Kids Ministry

Dedicated to helping Kids Ministry leaders in their mission of making disciples

Encouragement, Kids Ministry, Leadership, Ministry, Reaching, Teaching Kids

3 Reasons Kids Returning to Church Need Extra Care

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Disclaimer: I am neither a licensed counselor nor a psychologist, just an untrained observer of human behavior.  However, over the past few months—as  preschoolers, elementary kids, and preteens have returned in-person to church gatherings—I either have noticed first-hand,  heard from others, or just sensed personally that something is different. 

I truly believe that our communities and churches have yet to see the lasting impact of lockdowns, long-term online learning, lengthy hospital stays,  deaths of friends and family members, cancellations of extracurricular activities, lack of appropriate physical touch, shortage of kidmin volunteers, and constant mask-wearing. If present realities are any indication, we’ll experience a continuation of these three issues: anxiety, anger, and antisocial behavior.

  1. Anxious. Kids have a lot to be anxious about: losing loved ones to COVID-19, completing school work, maintaining their lifestyle with one or both parents out of work, etc. 
  2. Angry. Kids are angry that they can’t play team sports, go to parties, be with friends, go on vacation, or eat at their favorite restaurant.
  3. Antisocial. Kids have spent a lot of time at home. They have lost the skills necessary to “play nice” with others. They haven’t had opportunities to share their stuff, and they haven’t been challenged to resolve interpersonal conflicts.

Lest we believe that only children are anxious, angry, and antisocial, think about the adults you come in contact with. Many of them probably have these same issues. Adults have learned how to cope, and in some cases, mask their feelings. Kids, however, are more transparent. And, these issues may seem to be amplified in kids because children are external processors. In other words, as a kidmin leader or volunteer, you will most likely be the recipient of that anxiety, anger, and antisocial behavior.

The question then is, “How do we provide extra care for preschoolers, elementary kids, and preteens who are anxious, angry, anad antisocial?” Among possible solutions, I suggest the following:

  1. Take care of yourself mentally and physically. Dealing with kids who are struggling behaviorally will be less reactionary and more lovingly responsive if we as adults get adequate rest, eat healthy foods, exercise, and nurture our minds.
  2. Take care of yourself spiritually. Spending time in God’s Word and prayer prepares us to love and care for kids. The more we are in tune with the Holy Spirit, the more we will exhibit “the fruit of the Spirit [which] is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22-23)
  3. Take care of yourself socially. This may sound antithetical, but we as adults need to spend time with other adults in order to sharpen our social skills. Proverbs 27:17 says, “Iron sharpens iron, and one person sharpens another.” After over a year of attending church online, working from home, having our groceries and other purchases delivered to our homes, and consuming all forms of entertainment at home, our social skills are rusty at best and non-existent at worst. How can we expect to care for kids if we ourselves don’t know how to relate to people outside of our households?

I truly believe most of us are anxious, angry, and antisocial to some extent. If we take care of ourselves through the power of the Holy Spirit, then we can provide extra care to kids who have these same behavioral challenges. Paul said it best when he wrote, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort. He comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ overflow to us, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-5) Let’s receive God’s comfort and then give comfort to the kids in our ministries, in the name of Jesus.

_________________________

Landry Holmes is the Manager of Lifeway Kids Ongoing Bible Studies and Network Partnerships, Nashville, TN, and is a graduate of Howard Payne University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. The author of It’s Worth It: Uncovering How One Week Can Transform Your Church and a general editor of the Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary for Kids, Landry is a church leader, writer, workshop facilitator, and publisher. He teaches kids at his church in Middle Tennessee, where his wife Janetta is the Preschool Minister. They enjoy spending time with their two adult sons and their wives, and spoiling their five grandchildren.

Events, Kids Ministry, Ministry, Reaching

Different Ways to Engage Kids This Summer

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Chances are you’ve looked at the calendar and you know that summer is coming! Chances also are that you’ve looked around your church and realized that kids are going to need something to do to stay engaged while home during the summer. Depending on where you live, and the restrictions in your locale, you might be needing something different and creative to reach out to the kids in your ministry. Here are a few suggestions depending on your church’s level of return and comfort.

If you have no plans to be on campus during the summer months consider these suggestions for staying engaged with your kids. 

  • Hey, there’s always the old fashioned telephone. Giving kids (with parent’s permission) a quick phone call periodically just to catch up will go a long way in keeping them engaged in what’s happening in your kids’ ministry.
  • Have a drive by parade, only in reverse where you take the time to drive by the kids’ homes and shout a greeting. If you can, stop and pray for them from your car. 
  • Send virtual challenges through email or text as appropriate. Think of creative challenges kids can complete by themselves or with a sibling and have them record themselves completing the challenge and email or text it back to you. 
  • Host a virtual VBS event.

If your church and city are more open and you can have folks gather outside, consider some of these suggestions for staying engaged with your kids. 

  • Host family events at the church on Saturday’s or whatever day works best for you. Some of the fun things you could do outside are water day, fun field day, bicycle or tricycle parade, ice cream social or host a family picnic. 
  • Have your families gather to enjoy popsicles in the park.
  • Host outdoor neighborhood VBS events.

