonely and feeling isolated from friends and classmates? Is there too much sibling conflict from being cooped up? Offer prayers of hope and encouragement, repentance, and intercession.

Sing: Close your family worship time by singing a song or two. Singing together might feel strange if you’ve never done so before. You might start by playing a worship song your family is familiar with from church worship or the radio. Ask everyone to sing along. Or, sing simple hymns that everyone knows—no accompaniment necessary.

Now, repeat the routine. It will get more comfortable each time. Try gathering weekly and work up to bi-weekly or even daily. This habit could change your family forever.

It may be inevitable that your church cannot gather for one or more weeks, but that does not mean you shouldn’t gather as a family and experience the one true God together through His Word, through prayer, and through song. As an extension to your family worship time, my team at LifeWay Kids has put together a family worship experience for you, which includes a Bible story video and life application videos, as well as a discussion guide and activity sheet to download. Simply follow the steps below.

Step 1: Go to digitalpass.lifeway.com.

Step 2: Register if you are a new user or log in if you already have an account.

Step 3: Look for LifeWay Kids at Home and LifeWay Preschool at Home in the “Watch Now” section

This article originally appeared on Christianity Today.

Kids Ministry, Kids Ministry Curriculum, Uncategorized

October 2, 2019

Do Parents Know Your Plan for Discipleship? {GIVEAWAY}

By Jana Magruder

Chances are, you have an incredible plan to disciple the kids in your ministry. If not, let me encourage you to find one and implement it to ensure that children of all ages are learning the Bible in a way that makes sense for their age group. Haphazard discipleship and cherry-picking favorite Bible stories to teach randomly doesn’t really work. Need a plan? Check out Lifeway.com/LOBL to learn more about one of our favorite discipleship frameworks—the Levels of Biblical Learning.

However, once you have a plan, it’s important not to stop there—share this plan with the parents in your ministry. They need to partner with you by discipling their children at home. Make it easy on them by giving them the same framework that you implement at church. Together, the church and home can partner for more effective spiritual growth in kids!

One of the best ways you can do this is by posting this plan in a format where parents and teachers can clearly see what you have planned for each age group. This is why we produce the Levels of Biblical Learning in multiple formats—including free on the website and app, booklet form for individual use, and poster form for classroom and common space use (or even your office!).

I’d like to give away a package of posters to three winners on the blog today. They come in a package of 12, so you can plaster your walls for parents to see your plan! To enter the giveaway, simply complete the form here and three winners will be randomly selected.

Here’s to great discipleship at church—and home!

Kids Ministry, Kids Ministry Curriculum, Uncategorized

August 7, 2019

Feeling behind about promotion Sunday? Here’s a “Quick Start”! {GIVEAWAY}

By Jana Magruder

For many churches, the annual race to promotion Sunday is here! But, you might find yourself still reeling from summer programming like camp and VBS only to realize that promotion Sunday lingers around the corner. If that’s you, I’d like to help you out because let’s face it, ready or not—it’s coming, it’s here. And, can we all acknowledge that we’ve all been there? I certainly have—feeling behind and caught off guard as the seasons change right before your eyes. It’s past time to have chosen a curriculum—especially if you are trying something new. Or is it?

Today, I’d like to offer a lifeline to those who might need it. Bible Studies for Life: Kids is a trusted and comprehensive curriculum for Sunday School or Bible study and small group environments. It is used by tens of thousands of churches across the globe because it is based on age-appropriate teaching and sound doctrine and is full of numerous teaching tools including a teaching pack that has visuals, books, and games to accompany the content in the leader guides and activity pages and cards. Because of this incredible mix of tools, our team likes to make it easy for our churches to use by packaging it all in one Quick-Start Kit. One box per age level that includes everything you need to teach for a whole quarter—yes, that’s 13 weeks.

So, if you have found yourself in a promotion Sunday predicament, we are giving away a Quick Start Kit to help you out! In a nutshell, this kit will have all of the fall season covered. Simply complete the form here and we will randomly select and contact the winners.

Want to know more about Bible Studies for Life: Kids and Preschool? Visit us at teachkids.lifeway.com to view and instant preview of one session, study plans, and more for each of our kids ongoing curriculum options.

ETCH Family Ministry Conference

July 31, 2019

Nashville is calling! (ETCH Conference 2019)

By Jana Magruder

As summer draws to a close, our team at LifeWay Kids begins the countdown to our favorite time of the year—the ETCH Family Ministry Conference! For us, October 7-9 will feel like a family reunion of colleagues in the field of family ministry coming to our house in Nashville. We live here, but it’s so fun to share this amazing city with you each year. So, rest assured—we are tidying up, planning our “recipes,” making shopping lists, and preparing to roll out the red carpet for our friends and family. For those of you who have been to ETCH before, you know that hospitality is a big deal to us. We love throwing our doors (and arms) open to you.

