On any given Sunday morning, one-third of the attenders at Malvern Hill are 18 years old or younger. We are a medium sized church on the edge of a small city. Currently, we average around 300 in worship, and you can almost guarantee that if we have 300 in worship this Sunday, 100 of them will be 18 or under. There are unique challenges that come with being a church filled with young people–primarily that those who are 18 and under do not normally tithe– but there are of course incredible blessings. Young people bring life and joy and they are the present and the future of the church.
I am aware that we are a bit abnormal because we are so young, but I am convinced that we do not have to be a unicorn. I believe that other churches can reach young people too. I am hopeful for the church in North America and I actually believe that churches can continue to reach young people and older people and everyone in between. But, because reaching young people is a constant conversation at meetings I attend and among pastors whom I know, I thought I would share some of the things that we have done to be a church that welcomes the next generation. These are in no particular order.
- Welcome children and their families. We are happy to see kids come in, we are ok when they cry, and we deal with dirty hand prints on walls and broken things. Kids are clumsy and messy. Kids run in church and scream in hallways. If you are going to be a church that welcomes children and their families, be ready to overlook some things for the sake of reaching them.
- Invest financially in next generation ministry. We budget sufficiently for children’s ministry and student ministry. Of course there could always be more money, but we ask leaders how much money the need and work to make budgeting for these ministries a priority. Ministries like Vacation Bible School and our annual fall festival are separated out into the missions budget so that the children’s ministry and student ministry budgets are not expected to cover these two large items. This also helps us to explain to our church that our goal in those two events is not to do something for our church people, but to reach out to our community.
- Invest people in ministry. Children’s ministry is not bush league or J. V. ministry. It is real ministry to real people and it deserves investment from quality individuals within our church. From the time kids enter the nursery until they graduate high school, we want our kids to have leaders and teachers who are gifted and who desire to be with them. Warm bodies are not enough to disciple 8 year olds, they need and deserve Christian leaders who want to disciple them into mature believers. Place some of your best teachers in the children’s department.
- Take care of your facilities. Our children’s and youth facilities are not state of the art, but they are clean and orderly. They meet the needs of our kids and we try to make sure that they look like environments fit for 2019 and not 1979. Right now our children’s building is receiving a much needed face lift. Seriously, you can do a lot with a gallon of paint. If you want to reach children and youth, one of the first steps you can take is to spruce up your facilities.
- Pastor, personally invest in children and teenagers. I go to youth camp most summers. I don’t have to. Our student pastor doesn’t need me, but I get asked to go and I enjoy our students. They know that they matter to me and as a result, they invest more heavily in our church. For our children, they know that my office is always open and I usually keep candy so that they feel comfortable. I also teach in our children’s department a few times throughout the year. It is fun and it reminds our children that I am their pastor just as much as I am the pastor to their parents and grandparents.
- Have assigned leaders for children’s and student ministry. We do not have a paid children’s minister, but are blessed to have a lady who gives more hours than we could pay for. She is in charge of our children’s ministry and parents and kids know to whom they should turn for answers. We do have a paid minister in charge of students and missions, and likewise parents and teens know to whom they should turn for answers. Pastors, as a side note, once you have those leaders in place, let them lead.
- Involve students and children in the overall life of your church. Our young people participate in missions activities and mission trips. They help lead worship and on some special Sundays take over leadership of worship. Children help to decorate for VBS, teens help to lead VBS and kindergartners assist with baptism. We even have sixth graders playing instruments with our worship team and other teens who are involved with A/V ministry in our church. Those in the next generation want to make a difference. Give them opportunities to invest in the church.
- Be committed to safety and security. Parents know when they drop off their kids that doors will be locked, allergy warnings will be taken seriously, and the adult leaders caring for their kids have passed background checks. Safety matters, so be serious about it.
- Welcome children with special needs. I have to admit that we didn’t set out to welcome children with special needs, we set out to be a welcoming place to all kids. We discovered that welcoming all kids meant welcoming all kinds of kids, and as a result we have become a safe place for kids with special needs. One of my favorite joys on Sunday mornings is seeing one of our special little girls with her therapy dog. They both fit right in at Malvern Hill.
- Make young people visible. Don’t relegate your children and youth to other places in the building. Worship together. Even though we have children’s worship for preschool and elementary school kids on Sunday mornings, they worship with the entire church for the first fifteen minutes of worship. They worship with their parents and their church family. The see the value of worship and learn how to sing and pray and hear Scripture read, but the rest of the church also gets to see the kids. Adults understand the value of children’s ministry when they hold hands with a child during worship or see them exit in droves to their time of worship. If you want your church to value children’s ministry, they have to see the kids.
- Invest in parents. If you want to reach children, you’ve got to reach parents as well. Offer good small groups for parents, recruit them to serve in the children’s ministry, and come along side them as they seek to raise their children in the Lord. We offer parenting classes and marriage seminars and good fellowship for families. Parents need help and most of them are willing to receive it.
Your church can reach the next generation and the ten steps I’ve listed above can help you to do it. Maybe you’ve found some other things that are helpful in your church setting, I’d love to hear about them in the comments.
Excellent!!