If your church and city allow on campus meetings, consider these suggestions for staying engaged with your kids.

  • Host a family game night where everyone brings their favorite board game and let everyone choose which game to play.
  • Organize a parent’s night out where you have fun games and activities for the kids while mom and dad get a few hours to relax, knowing their kids are well taken care of. 
  • Host a traditional on campus VBS event.

Staying engaged with the kids in your ministry is very important and hopefully some of these suggestions will spark an idea for you. 

Tim Pollard teaches 3rd graders at Tulip Grove Baptist Church. He’s passionate about helping kids dig deep into Scripture, which he pursues through his daily work as leader of the Explore the Bible: Kids team. Tim lives with his wife and daughters in Mount Juliet, TN.

Encouragement, Encouraging, Kids Ministry, Ministry

What We Need Now More Than Anything

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By Aaron Armstrong

Back in the far-off days of December 2020, there was a greater sense of anticipation about the coming year than I’ve seen in a long time. And it’s no surprise why: For many of us, 2020 was a gigantic dumpster fire. The pandemic and its fall out disrupted our regular patterns of life at every level. Concerns over the possibility of a loss of employment or becoming sick abound. We may not know from week-to-week if our churches will meet in person, in doors or outside, online or not at all. We keep expecting a return to normal, or at least some sense of a new normal. But neither has emerged yet. (Maybe next week?)

We are tired. Frustrated. And, frankly, more than a little discouraged.

And by “we,” I most definitely include me.

Numbing Our Discouragement

It’s really tempting to look for something to escape into when discouragement and frustration set in; something to bring some kind of relief, or to help temporarily forget everything going on in the world. Whether it’s a TV show to binge, a new hobby, or even spending more time going down different rabbit trails on social media, we all do it. (No judgment—I do it too.) I’m definitely not anti-entertainment. I often read crime novels and comic books to unwind. I listen to podcasts that make me laugh. And I even have a couple of games on my phone. Entertainment is good and fine, so don’t read what I’m not writing here.

Entertainment is good and fine. But we need something greater when dealing with ongoing frustration, anxiety, disappointment, or discouragement, like so many of us are facing right now. Something stronger. We need to be encouraged in and through the gospel.

What it Means to Encourage in the Gospel

That might sound like a strange bit of “Christianese,” the internal language that so many Christians use when talking about matters of faith, but it is anything but. It’s meant to ground our efforts to encourage one another, to provide encouragement a stronger foundation than general kindness. To offer true hope, rather than wishful thinking or simple platitudes.

And what is that hope? Ultimately, that hope is the gospel itself. The fact that Jesus lived, died, and lives again, that because Jesus is alive and the king of the universe, we have the best reason to maintain hope than anyone. And as we face discouragement in any area of life, but especially in ministry, it’s essential that we bring one another back to the gospel, taking what we are facing and experiencing, and look at it through its lens.

How Not to Encourage One Another

Okay, so what does that look like? Well, maybe it’s better to start with what it doesn’t look like. Encouraging one another in the gospel doesn’t look like:

  • Offering platitudes, however well meaning. While it is good to know that “God’s got this,” it can come across as dismissive. (Ditto, “thoughts and prayers.”)
  • Unintentional Bible-shaming. Reminding one another that our momentary sufferings are incomparable to the riches of Christ. While true (I mean, it is in the Bible for a reason), there is a time when even the most profound truth can be profoundly unhelpful.
  • Undesired problem solving. This is especially complicated: a desire to help and offer advice is a good thing. But sometimes our desire to help isn’t what’s needed in the moment.

That’s the negative side, but to be clear, none of it is malicious. It’s hard to imagine anyone offering a “God’s got this” or a Bible verse with the intent of causing further harm. It’s all based in a good desire, just poor execution.

How to Encourage One Another

Now, what about the positive? A couple of important caveats: First, nothing you’re going to see on this list is going to be earth shattering. There’s a reason for that: this kind of encouragement is often much simpler to do than we might think. Our bigger issue is that we overthink how to encourage one another! Second, you might even find some of the advice here to be contradictory, but there’s a reason for that too—just context and circumstances determine if we are to answer or not answer foolish talk and thinking (Prov. 26:4–5), context and circumstances determine our approach to encouraging one another. With caveats in place, here are five ways we can encourage one another:

  • Check in. You might be surprised at how much just receiving a text or even an email goes to a discouraged person (even if they don’t realize it).
  • Weeping with those who weep. Sometimes that can be enough. Whether via phone call, a zoom meeting, or in-person, when another believer is struggling with discouragement, something the best thing we can do is listen. Don’t try to fix a problem, just be present, as one who weeps with those who weep (Rom. 12:15), as one being willing to bear the burdens of another (Gal. 6:2).
  • Pray for the discouraged (and tell them how). As much as possible, the best thing you can do is to be specific in sharing how you’re praying. If it is someone you know well, you likely know what they may be dealing with. But even if you don’t know specifically what someone needs, you can bet the Holy Spirit will—and often He leads us to share the very thing that the discouraged needs to hear.
  • Challenge false thinking. Sometimes we are discouraged because we’re not thinking correctly. As we seek to listen carefully and sensitively, we want to look for ways to lovingly challenge wrong thinking. Sometimes this means saying something that a discouraged friend, coworker, fellow church member, or a pastor may not want to hear, but we do so because “the wounds of a friend are trustworthy” (Prov. 27:6).