All of that said, I cannot begin to describe my excitement about this year’s ETCH Conference! Here are a few reasons why:

Some of our favorite communicators will be here to lead us in learning and growing in our faith, in our ministry and in our calling. Collectively in the main sessions, we will gather to hear Louie Giglio, Christine Cain, Trevin Wax, Kevin Jones, Ben Trueblood, Josh Straub, Diane Dokko Kim, Jonathan Pitts and his daughter Alena ~ and the list goes on! We also have the honor of welcoming Andrew Peterson to share some of his powerful songs (have you sang ‘Is He Worthy?’ at your church yet?—yep, that’s his song!)
The age and topic specific breakouts are better than ever and will equip you to go deeper in your specific ministry. These include, family ministry, kids ministry, student ministry, preschool ministry, special needs ministry, leadership, cultural topics and more. You will leave with over six hours of content that you customize for your own professional development plan.
The first ever Family Ministry Summit during our pre-conference session. Join us on Monday afternoon before the conference begins to watch and participate in this incredible panel of family ministry thought leaders including: Ron Hunter, Sam Luce, Steve Ackley, and more! The panel will be followed by incredible age-specific intensives for you to tailor to your team.
Last, but not least—oh the fun we will have! Please, by all means, come to the conference for incredible growth and development, but make room for the delight of meeting new friends, nourishing your soul, and experiencing the heart of Nashville at the incredible Music City Center.

Friends, Nashville IS calling and October 7-9 will be here before you know it. Mark your calendars, book your travel, and get ready for ETCH! We will be ready for YOU!

To register and learn more about ETCH, go to etchconference.com

Jana Magruder serves as the Director of LifeWay Kids. She is a Baylor graduate and offers a wealth of experience and passion for kids ministry, education, and publishing. She is the author of Nothing Less: Engaging Kids in a Lifetime of Faith, Kids Ministry that Nourishes: Three Essential Nutrients of a Healthy Kids Ministry, and Life Verse Creative Journal, which she co-authored with her teenage daughter. She and her husband, Michael, along with their three children reside in Nashville.

Kids Bible Study, Kids Ministry, Leadership

July 10, 2019

A wise plan of discipleship requires a PLAN! (GIVEAWAY)

By Jana Magruder

Prioritizing ministry goals and decisions is of utmost importance – especially in Kids Ministry. There are hundreds of decisions to make almost on a daily basis. Everything from programming Wednesday nights (or not), to which craft supplies are needed this month! Big decisions, medium and small decisions, optional decisions and mandatory decisions. In children’s ministry, I like to refer to these decisions as open and closed-hands decisions. Many if not most of the daily decisions we make are open-handed – meaning, there is not just one answer. You have choices (and sometimes that makes it harder!) These could include: how to set up classrooms, do we separate girls and boys in small groups?, which songs to sing in large group, should we do a mission project this year?, and so forth.

However, there are decisions we make that are bigger and more consequential. I put these in a different category – the closed-handed decisions. They are non-negotiable. One of these in the KidMin world is that you MUST have a wise plan of discipleship in place for your children. Cherry-picking content for Sunday mornings based on personal preferences could be detrimental to the spiritual health of the flock you are shepherding. I challenge you as a colleague in ministry to have a plan that helps keep you and your leaders on track in a way that acknowledges what children learn and when. This is beyond a study plan or a curriculum. This is a framework that guides and ensures that by the time kids leave your ministry and head to the Student ministry, they are ready.

In order to stay on track with a wise plan of discipleship, you need just that – a PLAN! Preschoolers, kids, preteens (all the way until adulthood) need to understand biblical concepts that help them engage and grow in God’s word. A plan that our team developed and freely give away in multiple formats is called The Levels of Biblical Learning. This framework centers around eight different age groups beginning with babies all the way through high school – yes, you can get your student minister on board with these! Each age group teaches children and teens ten biblical concepts in a way that makes sense for their developmental abilities. It’s a helpful tool to train volunteers and equip families. You can learn more about The Levels of Biblical Learning and even download free copies and train your team using our free videos by going to lifeway.com/lobl

I’d like to give away a package of 10 Levels of Biblical Learning, Growing In God’s Word booklets. Simply complete the form below to be a candidate. Look for more GIVEAWAYS each month.

