Think about the kids in your class. Get their faces in your mind. Now, imagine it is ten years in the future. The kids in your class have graduated from high school. How many will still be in church?
The truth is that most churches are losing the kids that grow up in their church. This begs the question: Is your kids’ ministry succeeding or failing?
Kids are created with a nature to believe, but during their teen years their faith will be challenged. It is normal for a teenager to pull away and question their parents and God.
During the teen years they will start to ask questions like:
- “Is God real?”
- “Is the Bible really the Word of God?
- “Do I believe in God just because my parents do?”
Kids’ ministry is not about having a good service, where we hold the kids attention for 60 minutes. I want to see the kids in my class graduate into youth ministry, and then make the jump to the sanctuary. The home run is when the kids in children’s church stay in church as they become adults.
The truth is we are not raising kids. We are raising adults.
Here are some questions that all kidmin people need to ask:
- What can I do to ensure that kids stay in church when they become adults?
- What can I do to prepare the kids for youth ministry?
- What does a spiritually strong 10-year-old look like?
- What types of skills do they have?
Your list may differ from mine, but this is what I want to see in my fifth-graders:
1. Salvation – I want my kids to be really be converted. If you are not leading kids to Christ, you are just an entertainer or a babysitter.
2. Devotions – My kids have the ability to read the Bible for themselves and get something out of it. (Without this skill they are doomed.)
3. Prayer – My kids have confidence in their prayer life. They know how to pray and get answers to their prayers.
4. Church – My kids attend church weekly.
5. Ministry – My kids are actively involved in ministry using their gifts in the church.
6. Friends – My kids have strong Christian friends in the church.
7. Worship – My kids are passionate worshippers of Jesus Christ. They are not concerned about what their peers think.
8. Holy Spirit – My kids know how to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit and want to obey Him.
9. Leadership – My kids are not just followers, but they are leaders. They don’t run to their parents for every decision. They know how to think for themselves and make wise choices.
10. Evangelism – My kids have a heart for the lost. They don’t just focus on their friends at church, but they reach out to new kids. They know how to pray the prayer of salvation with a peer.
Do 100% of my kids do all ten of these things?
No, but it is my vision for 100% of them.
Please don’t tell me that they can’t happen, because I have seen hundreds of 10-year-olds reach these goals. If my kids can do it, then your kids can do it, but it begins with you.
King Solomon said, “Without a vision the people perish.” These goals are not just going to happen because they should happen. It begins with you. What do you see for your kids?
After setting your goals, then build your program and curriculum around your goals. You might need to blow up everything that you are doing right now, but your kids are worth the effort.
Get a vision for the kids in your class. See them accomplishing great things for God.
If you don’t have a vision for them, then who will?