A Personal Experience of Encouragement

A few weeks ago, I received a message from a coworker in another area of our organization, letting me know they were praying for me in my work with The Gospel Project, and that God would help me to persevere as we seek to come alongside churches here at Lifeway. I’ve been generally feeling pretty okay over the last few months, but I’ll tell you, I had no idea how much I needed to read that until I did. It was life-giving for me.

Think about it: who in your life needs encouragement right now? Maybe it’s your pastor. It could be your spouse, child, or another family member. Maybe it’s a coworker. Whomever comes to mind, take a moment and reach out. Be present and available, encouraging them in the gospel as you come alongside to help carry their burden.

Aaron Armstrong is the Brand Manager of The Gospel Project, and the author of several books including Epic: The Story that Changed the World, Awaiting a Savior, and the screenwriter of the documentary Luther: the Life and Legacy of the German Reformer. Follow him on Twitter.

Kids Ministry, Ministry, Prayer
Kids Ministry, Leadership, Ministry

8 Questions to Ask When Interviewing for a Kids Ministry Position

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Interviewing at a church for a kids ministry position can be exciting and frightening all wrapped up together. Both you and the church want to make sure that the fit is right because there is so much at stake. In addition to asking questions about the church itself—such as what is its theology—you will also want to ask questions about the church’s kids ministry that will give you the insight you need to make the right decision. Here are eight important questions to get you started:

  1. What is the kids ministry philosophy? Is it negotiable?

Is it a family-integrated model where age segmentation is eliminated pretty much completely. Adults, students, and kids attend Bible study together, worship together, and do events together. Or is it a family-based model where intergenerational gatherings connect the age segmented ministries together. Kids will be in classes with just kids, will attend events with just kids, and so forth, but there will also be events and classes that put kids, students, and adults together. This is more of a both-and approach. Or is it a family-equipping model where the age-segmented ministry structure is intact, but everything that is done is done with an eye on equipping families. (If you want to learn more about these approaches, see Perspectives on Family Ministry: 3 Views, edited by Timothy Paul Jones.)

No matter what the church’s ministry philosophy is, you will want to ask the follow-up question if it is negotiable. Here’s why. If your philosophy and the church’s do not align, you will need to know if you would need to defer to the church’s philosophy or not. That could be a deal-breaker. But even if they align, you will want to know how set the church is in that philosophy. Is it a true value of the church or is it more of a default? That will help you know what vision-casting might be needed if you accept the position. 

  1. How does the pastor see the kids minister? The staff team? The church? 

Put simply, would they see you as more of an equal or not? The truth is that many pastors, staff teams, and churches do not see kids ministers as they should—they are seen as second-tier staff members. They aren’t “real” staff members—they just keep the kids entertained. This is frustrating and it is wrong, but it is the reality for many churches. One of the best ways we can help our kids and families is by raising the bar in this area—working to help churches take our role seriously and giving it the weight it is due. 

  1. What curriculum is being used. Why? 

You can learn quite a bit about a ministry by its curriculum and the thought process that went into what is used. Was it chosen because it was fun? Cheap? Easy? Or was it chosen because it aligns with the church’s theology and the kids ministry philosophy? An important follow-up question is whether the church is open to changing curriculum and how that process would work. 

  1. What regular programs are done. Why? 

Does the church do VBS? Summer camps? Christmas and Easter programs and events? Are any of these expected—sort of sacred cows in the church? Have they been effective? How do they connect to the church’s vision and mission? As you know, events require tons of energy and resources. Many times they are worth it, but sometimes they are not. You need to know about all the events the church does before you walk into a potential minefield. 

  1. How invested are the kids leaders in the ministry? Are they tired? Energized? Valued? 

Committed, loving, godly leaders are the lifeblood of a healthy ministry. Be sure to get as good of a pulse on the ministry team as you can. If you accept the ministry position, getting to know your team and building into it would likely be your first step, and you would need to know what they need right away. 

  1. How invested are families in discipling their kids? What has been done to encourage and equip them? 

Leaders are the lifeblood of ministry, but families (parents, grandparents, guardians, etc.) are your greatest partners in discipling kids. Are they doing that? Have they been encouraged and equipped to do that? What would they need from you, the kids minister?

  1. What is the partnership between the kids ministry and student ministry like? 

Far too many churches operate in silos to the detriment of kids, students, and families, and the church itself. What is the relationship like between ministries? Is it cohesive or are they disconnected? Are there strong transitions between them? Do they work together to help equip families? 

  1. What wins would you want to see? 

Don’t forget to ask some more practical questions too, such as this one. Finding out what wins are hanging out there will give you insight into what expectations you would be under and what the church really values. How this question is answered would also help you establish what to work on in your first 90 days. 

