What is Your "Job"?

What is the "job" of the person who serves in the Children's Ministry? Is it to teach children about Jesus? Is it to teach children about the Bible? Is it to lead children to Jesus? What is our "job"?

Well, while we certainly want to teach children about Jesus, the Bible, and lead them to Him, there is something very important we typically do not do. We need to teach children how to have "open eyes", so they are able to learn to watch for the big and small ways God shows His love to and for them each and every day. Learning about God is not just a "Sunday thing" they do. It is a day-in-day-out every day thing they do. When we make it seem like children need to go to church to learn about Jesus and the Bible, we are sending a message they could interpret to say Jesus and the Bible is just a "Sunday thing".

So, since we clearly do not want to do this, what do we need to do to avoid this? We need to be focused upon what our "job" truly is. We need to equip parents AND grandparents, so they are able to hand down confident faith (and a confident faith is one which knows the "whys" - why we are able to believe) in a day-in-day-out every day way. They are the ones who see children every day, not us.

And, we need to move our focus from just teaching the facts - although we certainly want to teach the facts of the Bible - to teaching children to see and watch for how God is working in their lives; because His is. When we fail to do this, we are leaving children set up to forget God - just read through Judges to see what happens when children forget God.

And, we need to be sure we teach the "whys" and equip parents and grandparents to do the same. Children, teens, and young adults are leaving the faith they once had at double the rate of any previous generation - one big reason for this is because they do not know the "whys". Teach the "whys" - it matters. (Anchored supplemental curriculum will help you do this.)

So, what changes do you need to make in your ministry to the way you see your "job"?