Karen Ware Jackson
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5 Ways Kids Can Transform Your Church

1/29/2016

9 Comments

 
PictureBread of Life + Glitter = Disco Grace

Children in a sacred space can be distracting, but worship is not about our experience – be it beautiful or broken. Worship is about God. 


It is not always easy to welcome these wiggly wanderers into our sanctuaries, but when we do, kids transform our worship of the Living God with their unique gifts:

  1. Their glee - Whether they channel their inner rhythmic gymnast with ribbon sticks during a hymn, pass the peace with high fives, or offer heartfelt prayers for a lost teddy bear, kids season our sensible service with surprising depth and mirth. Kids fidget and interject. They dance and sing. They color and clap. They listen and ask questions – and they do some of these things at unfortunate moments. 
    But no matter how crazy or loud or messy the kids get, God arrives anyway. On the wings of glory and giggles, the Spirit calls children to interrupt our worship routine, to help us take ourselves less seriously and to embrace the holiness of spontaneity.


  2. Their glitter - Children are rarely empty-handed in worship. They may scoot in with stuffed animals and snacks or grab for the pencils and hymnals in the pews, but kids tend to keep busy. This is how they learn and process their surroundings, but it’s also how they praise God, and you can join them! Look for what the kids are holding.
    With fists full of goldfish, glue, glitter, or grace - once children bring the sparkles into the sanctuary you can never get them out. Ever. Every week, someone leaves baptized with a little disco-Jesus-love, marked with the cross of fabulous grace. Don’t be afraid to get a little messy.


  3. Their greed - Children arrive at the communion table eyes wide with holy anticipation, hands outstretched for a great big hunk of Jesus the Bread of Life. And then they come back - like little Oliver Twist - “Please, may I have some more?” 
    Kids hunger for God. How might our church be transformed if we all approached the throne of grace with that soul-rumbling hunger?


  4. Their generosity-  Kids pass the sacred bread around God’s table just as they do the hallowed markers, the venerable scissors, and the revered glue-sticks - because there is always enough to share. This is one of the great lessons of childhood that we tend to neglect as we mature.
    We teach our children to share even when - especially when - they don’t want to. Whether it is a special toy, a new box of crayons, or bag of halloween candy, children learn to take turns and give of what they have. In a culture that screams “more! more! more!” kids remind us that when we share, we all get enough.


  5. Their grace - This October for World Communion Sunday, I planned a solemn and moving liturgy recognizing the brokenness in our church and our world, calling on Jesus to make us one through the bread and cup. But God and my two year old son had other plans. As I began the prayer, he grabbed a rainbow ribbon stick and began running down the aisles, big sister on his heals, both of them laughing with wild abandon. I could have been frustrated and grumpy that the kids ruined my liturgy, but I chose to smile and laugh. We cannot control the actions of children (or anyone for that matter), but we can choose how we respond.
    Instead of looking down at the words of my well-crafted prayer, the children shifted my focus up and out to this fearfully and wonderfully made Body of Christ - old and young, middle-class and working poor, black and white, native-born and immigrant - relishing the in-breaking of Holy Spirit, united in God’s Holy Presence, freed to worship Christ in grace and truth.


When we move the children out of the sanctuary, we worship blindfolded. It might be easier to hear the Word but it’s harder to see holiness of the whole Body of Christ worshipping together. 

So the next time kids ruin your worship, will you sigh and start crafting an email to their parents or the pastor in your head, or will you chuckle and start looking for the Spirit in the midst of the mess?

Choose freedom over frustration. Choose grace. Allow the little ones to transform you into something bigger, more beautiful and more powerful than you ever imagined - the Church.

9 Comments
Pat Greer
1/30/2016 05:48:41 pm

I enjoy watching and listening to their laughter, cries, or babble. I look forward to seeing and hearing from the little ones.

Reply
Karen link
2/2/2016 11:28:14 pm

Me too! I was just a large conference without my children (praise be!) but I spent every worship service playing with the kids. I brought a bunch of stuff to help children engage (ribbons sticks, battery powered candles, books) and I just loved playing/praying with them and experiencing worship through their eyes.

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Celia Smith
1/31/2016 02:05:33 am

At Armidale Uniting Church, Armidale NSW Australia, my friend and I enjoy every moment of the children's presence, their noise, joy, sadness, glee, activity, creativity, spontaneity and love. My friend is now confined to a wheel chair and suffers from the disease of dementia. Every Sunday we travel to church in the wheelchair taxi. Every week in the aged care facility, despite all the care of the staff, he has very limited and frustrating days. Church on Sunday with his friends, the familiar surroundings, the hymns and prayers and the new delights that the children bring every week make this time special for him and me. Every week I know it could be his last so when we join the children at the craft table it is a special joy to see him gain clarity of thoughts and spontaneity of responses. Last week we worked on a children's cross word puzzle based around the story of the Good Samaritan. He had a go first, took a long time, added just one word and handed it back to me. I wondered if he couldn't do any more but thought oh well we'd keep having a go so I did one and handed it back to him. We kept doing this and completed nearly all the short puzzle. Such a thrill because he hasn't been able to do crossword puzzles for quite a while. At the same time he was enjoying the children moving around him, talking, drawing and doing activities. Sometimes he'd reach out and hold the hand of a passing child and they'd "pass the peace". This is special and I wouldn't want to miss out on this at all. It is a time of God With Us.

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Evelaine Berry
1/31/2016 09:36:40 pm

This made my heart sing!🎼

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Karen link
2/2/2016 11:34:36 pm

Celia, thank you so much for sharing this story. What a powerful witness to the glory of worship with the whole family of God! My prayers are with you, your friend, and your church - that the peace you pass might make it's home in your heart in every moment.

At my church, we always lift up the names of other churches in our prayers, and this Sunday we will include Armidale Uniting Church. The peace of Christ be with you!

Reply
Carol
2/5/2016 04:34:23 pm

In Answer to Karen:
They can continue in junior church until high school age (ish) after that they worship in with the adults but there is also a youth group that meets about monthly, they do like their time in that to discuss in a small group etc. We don't tend to mark the transition as they themselves just take it as what happens. The advantage to being in main church for part of every service ( the whole time on 3rd Sunday) is that they are familiar with it. Oh yes special times are altogether.
By the way I don't have an active role in junior church but I really believe in what they do

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Karen link
2/9/2016 10:30:03 pm

Carol, that sounds wonderful! I think it's really lovely that your young people get the chance to experience both their own worship experience that really meet their needs, and also your joint service once a month. I think that's a good model and it soumds like ita working for you. I'm glad you've got such a great ministry.

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Carol
2/10/2016 02:23:37 am

I love the fact that our youngsters are in main church for part of every service so they see how adults worship. It's not a ministry I'm directly involved in but it's wonderful to see.

Karla link
7/5/2024 01:05:38 am

Great blog I enjoyed readinng

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