In my last article I suggested visiting nursing homes with children as a teaching method. There are many other forms of service ministry that children can participate in and learn from. Two major problems often keep us from giving our children the opportunity to learn in this manner. One is the simple fact that parents tend to be very busy, and many feel like just showing up at church a couple times a week is all they can manage. Another is that we usually think of ministry as things that happen at church.
Bruce Powers
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Helping those in need is one of the dominant themes of the New Testament, and a core principle of the church from day 1. If we don’t have time to minister to others, we might be too busy. Schedules that leave little time for the family to do things together are too full. And if your schedule is too full, guess who filled it? Many times we feel as if our schedules fill themselves, but the truth is that we do have a choice. Remember that parable about the sheep and the goats being separated on judgment day? Imagine Jesus saying, “I was hungry and you didn’t feed me,” and the explanation being, “But Lord, do you understand how busy we were?” Jesus never said to love our neighbors if we had time.
I do realize that many parents feel that church helps fill up the schedule. Hopefully, the programs your church offers are worth the time. But teaching our children is our job. The church supports and assists, but parents are responsible. If your church does not offer a ministry that you can do with your children, then go find one. There are nursing homes, homeless ministries and orphanages all around. Goodness, offer to work on someone’s yard or sweep their driveway. We can’t count on Jesus showing up at Wednesday night supper so that we can feed him. Caring for the least of these usually requires us to go outside the church.
Go to nursing homes and visit lonely people. Help your child pick toys to take to a shelter and give to children with nothing. Serve hungry people together at a soup kitchen. These experiences are more than just fulfilling the commands of Christ. They build the family bond. They create memories. They develop positive habits and virtues. They are excellent learning opportunities. But most of all, they make faith real. Believe me, you don’t want your children growing up thinking that being a person of faith means only that you go to church on Sunday and Wednesday. Children who don’t see faith in our lives outside of the church walls grow up wondering what the point is. This is one reason so many “church kids” stop attending once they are on their own.
Make it a point to set aside time for family ministry. There is so much to gain. Let your children feel what it’s like to be the hands and feet of Christ.
Bruce Powers, whose column appears monthly, is pastor of Westhaven Baptist Church in Portsmouth. Other parenting resources are available from Diane Smith of the Virginia Baptist Mission Board’s emerging leaders team.