Focus: The purpose of this section is to help different members of the body of Christ become more familiar with the functions of each other.

Focus: Children’s Ministries, By Susie Tercero

Both my husband and I got saved in 1979, and from the beginning of our Christian walk, God gave us a heart and a love for the children. He challenged us to trust Him for the children He had for us. “Children are a gift and a blessing from Him.” This is the way we were to accept each pregnancy and child we were blessed with. God blessed us with twelve children and through the years He has proven Himself more than faithful.

Soon after we were saved and discipled, God called us to “Feed the Lambs”, and so for over 20 years we have been involved in children’s ministries. Here again we view children as a gift and a blessing from God. We have worked in children’s church and Sunday School programs, in youth clubs such as KFG (Kids for Christ), Royal Ranges, Missionettes, and summer Bible programs. Our ministry focus is on the children and the importance of seeing them saved. We want children to realize how important they are to God and to us. We do not view our ministry as a time for entertainment and babysitting. It is a time to implant the Word of God in them and to share salvation with them. We encourage our co-workers to have the same vision and desire.

God has a special place in His heart for the children. Jesus himself said, “Permit the children to come to me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it at all.” God rejoices in children’s simplicity, innocence and willingness to love others—they are teachable, moldable and trusting. It is such a joy to be teaching a Bible story and Bible truth, look into the faces of the children you are teaching, and see that they believe! Christianity and the Bible are very simple, but we as adults complicate it. Children in their innocence and simplicity accept God’s Word at face value and believe it. It is so refreshing to be around them and to each them and to learn from them.

I have found out that God pours into my own life as I pour in to the lives of the children. Sometimes I am struggling with a problem or have a question, and as I prepare for class or as I am answering a child’s question, God answers my own questions. It always blesses me when God uses me to answer a question a child has about a story or about scripture, and as I answer, God puts the words in my mouth—I ask myself, “Did I know that, did that come from me?” God is faithful to use us, if we are willing to be used.

When we first started working in children’s ministries we found that many times people were not willing to help with the children because they feared “getting stuck teaching” every week. We heard this over and over; therefore we began using the team concept in forming our teacher groups. We break up the classes into five age groups, and each group is made up of a group leader and four other teachers. This gives us one teacher for each Sunday of the month plus one for the fifth Sunday. This way the teachers only miss one Sunday per month from attending adult services. Another fear that many people have in teaching is that they do not know the Bible well enough to teach about it. To alleviate this fear we provide for the teachers a children’s church curriculum that has 13 lessons per quarter. It plans out a complete 1 ½ hour teaching session which not only gives Bible Stories and scripture memory verses but also modern day applications, craft and game ideas to enhance the story. We encourage the teachers to also share from their own experiences and to be led by the Holy Spirit. The curriculum is there as a tool, but they are not bound to it. Both the team concept and the curriculum have helped to keep teacher burn-out to a minimum.

My husband and I believe that the children’s ministries are a very important part of the church. If we as a church are to continue to grow and prosper we must be aware of the importance of ministering to the children, not only the ones raised in the church, but also the ones coming from outside the church. We must have a heart and a love for them. We must have a desire to see them saved at a young age so that the multitude of sins could be covered and avoided. Remember, God’s Word does not return void and the planting of these seeds is very fruitful and rewarding.