Brian Dembowczyk is the managing editor for The Gospel Project. He served in local church ministry for over 16 years before coming to Lifeway. Brian earned an M.Div. from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a D.Min. from the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. He and his family live in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

Ministry, Reaching, Vacation Bible School

The Most Critical Event on Your Church’s Calendar This Year

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By Sam Luce

This past year has been one of the more difficult of our lifetimes. There has been much loss and much difficulty, but there have been some unexpected blessings as well. One of those blessings in disguise is the killing of church-as-usual and programs-as-tradition. It has caused us to think about why we do what we do.

This was a fruitful exercise because it can lay the groundwork for starting something new or evaluating something old and create a plan to start again. Twenty years ago, I led VBS because I thought that’s what I was supposed to do as a new kids pastor. I did it for about five years but didn’t get the buy-in or the traction that the effort required of me, my team, and our volunteers.

I’m also ashamed to admit that I fell into the school of thought that VBS was outdated; I was wrong! After a 12-year break, we started to do VBS again. Regardless of our opinions, most Americans are quite pro-VBS. Findings from Lifeway Research show that most (95%) American parents—regardless of how often they attend church—say their kids had a favorable experience at VBS.

What’s more, a similar number (94%) said VBS helped their child better understand the Bible, and 95% agreed VBS was one of the most meaningful church experiences for their child.

Here are a few reasons we started again and why it could be the most important item on your church calendar.

Your unchurched neighbors are open to it.

We live in a very pluralistic society that doesn’t value church but values traditions. Many parents have young kids who either don’t go to church or infrequently attend church but have great VBS memories. They want their kids to have those memories and put their kids in VBS before taking them to a church service on the weekend.

It’s an effective way to partner with parents.

Having 15 hours in the VBS week to speak new truths or reinforce what is being taught at home is invaluable. The new “regular attendees” standard is now 12 to 24 Sundays a year. VBS gives you a nice chunk of time to drill down into core truths kids need in the world we now live in.

Partnering with parents starts with equipping parents. Doing VBS with this in mind makes VBS more valuable than a simple stand-alone program.

It brings the church together.

VBS has to be a whole-church focus. It can’t be something only your department does, or an execution of the same handful of volunteers who do everything else in the church. I did a kids department-focused VBS years ago and just finished a church-driven VBS. The difference is night and day.

It’s a discipleship tool for the families in your church.

Reaching new families has to be a focus but not the whole focus. We want to reach new families, but we also need to build foundations for our families. Picking the right curriculum is essential. VBS is more than an outreach tool; it’s a gospel-shaping delivery device for the whole family.

Our church has changed. We still care about the weekend service, but we care more about intentional ways to help with spiritual formation and discipleship. The stats back this up. According to Lifeway’s research, a staggering 88% of respondents said VBS positively affected their spiritual growth as a child, and 96% feel it has positively affected their child’s spiritual growth.

If how and why we do VBS changes, it can be an effective tool to reinforce your entire church’s framework. I hope you pray about how you should do VBS.

Some ideas on how to rethink VBS in our current COVID world:

Backyard Bible School

This is a great option because it allows you to reach neighborhoods and kids you wouldn’t normally reach. It also allows you to be more flexible and keep groups smaller, which may be important depending on your state’s rules or the rate of infections in your area.

Regional Bible School

This is again a way to have a smaller setting in the communities that may attend your church but would be able to invite more neighbors. One of the things we have to look at in regard to our VBS being an outreach is how far people who don’t attend our church are willing to drive. 

VBS Tent Edition

Rent tents and use them for more spacing or for complete outdoor VBS if indoor meeting is shut down again this year.

My encouragement for you is to do VBS this year. The kids in your church and community need connection, discipleship, and hope more than ever. Do VBS even if you don’t usually do it. Our world post-COVID has changed because people have changed.

We’re going to have to think smaller, be more intentional, and demonstrate more flexibility, not just now, but on the other side of the COVID crisis.

Sam lives in upstate New York with his wife and four children. He has served as the pastor of families at Redeemer Church for the past 23 years. Read more at his blog SamLuce.com.

This post originally appeared on lifewayresearch.com.

Kids Ministry, Ministry, Vacation Bible School

How VBS Led Me to Kids Ministry

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by Bekah Stoneking

There are three things I remember most vividly from my summer vacations as a kid:

  1. Mom homeschooled us to keep our skills sharp over the break (I still get a little itchy when I see math workbooks or Reader’s Digest vocab lists)
  2. “Fun Fridays,” when we’d get a break from “summer school” to go on field trips around the city
  3. Vacation Bible School

Like many other VBS kids in the 90s I remember store brand cookies and punch on the gym floor, colorful beads on a leather bracelet symbolizing the plan of salvation, what recreation felt like out in that steamy Georgia heat, and learning the motions to really fun songs. 

My church loved us kids and it was obvious—from VBS, to Sunday school, and everything in between—that they believed Jesus loved us, too, and they wanted us to know that and to know Him. I came to faith as a young child and events like VBS helped nurture my young faith. 

What I didn’t realize at the time was how God was using VBS to not only continue working out my salvation, but to draw me to a lifetime of serving Him.

