Articles for tag: Children’s Ministry

October 11, 2011

Christian Standard

Rescuing Children at Risk

By Karen Wingate Infomercials, child sponsorship programs, and stirring stories of missionaries like Amy Carmichael and Gladys Aylward give the impression that needy children mostly exist in third world countries. But this is not so. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the United States foster care system serves more than 740,000 children. Beyond that, more than 3 million children in the United States can be labeled as “children of trauma.” Children without hope line our own city streets and fill our forgotten alleys. Thankfully, Christian church ministries are dedicated to offering the transformational power of Jesus Christ to

August 23, 2011

Christian Standard

Growth for ANY Church

By Steve Hinton It happened again. This past week I read yet another story of a dwindling congregation confronted with the harsh realities of years of negative growth. After some hard discussions, the congregation took the path of a growing number of churches in America and simply decided to close its doors, sell its property, and join with another struggling congregation. But I firmly believe things could have been very different for that congregation. I really believe any church can grow. This was impressed on me when my family moved to the northwest Houston area more than a year ago

August 19, 2011

Christian Standard

A Call for All-age Worship

By Verna Weber I can read your mind. The objections that fill the air at the title of this piece probably are not new to me. Let me guess at a few. Children won”t get anything out of the church”s main worship service. Children are distracting. They need an age-appropriate setting. We need them to be somewhere else. This is my time (usually uttered by tired parents). Ultimately, the responses boil down to one point””the greatest barrier to bringing the whole church together for worship is children. It used to be that children were to be seen and not heard.

August 18, 2011

Christian Standard

Interview with Keith Poletiek

By Brad Dupray As a boy, Keith Poletiek lived the life of “Johnny Lazarus,” the namesake character in a book series Keith devised to encourage young people toward evangelism. As a popular children”s conference speaker and author, Keith has also connected with children through Project316 (pronounced three-one-six) to motivate, train, and encourage young believers to take the message of John 3:16 to the world. Keith grew up at First Christian Church of Huntington Beach where he learned the beach culture of Southern California; he now uses that as a means of telling the message of Christ. In addition to his

August 17, 2011

Christian Standard

How Churches Can Help Children Pray

By Katie Barbee There are so many things we, as adults, must teach children about prayer””persistence being one of them. I believe that teaching children how to pray certainly starts at home. After praying for a baby brother or sister for nearly one and one-half years, our 5-year-old son Drew prayed aloud one night: “Dear God, thank you for my family. Thank you for my friends . . . could you please give us a baby, whenever you think it”s time? Oh, never mind””could you just give me a puppy?” My husband and I tried not to laugh until we

August 16, 2011

Christian Standard

Who”s the Hero?

By Teresa Welch During my 15-year tenure as a children”s minister, I was proud of how much Bible content the children learned. But now I wonder if that was enough. Whether it was through Sunday school, kids worship, youth groups, or summer programs like church camp and Vacation Bible School, I knew children were learning the Word of God. However, as I reflected on those years, I saw a problem. Sometimes our efforts to make sure children were learning the Word of God didn”t lead them to learn about God. Certainly we taught about the number of stones David collected

August 15, 2011

Christian Standard

The Rules Are Changing

By Mary Manz Simon Do mousers play in your church nursery? Is mompetition undermining efforts to build community through small groups? How many weblebrities are in the fourth-grade Sunday school class? Those words might be new to you, but they reflect real-world issues faced by those serving children and families. As we gear up for another year of Christian education, volunteers and professional church staff members will communicate the same biblical truths that have been shared for centuries. But in 2011, the rules of engagement have changed. These shifts are so significant that we must deep-dive to pinpoint the implications

July 1, 2011

Christian Standard

A Church Planting Milestone in Canada

By Jennifer Taylor   According to Jim Tune, senior minister with Churchill Meadows Christian Church and director of Impact Ministry Group (both Ontario, Canada), the area is home to only six other Christian churches””and their combined attendance is less than 500. So CMCC”s new building””and the more than 1,200 people who attended the opening services in March””is a milestone for Canadian church planting. “Churches are closing faster in Canada than any other area, including Western Europe,” Tune says. “Church just isn”t on the radar. In fact, people assumed our building was an industrial complex or school because they don”t have

April 17, 2011

Christian Standard

Interview with Justin Miller

By Brad Dupray At an annual growth rate of 65 percent, Real Life Christian Church of Clermont, Florida, was the fastest-growing megachurch in Christian Standard”s survey a year ago. Justin Miller came to Christ at age 9 at First Christian Church, as Real Life was formerly known. As Justin describes it, he came into ministry “through the “˜doggie door” of church leadership.” Asked to serve the youth of the church as a volunteer, he eventually was called to serve as senior pastor in 2002. Since that time the church has grown from about 200 to its current attendance of about

January 17, 2011

Christian Standard

Revitalizing Your Children”s Ministry

By Karen Wingate “Growing, dynamic churches are rooted in a powerful philosophy that recognizes kids matter to God,” says Rick Chromey, author of Energizing Children”s Ministry in the Smaller Church. Those are discouraging words to a church that sees the population of its children”s department slipping into oblivion. Struggling churches know that without the next generation, their congregation”s future is in jeopardy. Is it possible to revitalize a dying children”s ministry? “Yes,” says Teri Lewis, director of the Son Harbor children”s ministry program at Plymouth Avenue Christian Church, a congregation of 250 in Deland, Florida. In 2003, a “good” Sunday