Levels of Biblical Learning Booklet Giveaway (GIVEAWAY CLOSED 7/24/19)

Bible Skills, Discipleship, Kids Ministry

May 22, 2019

Not On Our Watch

By Jana Magruder

Recently, a colleague in children’s ministry reached out to me after she read Nothing Less: Engaging Kids in a Lifetime of Faith. She was encouraged to see that the book touches on themes she had implemented in her church in Texas. I invited Erin Woodfin to share her story with you.

I began reading the book of Judges in my quiet time and kept coming across the fact that it only took a generation for the Israelites to forget about the glorious deeds of the Lord. Judges 2:10 says, “And there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel.” This verse spoke to me and I began to think about my own child and the children who come to our church. I began to realize that the reason a generation arose who did not know the Lord was because the parents and teachers had failed to do what God had called them to do. They did not carry out the verse in Psalm 78:4. They did not tell to the coming generation the things the Lord had done. I began to be convicted and committed that this would not happen on our watch. So the phrase “NOT ON OUR WATCH” kept playing over and over in my head. “NOT ON OUR WATCH” will a generation arise that does not know the glorious deeds of the Lord. Together we will raise up a generation who knows the Lord and the glorious things he has done. I never want families to forget, I never want children to forget the glorious deeds of the Lord. Practically for our church, we did this in three ways:

Volunteer Vision

When we launched the NOT ON OUR WATCH vision to our Kids Ministry Volunteers, we went all out. We got shirts, cups, bracelets, you name it we had it. I wanted my volunteers to know that this was something I wanted them to push hard. I wanted them to know the time they spent with children was not just glorified babysitting but that it was Kingdom work. I used Psalm 78:4 in almost every conversation I had with a volunteer and wanted them to have that verse memorized by the time the year was over. I saw so much excitement in the lives of my volunteers because, for the first time, they felt as though their position mattered and was playing a huge roll in the spiritual development of children. If I wanted the “NOT ON OUR WATCH” vision to take off, I knew my volunteers were going to have to sell it for me.

Volunteer Training

Training of volunteers is the largest part of what we do in Children’s Ministry. A well-trained volunteer is the lifeblood of your ministry. The year we ran with the “NOT ON OUR WATCH” vision, I had several other children’s leaders who I trusted come in and help me with training. Sometimes we as children’s ministers say the same thing over and over again, but bringing in someone with the same passions can excite the volunteers in your ministry.

One of the other things we incorporated that year was a time for me to meet with all my volunteers. While my small group leaders were with the children, I would meet with my ministry team leaders. In these meetings, we would pray together, take care of any housekeeping matters, dream together, and talk about ways we could improve things. This was also a time I would use to train and encourage my volunteers. I would also let them tell me things that were working for them or things that were frustrating. It allowed me time to be able to minister to my precious volunteers. A well trained and loved on volunteer will take your ministry to a whole new level.

Parent Involvement

When we launched the “NOT ON OUR WATCH” vision I knew I would need better parent involvement. Parent involvement is always something that is challenging for ministers. However, I believe there are changes that can be made to increase parent involvement in your ministry. Curriculum choice is one of the main ways to get parents involved. Choosing a curriculum that has multiple ways of getting parents involved is the way to go. We use the Gospel Project, which has several ways of connecting with parents. They have take-home sheets, information for weekly emails, and even an app to make things even easier for parents on-the-go.

Another way parents are encouraged to be involved is by my volunteers reaching out to families each week. My volunteers reach out in the form of handwritten cards, texts, or phone calls. This constant communication with parents shows them they are not alone in the discipleship process. We want them to know we are in the trenches with them.

Children’s ministry is the best and most exhausting job on the planet. However, with the right vision for your volunteers who are trained and loved on well, and good parent involvement, your ministry will become something that is life-giving. Remember, “NOT ON OUR WATCH” will there come a generation that does not know the Lord. We will stop at nothing to make sure children know the glorious deeds of the Lord. We are equipped to do what God has called us to do. Let’s face this challenge head-on and refuse to fail. Children will be discipled, families will be changed, and the Kingdom will grow.

“We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders that he has done.” Psalm 78:4

Erin is the children’s minister at Immanuel Baptist Church in Marshall, TX. She is a graduate of Ouachita Baptist University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Erin is passionate about finding ways to creatively engage children and help point them to Jesus. She also enjoys writing, running, a hot cup of coffee, and watching baseball with her husband Michael and their two precious daughters.

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“We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders that he has done.” Psalm 78:4

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