For the past couple of years, MERCYhouse has regularly held “Family Worship Sundays” on the third Sunday of each month. This is a time when our grade level children are invited upstairs to join us for worship and the teaching of God’s Word.
The vision we’ve shared for these Family Worship Sundays is threefold:
To remind our children that they are part of a larger Church Body
To remind ourselves that we have a responsibility to care for our children
To remind our MH:Kids Volunteers to sit under God’s Word and Worship Him
This is what we communicate from the front each time we have a Family Worship Sunday. And while it isn’t a direct prescription from the Bible to have a Family Worship Sunday, there are many Biblical reasons for why we want to continue to do this.
I’d like to take this opportunity to remind us of how Family Worship Sundays fit into our theological framework of loving our children.
The Challenge of Loving Children Well
Children can sometimes be a significant distraction; they lack self control, volume control, and emotional control. They don’t always pick up on social queues, they struggle with focusing and they have to use the bathroom way more often than (most) adults. They whine, complain and cry when they don’t have their needs met.
The reason why we have a dedicated Kids Ministry is not so that we can avoid dealing with these realities– our MH:Kids program is tailored specifically for these realities. Our teachers are trained to teach and disciple our children according to our children’s cognitive and developmental level, as a way to better love them and reach them where they’re at.
But we need to be careful that having them in a separate space which alleviates many of the distractions that accompany them… does not become the comfortable norm for our church. It should not be a relief when they’re out of the room, nor a frustration when they enter it.
There’s a moment from Jesus’ ministry that not only guides a lot of our understanding of why we have Family Worship Sundays, but how we should interact with our children as a church:
Mark 10:13–16
And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.
We should let our children come to Him.
Notice the misstep of the disciples in the passage above: people are trying to bring children to Jesus but the disciples cut them off. The disciples scold them, and prevent the children from accessing Jesus. Whether it was because of their distracting nature (listed above), or thinking that the Son of Man would be annoyed by their presence… the disciples deny access to Jesus. May it never be so at MERCYhouse! Our Church should make accessing God easy, not be a hindrance to it. God warmly welcomes children into His presence, and we as His church should as well.
We should bless our children.
Jesus doesn’t welcome the children into his presence, he embraces them and blesses them. They’re not just permitted to merely be in the same space as the grownups– they get the best seat in the house on the lap of the King of Kings! Family Worship Service can sometimes get a little wild, especially during the kid’s lesson. But there’s a reason why we have that teaching time, and why we put it up at the front of our service: our kids don’t get our scraps, but we want them to have the best portion. May our church not simply tolerate our children, but bless and treasure them as God does.
We can be blessed by our children.
The children in Mark 10 aren’t in the way of Jesus’ teaching but become the lesson itself. Their “child-like faith” which whole-heartedly receives Christ and all that He brings is the model for genuine conversion! Yes, the older shall serve the younger and we have a responsibility to care for these children, but the road of blessing is not one-way. A child’s fresh perspective, their inclination toward honesty, their youthful zeal, their pure prayers and general joy for life and goofiness can all be used by God to encourage us and teach us profound lessons. May we be humble enough to be blessed by our children!
We should disciple our children.
Our hope for Family Worship Sundays is not just to have them in the room to bless them and be blessed by them. Ultimately, we want our children to be edified by God’s Word alongside God’s people and respond in worship and praise together as one voice with all the saints.
God makes it clear: we have a responsibility to raise our children in His ways (Deuteronomy 6:6). We’re to teach them God’s Word to make them wise for salvation (2 Timothy 3:15). Sundays are not just a blessing to kids and their families momentarily… God says that if we, “train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” (Proverbs 22:6) This is a heavenly calling with long lasting, eternal ramifications.
On Sunday mornings, this responsibility falls squarely on the shoulders of your elders. We are the ones who are tasked to preach the Word in ways that edify the believer and evangelize the non-believer. This is a challenge that we take on joyfully, and we make it our holy ambition to grow in our ability to teach God’s Word in ways that engage our children’s minds and hearts on that third Sunday of each month. Pray for us as we discern how to best adapt the content and format for the good of our children without sacrificing the Glory of God.
Practical Guidance for Families
All this being said, it is hard for some of our young ones to sit through a whole service! Discipleship is a process and sanctification takes time. We don’t expect our children to be perfectly behaved on Family Worship Sundays, but here is some guidance on how to lead them through a service and some healthy expectations we can place on them:
Children should sit with their parents, or parents of friends.
We understand this will be hard for some and impossible for others but we want to train our children to eventually be able to sit and listen to God’s Word being taught for 30 minutes. This endurance will not only be helpful as young students and members of society, but Lord willing it will yield the spiritual fruit of Christ-like character and an eternal Hope in the Gospel.Utilize the “Worship Bins” that we’ll provide.
We’ve begun putting together activity bins for families with items that will bless our children and help them focus. These bins will be family-specific, so bear with us as we get to know your children better! Input and feedback is welcome here!Challenge Older Kids to fill out Sermon Notes.
In addition to coloring sheets and other activities, we encourage children who can write to try and fill out the “Sermon Notes” page to help foster active listening. These pages will be found inside your family’s Worship Bins.Take time to have a family church recap after service.
Discipleship continues in the home (Deuteronomy 6:6-9). We want to encourage families to take the time to “debrief” a Sunday worship service. What were the takeaway points? What was the central Bible verse? Was there a favorite song? This shouldn’t just be the kids answering— parents should take this opportunity to share what the Lord is teaching them as well!
What about our youth and teens?
Our Kid’s Ministry currently ends at fifth grade, after which we invite our middle schoolers to join us in service. We think that at this level, our youth will begin having the capacity to be blessed and edified alongside adults in our regular service. That being said, we would like our church to grow in how to intentionally love our youth and teens. MERCYhouse is prayerfully working on developing a Youth Fellowship and Teen Ministry to serve our growing kids. If you’d like to be a part of this, please contact Pastor Tommy (tommy@mercyhouse365.org)
What are we celebrating?
Our hope and prayer is that our church matures enough to be a place where children are welcomed, children are blessed, where we’re blessed by our children, and where we’re able to effectively make disciples of Christ out of them.
But there’s one more thing: seeing our children walk in faith ought to be one of the most joyful experiences of our church, and something that we all celebrate with great zeal.
3 John 3–4
“For I rejoiced greatly when the brothers came and testified to your truth, as indeed you are walking in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.”
John is speaking metaphorically, but how much more true must it be literally! Lord, bless our children with faith in you! Bless our church with the joy of having children who walk in Truth. Continue to build this household of faith by your mercy, from the oldest to the youngest, for generations to come.
Amen.
