8. Give Parents Easy Wins
The time in church is just the start of the conversation. Help parents continue it at home by creating a “Faith Talk” insert for the bulletin with questions from the sermon. Older kids can fill it out during church and parents/caregivers can use it to continue the conversation at home. A sermon note sheet for kids can work much the same way; have the kids or youth fill it out during church and then give it to parents to continue the conversation.
9. Engage the Congregation
If having kids in service is new to your church, give the congregation fair warning. Provide a time for them to meet the kids (put faces with names and parents with kids) and encourage a time of fellowship for all before adding the kids to the service. Some churches start with including all ages in the service once and month and grow from there.
10. Give Kids a Voice
You’d be surprised how much we can learn from children but often we still follow the “Kids should be seen and not heard” rule. Give kids an avenue to share what God is speaking to them by affirming to them that they can and do hear from God and giving them a space to share that. A bulletin board where they can hang a picture they drew in service or a note they wrote about what they learned can create a space where the whole church can hear and affirm their hearts for God.
This article originally appeared here and is used by permission.
