Somebody yell “RETREAT!”

Is Children’s Ministry a holding tank that just keeps kids busy until they reach youth ministry and THEN the real ministry begins? This just in…we can do things ‘outside the box’ in Children’s Ministry!

We know the stats are there. A big ole’ chunk of Christians get saved by age 13. Too many churches are pushing to the upper age limits before they really dig into Scripture application with kids. Too many are focused on teaching the stories of the Bible but not the application. I believe kids can apply Scripture to their lives AS KIDS.

Here’s a couple things that we did this year that were all focused on teaching elementary kids to apply Scripture to their everyday lives.

We had a 3rd & 4th Grade overnight retreat at Camp Gilead
1. We talked about DEATH!
  1. Yep, we talked about trusting God when life hurts
  2. What Heaven will be like
  3. It’s not the end of the world when Christians die
2. 3rd & 4th graders had a mountain top “God” weekend
3. We also had a lot of fun!

As a rabbit trail – If you haven’t read Jerry Bridges “Trusting God When Life Hurts”… it’s the absolute best book to teach you about the sovereignty of God and forgiveness in application.

We have TWO 5th Grade overnight retreats
1. We dug into Romans 12:1 (expo teaching to kids!)
  1. What is “Therefore” there for
  2. What does it mean to “offer/present” our bodies as a living sacrifice
2. Second retreat we dug into Romans 12:2
  1. Don’t conform to the world
  2. Be transformed by the renewing of the mind
  3. God’s will is always good (even when it doesn’t “appear” to be)
3. 5th graders got to have two mountain top “God” weekends
4. TONS of fun!

So, is your elementary ministry…ummm, well, too elementary? I’d encourage you to yell “RETREAT” and see what happens. By the way, this isn’t a free weekend for you. Be part of the solution…get involved in the Children’s Ministry. The most fertile mission field.

Kids Pastor
Patrick Newbill