When we give children opportunities to serve—we are laying the foundation for a lifetime of ministry! In this post, I’ll be sharing steps we can take to help children learn what it means to serve—and how they can be involved in ministry. Kids in Ministry is a course I taught for Children’s Ministries University Online, and I’ll be discussing some key points from the course here.
While we understand that children learn from listening and observing, we need to help them move from being just observers and good listeners—to being active participants at some point. How we do this, will of course, depend on their age, their abilities, and their individual personalities. But in a general sense, there are some key principles we can follow that will help children grow in this area.
1. Create an environment that encourages participation. As teachers, we need to create an atmosphere of love and acceptance in our classes; a safe environment where children feel secure enough to step out and try new things. Children by nature are “doers”, they want to do what adults do. But their desire to be involved can be squelched by well meaning people. If children think an adult will embarrass them by pointing out all their mistakes,they will hesitate to volunteer.
Adults need to remember that if we are overly critical or expect perfection, we can discourage our students. Instead we should give them helpful advice; show them the right way to do things; and then gently correct them when necessary.
Another reason kids may hesitate to participate is concern over what their peers may think. This is more prevalent in older children. Establishing respect for everyone in the class will go a long way towards preventing these concerns. Teachers who model respect for others are teaching children by their consistent example.
2. Listen to their ideas. Plan times for discussions and let the kids share their ideas. Give them opportunities to help you plan special events. This is especially good for older children who want to have adults take their ideas seriously. Brainstorm with children about specific ways that they can serve.
Of course, you can’t always say yes to their ideas, nor should you. But try to implement an idea you think has merit. If you’re unsure, you can say, “I’ll think about that” or, “That idea has possibilities.” My parents often said, “We’ll see…” Probably most of us have heard that—and said that before! Certainly there are times we just need to say no and explain why because kids can come up with some pretty impractical ideas. But if they know you are willing to consider their ideas, it will encourage them to participate.
3. Teach children how to serve. We begin by teaching our students the biblical basis of serving. Galatians 5:13 KJV says, By love serve one another. This should be the reason for all our service; because we love God and we love each other. We don’t want to give children the impression that service is simply activity; it’s not about how busy we are doing things for people, but why we are doing those things. Jesus showed his great love for us by serving, He said, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve…Mark 10:45NIV. We have no better example to follow!
I’ll continue writing on this subject in other posts.
God bless you today!
Verda