The summers after I’d aged out of my church’s VBS just lacked color and vibrancy. So, the summer before my freshman year of high school, I signed up to volunteer; I just couldn’t stay away from Vacation Bible School! I served with other youth group members on the rec team, and on the crew that collected and organized the supplies the kids donated for our missions project. Then on “Family Night” the Sunday after VBS, I sat frozen in my pew, hands gripped so tightly on the pew in front of me my knuckles turned white and my fingers throbbed. 

Everyone around me was up, moving around, singing, and doing the motions. But there I sat, trying to convince God I couldn’t do what He was asking me to do.

There, the summer I turned 14, just a handful of weeks before I was to start high school, God called me into children’s ministry.

At the end of the worship rally our pastor shared the gospel. As people walked the aisle in repentance and faith, I walked the aisle in tears—confused, feeling really young, and convinced I’d be told there was no place for me. 

But that’s not how I was received, of course. My pastors were among the most loving and encouraging people in my young life. They helped me find my place in our church’s ministry. I shadowed a few leaders and volunteered in different areas until I found my fit. I went to training alongside the adults. I was loved and respected, even though I was young. And after a few years of apprenticing, I became the lead teacher of a Kindergarten Sunday school class my senior year. 

I went on to college where I majored in elementary education and served in children’s and youth ministries in my college town. I became a second grade teacher. I went on to seminary and served a church as their children’s minister. There, I began writing lesson plans for our church, and for summer programming at another church. I graduated from SEBTS and was a part of a church plant where I helped oversee and create educational content for the children’s ministry there. This is also when I began writing for Lifeway Kids. I re-enrolled at SEBTS and am now finishing my doctorate in education while serving churches through Lifeway Kids full time. 

And it all started in a little town in Georgia at Vacation Bible School.

From hearing the gospel and meeting Jesus for the first time to realizing the “thing” God made them to do, VBS can be the tool God uses to change a kid’s life forever, and He can work through that life to touch thousands.

VBS is so profoundly worth it. As someone who participated in VBS, then was called to ministry through VBS, then planned and led VBS from a church leadership position, and now works alongside the VBS team at Lifeway, I am just one story of how a week over the course of a few summers can impact a kid. The work you’re doing matters. Every hour, every plan, every changed plan, and every changed plan that changes again matters to the kingdom because every kid matters to the kingdom, and God has a plan for how He will work through those kids to impact your neighborhood and neighborhoods around the world for His glory.

Encouragement, Kids Ministry, Leadership, Ministry

5 Leadership Lessons from Gideon

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The story of Gideon in Judges 6 and 7 is a familiar one to kids ministry leaders, and it’s one that we might do well to revisit during this challenging season of ministry. Gideon was something of an unlikely war hero. When we meet him in Judges 6, he is literally hiding from the Midianites, threshing wheat on the floor of a winepress so he won’t be seen and raided. That’s where the Angel of the Lord came to him with an unexpected greeting in Judges 6:12: “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.” Gideon himself seems surprised by this assessment of who he is, as we see in verse 15: “Pardon me,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” After some famous convincing involving two days of dew and a fleece, Gideon trusts God, makes a battle plan, gathers 32,000 troops, and prepares to attack. At least that was Gideon’s “Plan A.” 

Right about then, God made another unexpected statement, recorded for us in Judges 7:2: “You have too many troops for me to hand the Midianites over to them, or else Israel might elevate themselves over me and say, ‘I saved myself.’” So God proceeded to whittle down the troops. Twice. First from 32,000 to 10,000, and then to just 300. And then the battle plans changed. This battle would not be won with soldiers, swords, and shields. Nope. Each of the 300 men would instead go to the battle with a trumpet, a torch, and a terracotta pot. We’ll call this “Plan B.” 

You may know the story. Gideon’s 300 men surround the Midianite camp, and on his signal, they break the pots, revealing their torches, then they blow their trumpets and shout, “For the Lord, and for Gideon!” And the Midianites are so frightened and confused, they fight against themselves, and God uses Gideon and 300 men to defeat them. 

What does this have to do with your ministry in 2021? Like Gideon, most of us have had our Plan A taken away, and we don’t know what to do. We feel discouraged and distracted and defeated. Some of us are literally hiding! Our churches aren’t meeting. Our volunteers are MIA. We feel like our soldiers, swords, shields, and strategies are gone. Some of us are doubting whether God has chosen the right person for our job. If this is how you feel, these five truths from Gideon’s life are for you. Listen closely, and apply them to your situation.

Truth 1: The mission hasn’t changed.

2020 (and now 2021) have been difficult for everyone in ministry. No, we can’t do it the way we have always done it, but we must continue to minister to kids and families in whatever ways we can. Let’s not allow our ministries to be deterred or deferred. There’s urgency around the gospel. Ephesians 5:16 reminds us to make the most of the time we have. 2 Timothy 4:2 challenges us to present the Word “in season and out of season.” Not having Plan A is not a reason to concede the mission. When God took away Gideon’s soldiers, the goal was never to not have a battle, and it was never to not win the battle. The mission didn’t change, only the method. And God did what He did for good reason.

Truth 2: God sometimes does big things in absurd ways.

