Children’s Ministry

5 Simple Ways to Use Picture Books During Advent for All Ages Ministry

Family ministry (and ministry in general!) can be extremely chaotic during Advent. Churches squeeze in a lot of programs and activities, and ministry to children and families becomes a priority as visitors and friends attend. One of the “tricks up my sleeve” during Advent has been to rely on good picture books to rotate during

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The Violence of the Cross and Children: Thoughts Before Holy Week

On the walk to school a few months ago my five-year-old son, Samuel, asked me a question. Samuel is my second born, sandwiched between my talkative oldest and the attention-grabbing youngest. A classic middle child, he usually keeps a low profile, preferring to keep his thoughts to himself. On this day, though, he surprised me

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Someone You Should Know: A Conversation With Laura Alary about Atonement Theology and Making Room During Lent

Make Room: A Child’s Guide for Lent and Easter is a primer on Lent and Easter for young children. It’s part poetry, part practice and part storytelling. It’s divided up into four parts, making time, making space, making room and Holy Week.  It describes difficult concepts such as sacrifice and emptying in ways that are friendly

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Children at the Table: Some Thoughts on Communion and Children

I can’t imagine communion without children being present, partaking in the sacrament right alongside adults. I’m always taken aback, then, when I hear of people or churches requiring communion be reserved for children of a certain age, or for children who have completed some “to do” on the checklist, such as a public profession of

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Shared Truths About Santa and Jesus: How to Talk to Children

Does teaching belief in Santa lead to a feeling of betrayal once a child learns the “truth” about him? How should Christian parents teach about Santa in a way that fosters trust and encourages mystery? There are certainly a wide variety of opinions out there. Mine is this: Christian parents would do well to teach

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