21 Sep Our Children’s Ministry Is Growing

Big things are happening with the kids at First Baptist Church!

In this very precious ministry I have been working diligently to grow. This is not because numbers make my ministry successful. In truth, I’m invested in this ministry. I have a 1st and 3rd grader in this ministry. I see myself working towards the future. The firm foundation of faith and fellowship I am building now, I hope will carry these precious children into their youth. I see more kids in this ministry as more Christians my children will have to support them through their teen years. We all know that how hard those middle school and high school years can be. I see these children in the future supporting each other and being a beacon of Christ in each other’s lives. I envision them being examples to each other, accountability partners, and safe havens to feel as if they are needed, loved, and have a place they fit. This is my current mission as the Minister of Children at First Baptist Church.

So, how are we making this happen? Great question! We have some great ministry opportunities for our children and both Wednesday Nights as well as Sunday Mornings.

On Sunday mornings our children have many adults working to teach them about Jesus and the Bible. I personally have a time with children during both services. I work to align my message with the Bible verse that is being preached on that day. Some Sundays, this isn’t quite as feasible. However, I find it important to try to teach a similar lesson to the children that is being taught to adults. Many of the parents in our congregation find it important to have our kids in the service with us. As our children grow we have witnessed them paying more and more attention to the sermon. Seeing alignments in the message or hearing the scripture multiple times. This consistency is so important to engaging them long term in our church.

​Kid’s Church has recently been introduced to our traditional service! Our children now have the opportunity to leave after the children’s message. In addition to the children’s message that the children participate in during the service, we have a second lesson during children’s church. I have worked to find an engaging video retelling the scripture to the children. We then have our own worship & dance party. Parents can pick up kids in the adult library located directly next to the nursery!

​Our younger children also have ministry opportunities on Sunday mornings! Our nursery teaches a short bible lesson to our birth-3 year olds. The nursery is available for the duration of our early service, Life Groups, and our traditional second service. Regardless of when they attend, they will hear a Bible story and do a small craft or activity.

Speaking of the nursery, our veteran nursery leader, Sharon Widener is retiring! Sharon has dedicated the last 22 years to the infants and toddlers in our church. She has poured so much into the children of our church and been an essential part of our ministry. She has been a staple in our congregation and many parents through many generations have been happy and relieved to see her smiling face greeting them as they drop off their children. She will not have the luxury of of participating in our church services as well as fellowship in a Life Group. While we are sad to see her retire, we know her life will be that much fuller as she participates and experiences all of the things she has made possible for so many parents through the years!

​FBC Kids on Wednesday nights is an experience to be reckoned with! We have lots of visitors on Wednesday nights and our kids bring friends regularly. We start off our night with Fellowship Dinners in the FLC. Over covid and immediately after, we served dinner in our classroom. We will now be meeting in the FLC and eating dinner there. From there we head to Kid’s Choir. Kid’s Choir is led by Ms. Terri (King) and her ability to engage children of all ages is something to be experienced! With an average of 25 children, they get to sing songs and hymns, learn how to play instruments while keeping a beat, as well as practice songs and musicals to perform! Throughout this entire time, Ms. Terri is integrating as much of her knowledge about Jesus as possible! It’s amazing how much these kiddos can learn in such a short period of time.

​After Kid’s Choir we go to the 3rd floor for a Bible Lesson. We have grown so much in the last year that we had a need to separate! Starting this Fall we have hav begun splitting up for our Bible Lesson. Half of the kids go with Ms. Madison and half with Ms. Lauren. More specifically, the preschoolers through first grade go with Ms. Madison and a helper to do an age appropriate lesson. The 2nd through 5th graders go with Ms. Lauren (me) and Mr. Albert for the same bible lesson as the younger kiddos, only age appropriate. Both groups integrate worship songs and a craft or activity to align with their lesson. This is one of the most exciting parts of our ministry, as our church members often bring friends and visitors drop in even though they have a home church!​

We are so eager and excited to see our children’s ministry grow. We are building fellowship with our children as well as the their parents. The coming months will include many activities like small performances in Sunday service, truck-or-treat and so much more heading into the holiday season! We sincerely hope you’ll consider having your child participate in our growing ministry as we lead children towards Christ and teach them to be like Jesus each and every day.

Lauren Neal
Minister of Children