January 14, 2011

Christian Standard

What College Didn”t Teach Me About Children”s Ministry

An Interview with Ryan Frank Ryan Frank, creator of KidzMatter Inc. (www.kidzmatter.com), is the publisher of The Kitchen children”s church curriculum and K!Magazine. He is a children”s minister in Indiana. His latest book, 9 Things They Didn”t Teach Me in College about Children”s Ministry, has just been released by Standard Publishing. We asked Ryan a few questions about his experience in children”s ministry and his advice for children”s ministers today. How did you get interested in children”s ministry? I was only 16 years old. My minister approached me and said, “We need someone to teach Junior Church. Will you try

January 12, 2011

Christian Standard

Making a Difference

By Joni Sullivan Baker Christmas decorations are down, second semester is underway, and snow is on the ground. It”s January. For those involved in children”s ministry that means only one thing””it”s time to start planning Vacation Bible School. Every summer, Standard Publishing puts its brand-new, unpublished VBS curriculum to the test by asking a local church to actually try it. Christ”s Church at Mason (Ohio) tested the new VBS last June. VBS 2011 is called “Inside Out & Upside Down on Main Street: Where Jesus Makes a Difference Every Day!” The children in the field test learned about five of

December 12, 2010

Christian Standard

Blind Copies

By Mark A. Taylor Maybe you”ve noticed, as I have, the remarkable sameness greeting travelers at each stop along United States Interstates. Parachute a blindfolded visitor before the assortment of franchised restaurants assembled at any random exit, and ask him whether he”s landed in Kansas or Kentucky. He probably won”t be able to tell you. With a few regional exceptions, the same stuff is on the menu just about everywhere. And it”s true in churches too. Every October churches large and small, from California through the Bible Belt, promote Trunk “n” Treat as a Halloween alternative. Soon Christian Standard will

November 3, 2010

Christian Standard

From the Served to the Servant

By Chuck Booher Recently, God called a very popular pastor from our staff to start a new church. When it was announced, our people responded with excitement and cheers. I was sure his departure would cause our attendance to plunge, but it didn”t. I think I know the reason why, and that”s what I want to tell you in this article. Basic Training As I came to the office today, I walked by 10 young adults on our campus picking up trash, pulling weeds, and trimming trees. I could not help but smile because they exuded joy in the midst

August 11, 2010

Christian Standard

Interview with Bart Stone

By Brad Dupray After graduating from Cincinnati (Ohio) Christian University, Bart Stone spent 13 years on staff at Northeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky. Sensing a call to risk something greater for the gospel, Bart and his wife, Jodi, left the comfort of ministry at Northeast to heed the call of starting a new church in a community south of Atlanta, Georgia. Momentum Christian Church held its first service in January 2007, and has not looked back. The church is now running more than 400 in attendance in a warehouse. Bart and Jodi have two children, 9-year-old Keaton and 4-year-old

August 8, 2010

Christian Standard

Children and Baptism: In Search of a New Model (Part 1)

By Teresa D. Welch Susan and Kevin approached me after church and asked a series of questions I had heard before. “Could you talk to our son, Nathan, for us? He told us he wants to be baptized, and we don”t know if he is ready. What do you think?” Hearing questions about children and baptism was not uncommon in my role as a children”s minister, I regularly was asked by parents of elementary-aged children about matters of their child”s faith and readiness for baptism. However, the longer I served as a children”s minister, the more these questions concerned me.

June 6, 2010

Christian Standard

God at Work in the Middle of the Week

By Barney Wells Fred turned off the highway onto the fourth of the eight streets that make up Harpersville. Seven of them are five blocks long, and the eighth, Main Street, runs out of town as a county road. The setting sun shone on the three things that rise above the treetops in town, the old grain elevator (now closed), the water tower (which has needed a coat of paint for 20 years), and the steeple of the Harpersville Church, Fred”s destination. As he drove down Main Street toward the church, he recalled the names and faces of the folks

April 11, 2010

Christian Standard

Megachurches: The First 100 Days

By Kent Fillinger In business and in politics, much is made of a leader”s first 100 days in a new role. With 25 years of ministry experience, Gene Appel had a plan as he transitioned from Willow Creek Community Church in suburban Chicago to Eastside Christian Church in Southern California on October 1, 2008. Appel”s plan was simple: focus on getting to know his new staff, their strengths, and the key influencers in the church; preach well; and prepare for a fantastic Christmas. Catalytic Appel really wanted Eastside”s Christmas services to be a catalytic energizer for the church. In those

February 28, 2010

Christian Standard

Leadership Coaching in the Local Church (Developing Leaders of Leaders)

By Janet McMahon “The fruit of my work grows up on other people”s trees.” (Bob Buford)1 The phone call went something like this, “I was praying for you last night; how did it go?” I was juggling my 6-month-old son on one hip while wedging the phone between my ear and shoulder. “It went OK . . . I think,” I replied. What was this conversation? This was a coaching call. I had led my first women”s small group at Community Christian Church in Naperville, Illinois, the night before. The call was from Sue, my coach. She wanted to know

January 24, 2010

Christian Standard

Children”s Ministry Leadership GOLD!

By Rick Chromey Children”s ministry in the smaller church has the same amazing potential to grow and thrive as a mustard seed. It”s all in how you cultivate it. This practical guide provides insights that will encourage you in your children”s ministry, along with ready-to-use tools for evaluation, budgeting, and teacher training. Energize your children”s ministry! Use these innovative strategies for mega-impact with limited resources, people, and money. Energizing Children”s Ministry in the Smaller Church (item 42311) is available from your local supplier or at www.standardpub.com. To lead a children”s ministry in the 21st century””regardless of church size and shape””requires

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