Time and time again in Scripture, we witness God doing miraculous things in unlikely ways. God rescued humanity from elimination by having a 500-year-old man build a boat in the desert. He saved baby Moses by having his mother float him down the river in a basket, then had the daughter of the very king who decreed that all Israelite babies be killed, adopt him and raise him in the palace. He waited until Abram was 100 before he gave the promised son. He used a shepherd boy with a rock to kill a famous military champion (who also happened to be a giant). He had Elijah pour water over the altar, enough to fill a trench around it, before burning up the offering with fire from heaven to humiliate the prophets of Baal. Jesus told the wedding caterers to fill the jugs with water. He told Peter to get a coin from a fish. He healed a blind man with spit-mud. He defeated death by dying. When He left the tomb, He folded the cloth. Don’t waste time worrying that God has taken away your meeting times or your volunteers. Don’t cry over soldiers and swords. Look for torches and trumpets. Watch for the Lord to do something amazing that only He can do, so the glory can only be given to Him.  

Truth 3: It’s not your battle.

When looking through the account of Gideon in Judges 6–7, it’s interesting to notice how many times “Gideon’s” story mentions God’s actions. God approached Gideon to lead the charge (6:12), sent Gideon (6:14), promised to be with Gideon (6:16), gave signs of assurance to Gideon (6:36–40), filtered out the fearful soldiers (7:3), tested the troops at the river for Gideon (7:4), promised to deliver Israel with 300 men (7:7), told Gideon when to attack (7:9), assured Gideon again (7:10), handed the Midianites over to 300 men (7:15), and caused the Midianite army to turn on each other (7:22). Do you see it? We may think of this as Gideon’s battle, but it wasn’t. It was God’s. It was always God’s. The battle belongs to the Lord. So does your ministry. Stop trying to carry the burden of failed Plan A and the stress of an untested Plan B. Your church is His. Your kids are His. Your job is His. It’s not about you. It’s all about Him!

Truth 4: God WILL accomplish His plan.

God is absolutely, 100%, perfectly in control of every circumstance and situation you will ever face. History is His story. He is the author and finisher. He raises up kings and tears them down again. He is our strong tower. He is an ever-present help. He is Lord of all and over all. There is no one and nothing outside of His control. When God says something will be done, you can know that it WILL absolutely, positively, 100%, be done. In Judges 6:16–23, God tells Gideon, “ I WILL be with you.” “You WILL strike Midian down as if it were one man.”  “I WILL stay until you return.” And, “Don’t be afraid, for you WILL NOT die.” In Judges 7:7 The Lord said to Gideon, “I WILL deliver you with the three hundred men.” God has a purpose and a plan, and He will be faithful to complete His plan. Ephesians 2:10 reminds us that God created us for good works, “which God prepared ahead of time for us to do,” and Jeremiah 29:11 reminds us that God knows the plans He has for us.  When we understand that God will work out His plan, it changes how we pray. Instead of asking God to be with us in our plans, may we ask that He allow us to be with Him in His plans.

Truth 5: God wants leaders to walk in confidence by faith.

When the time came for the battle to occur, Gideon gave each of his 300 men their torches and their trumpets and their clay pots and he gave them this instruction in Judges 7:17: “Watch me,” he said to them, “and do what I do.” In this moment, Gideon gives us a beautiful picture of biblical leadership. It’s not a “do as I say” strategy, but one built on leadership by example. In reality, we all know that “do as I say” never works. Our actions need to model our words. It’s not enough to say it; we have to display it. It’s not enough to talk it; we have to walk it. It’s not enough to know it; we have to show it. Paul encouraged the church at Corinth to follow him as he followed Christ. We need to model trust in God through difficult circumstances. We need to walk by faith through uncertainty. We need to model determination to reach kids and teach kids, if not in person then through their mailboxes, their inboxes, or online. 

As leaders, we need to get our hearts right and our heads right, and then invite people to watch us and do what we do, reminding ourselves and others that the mission hasn’t changed. God sometimes does big things in absurd ways. This is not our battle to win or lose. God will accomplish His will.

In the end, we’ll learn something profound: In God’s eyes, Plan B was Plan A all along.

Chuck Peters is Director of Operations for Lifeway Kids. Before his role at Lifeway, Chuck had an extensive career in television and video production. He is a 3-time Emmy Award Winning producer, director, writer and host. A graduate of Columbia Bible College, Chuck, and his wife, Cris, have served vocationally & voluntarily in Student and Children’s Ministry for many years. They have four amazing children: Tally (21), Tristen (20), Tyson (14) and Tate (11). 

Encouragement, Kids Ministry, Leadership, Ministry

Assess Your Ministry After a Year of Pivoting

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If there’s one word that sums up the experience of the church in 2020 (and now 2021) it may be the word “Pivot.” The foundational assumptions of when, where, and how we facilitate ministry have been upended. Because of COVID, it’s likely your Sunday School classes and community groups haven’t been meeting. If you are having worship gatherings they are likely at a greatly reduced capacity. People simply aren’t coming like they did before COVID.

