How do you feel about children’s sermon at your church? If you’re on the fence about the effectiveness of kids messages, keep reading…
A mom approached me after a recent Sunday evening worship service. “I wasn’t going to come tonight,” she said. “I worked all day and was tired. So I came home and just wanted to crash. But Anna would have none of it. She said, ‘Mom, I want to go to church!'”
Typically, fewer than 60 people attend our Sunday evening services. Yet our fastest-growing demographic is children younger than 10. Why? Because we make our services child-friendly, with a meaningful children’s sermon.
This year, we added a children’s sermon to each service. We invite elementary children to come up front with me. Usually, I sit on the platform and have them sit around me. These talks typically last 7 to 10 minutes.
What is it about these short talks that makes a child ask to come to church?
4 Tips for Your Children’s Sermon
Use these 4 guidelines to create a great children’s sermon:
1. Use Object Lessons.
I usually have a small table up front that contains an object lesson. It’s always covered up, creating a curiosity factor. The kids can’t wait to see what’s under the tablecloth. Every children’s sermon includes something different.
When talking about living a fruitful life, for example, I showed them two dishes. One had really rotten bananas, and one had fresh bananas. “What kind of life do you want to offer God?” I asked.
When talking about God’s help in life, we set up bowling pins of plastic 2-liter bottles. When we try to do things on our own without God’s help, we bowled with a ping-pong ball. With God’s help, we bowled much more successfully with a basketball.
The key is to be creative. Kids love seeing how things work, and they have a much greater imagination than adults. Have fun and be a kid yourself!
2. Focus your entire attention on the children.
At first, children may be nervous about being up front. Look them in the eyes. Tell them this is their special time with the pastor. Everyone else can listen in, but this is their time. Ask questions. Listen to their answers. Respond.
Don’t be locked into a script. Have a general plan, but be willing to adjust on the fly. Kids really do say the darndest things. They will ask the questions everyone wants to know! So enjoy this conversation with young churchgoers.
3. Never forget your adult audience.
While your attention is entirely focused on the children, know that adults will be hanging on your every word. Pastor, you work hard on every adult sermon and dream of grownups tuning in to your every word. After a few years, you begin to realize this will probably never be as true as you wish it to be. Until it comes to delivering a kids sermon!
Suddenly adults are craning their necks, leaning forward, entirely focused! Why? Because of the kids, the uncertainty, and the fun. Bottom line: The children’s sermon may be your best chance to connect with your adult churchgoers.