We have all always known the real church isn’t a building. Every one of us could preach a sermon or lay out a lesson that passionately proclaims the church is the people not the steeple. Even so, that hasn’t kept us from relying on in-person gatherings as the primary way of conducting church. So what can we do in light of the setbacks the church is experiencing.

Your initial reaction may be one of paralysis; choosing to watch and wait and wonder when things will go back to normal again so you can go back to doing ministry the way you have always done it. But there’s danger that comes with getting stuck in this “freeze” response. People need pastoral care, Bible study, and biblical perspective right now.

While people may not be coming to church, they still desperately need the influence of the church in their lives. As people deal with isolation, job losses, health crises, and death, they need Jesus. We as the church need to act with a sense or urgency during this season. If people can’t or won’t come to church, we need to find new ways to take church to them. The gospel is too important. We need to be determined to not allow our ministry to be deterred or deferred. It’s time for us to take active steps to pivot our strategies. We need to warm up to the idea of Plan B. 

ASSESS THE SITUATION ACCURATELY

The first step in adjusting your plan so you can pivot properly is to accurately assess the situation. The emphasis here is on accuracy. Tell yourself the truth about the situation. Because your assessment directly impacts your action plan, it is essential that your observations be true and valid representations of the situation and of your available resources.

In Numbers 13, Moses sent out 12 men to spy on Canaan. Ten men came back with a negative perception, and two with favorable one. In that instance, all 12 saw the same things; they did not dispute what they saw, but they interpreted the data differently. The lessons here for us: First, it is wise to not assess a crisis by yourself. Multiple perspectives are important. You don’t need to have twelve advisors, but there is wisdom in conducting assessments with a trusted team, not in isolation. Second, the larger group may make observations, but the data gathered should be interpreted by wise and trusted leaders who are strong people of faith, committed to the cause of your ministry.

REASSESS YOUR KEY ASSUMPTIONS

Making an adjustment from Plan A to Plan B offers you an important opportunity to check your focus. It’s time to ask clarifying questions about what you will choose to categorize as essential and non-essential operations. I call this clarifying your “why.” Before delving deeply into the “what” and “how” of a new plan, it is essential to first bring clarity to a clear and compelling purpose for your plan. You cannot move forward into a viable and effective Plan B without revisiting and clarifying your foundational purpose and goal.

ASSESS AVAILABILITY OF ASSETS

Once you have an accurate idea of the situation, you need to assemble an accurate assessment of what resources you have available. A word of caution here: It can be easy to improperly focus your attention on what you don’t have, rather than what you do have. What matters most in a crisis situation is knowing what options are available. These assets will help you establish a workable action plan.

When Moses stood before God at the burning bush in Exodus 4, he was quick to list the skills and assets he lacked as an explanation of why he could not do what God asked of him. God’s response, however, was to ask Moses, “What’s that in your hand?” God then took the one thing Moses had, his ordinary staff, and used it in miraculous ways as an instrumental tool in accomplishing His plan.

Jesus did this at the feeding of the five thousand. When His disciples came to Him with an impossible problem, Jesus asked them in Mark 6:38, “How many loaves do you have?” He asked. “Go and see.” He then instructed them to bring what they had to Him, and He proceeded to do something big with the little they had available.

As you assess your available options, don’t worry about what you lack; instead, list whatever things you have “in your hand.” Lift whatever resources you have to the Lord, and trust Him to use whatever you have for His glory.

BE ACTION ORIENTED

The purpose of assessment should always be action. We don’t assess merely for the sake of interest, or simply to explain why things aren’t happening. Assess from a standpoint of gathering data that can be used to formulate an actionable plan. This typically means generating a prioritized list of sub-goals and then setting immediate, intermediate, and long-term actions to accomplish them.

In the short term, be careful to only fix what’s really broken and only add what’s needed. Start with essentials. Preserve and secure your necessary functions. Maintain and sustain your base actions, then expand your plan gradually toward operating at full capacity.  

Assessment should not be a one-time event, but an ongoing process of recurring evaluation. This is especially true during seasons when we are implementing temporary short-term strategies. In some seasons you may need to re-assess assumptions, available resources, and action plans weekly. Whatever you do, don’t do nothing. Take the first step to a new action plan by assessing the situation, re-examining your core purpose, and identifying your available assets so you can create a solid action plan for the future.

Chuck Peters is Director of Operations for Lifeway Kids. A graduate of Columbia Bible College, Chuck has served vocationally & voluntarily in Student and Children’s Ministry for many years.

Devotional, Evangelism, Leadership, Ministry

6 Steps to Follow When You Have Been Asked to Preach

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So you have been asked to preach. Pretty exciting, isn’t it? Unnerving too. Most kids pastors don’t get to preach very often, if ever. What you may have learned about preaching in seminary has either been forgotten or become quite rusty. If that’s the case, here is a primer featuring six key steps to take as you prepare to preach, and then as you preach, God’s Word.  

1. Choose Your Approach

One of your first, and more important, decisions is the approach you will take when you preach. You have two options: a kids ministry approach or an adult approach. Here’s what I mean. 

In a kids ministry approach, your goal is to give the adults a snapshot of what happens in kids ministry. Your sermon that day would therefore be full of illustrations, visuals, and even group participation. In essence, you are crafting a typical kids experience, just with adults in the place of your kids. The advantage of this approach is that it helps cast vision for your kids ministry. But there is a downside, and it is a big one. A worship gathering is not designed to be a commercial, no matter how noble the reason. Worship and preaching are weighty. Unless you have been asked to take this approach by your pastor, I would opt for the next approach.

In an adult approach, your goal is to preach God’s Word as your pastor would any other week. This approach honors the intent of a worship gathering and the preaching of Scripture but it also has another important secondary win beyond that. In many churches, the kids pastor is seen as a second-tier pastor—not a “real” pastor. The more your people see you handling the Scripture seriously and demonstrating love, wisdom, and passion as you preach, the more they will come to see you as they should—as a “true” pastor. Plus, it will help parents trust and appreciate your spiritual leadership over their children all the more. 

2. Choose Your Text

When you sit down to decide the text you will preach, it is so tempting to think through recent lessons you may have taught in your kids ministry, find a good one, and preach that. Resist that urge. While you may end up with that text, there is a much better approach. 

Preaching is not about the one preaching; it’s about the ones hearing the preaching. In other words, the congregation must be our starting point. That lesson you recently taught may have been great for you. It may have been great for your kids. But it might not be what the congregation needs. Spend time praying about that last part: what does the congregation need to hear? What gospel truth do they need to understand better or be reminded of? Let that drive the text that you select.  

I need to mention one other major caution here. Whatever you do, do not start with an illustration and design a sermon around it. We are called to preach the gospel using illustrations, not to preach illustrations using the gospel. 

3. Discover the Meaning

This is where the hard work—and the great fun—of preaching begins. Once you have selected the text, it is time to discover its meaning. This should not be foreign to us; we should do this whenever we teach anyone of any age. 

First, you want to read the surrounding context of the passage you are preaching—preferably the entire book it is in. This is important because the Bible is not a collection of stand-along passages, grouped randomly. The writer of each book had a purpose in writing—he was crafting an argument. Our goal is to understand what that goal was and how the passage we are preaching fits within it. 

Second, you want to understand the three “worlds” of the text: the world behind the text, the world of the text, and the world in front of the text.(1) The world behind the text is the context that the original audience may have understood that informs what was written. For example, if you are preaching from 1 John, you need to understand the Gnostic threat to the church. If you are preaching from Matthew, you need to know that this Gospel was written to a Jewish audience. The world of the text concerns the text itself. The grammar and vocabulary used. The argument being made. The basic meaning. The world in front of the text is what is most often neglected. This is the ideal world that the writer presented. This is the reason the writer wrote what he did—what he was doing with the text. Every passage is calling our attention to the ways of God—His intention for how we are to live. This is the world in front of the text. 

An example might help. Think of Matthew’s genealogy at the start of his Gospel. The world behind the text would include knowing the Jewish audience and understanding as much as we can about the individuals mentioned in the genealogy. The world of the text would notice the cadence of the genealogy and how it is broken five times to include women. The world in front of the text would then ask what Matthew’s purpose was in beginning with the genealogy and structuring it the way he did: to link his Gospel to the Old Testament and to highlight that God has always used all people—men and women, Jew and Gentile (three, if not four, of the women mentioned were Gentiles—even broken people, in His purposes and that he will bring all people together in Jesus. That message is important because it sets the stage for all that follows in the Gospel. 

4. Follow the Text

You have the text and you know what it means—what you need to communicate to the congregation. Now it is time to structure the sermon. The temptation is to break the sermon into three parts, and then add an introduction and a conclusion. Once again, resist the natural urge. You might end up there, but you might not. 

Don’t force the text into a generic sermon structure, no matter how common it is. Rather, structure the sermon around the text. If the text drives to two parts, have two parts in your sermon, not three. If you are preaching a story, don’t structure the sermon around ideas at all; structure the sermon based on the movements of the story. Follow wherever the text leads. 

That includes your tone too. If the text is one of joy and celebration, let that drive how you preach. If the text is one of lament, preach with a disposition that aligns with that. The Bible includes different genres and moods for a reason–match your sermon with those of your text. 

5. Find Your Voice

A common mistake among preachers is to copy the style of their favorite preachers—the ones they listen to regularly. Once more, resist the urge to do this. There is nothing wrong with listening to great preachers—they are a gift from God. But don’t be them; be you. Appreciate others. Learn from others. But let others be others. You be you. Bring your own personality and style to your sermon. 

6. Exalt Jesus

I would be remiss if I failed to remind you of the most important part of preaching—making much of Jesus. Care for the congregation and serve them well. Let your own personality shine through the sermon. But when it is all said and done, you want the congregation to leave in greater awe of and with deeper love for Christ. That is the beacon you are pursuing. Let all of the journey—preparation and presentation—drive toward that lofty goal. 

  1. For more about this, see Abraham Kuruvilla. Privilege the Text: A Theological Hermeneutic for Preaching. (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2013.)

Brian Dembowczyk is the managing editor for The Gospel Project. He served in local church ministry for over 16 years before coming to Lifeway. Brian earned an M.Div. from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a D.Min. from the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. He and his family live in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

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