Children and leaders have fun

If a work is to grow and gain in quality, some basic points must be observed. 

Basic points

The mission clear!

I assume that staff, teams, and church leaders are committed to the Great Commission of Jesus Christ and want to carry it out (Matt. 28:20). But this general formulation is not enough.

Local MIssion Examined and Determined

Every church and team (including those working with children) needs to be clear about what specific mission they are to fulfill. What is their mission in the place where they want to live and work?

• Is it children of their own congregation who are to be ministered to?
• Is the concern to address on Sunday children who do not go to a church at all?
• Is the church located in a rural or urban area?
• etc.

Once this target audience is determined, you can move on to what the values and structure of the ministry should be.

Formulating the goal for the next two years

Where do we want our work to be in two years? It is hugely important that the group's leadership team is clear about what it wants to achieve over the next two or three years, for example:

Is my work ...

... child-focused? Who is the offer aimed at? Does it focus on children? Am I motivated to design a child-oriented program or do I work "as we have always done it"?

... a place where relationship is lived? Are the children known to the leaders? Do the children know they are safe? Are there leaders who are "close" to the child and know what really occupies and moves him?

... factual and application-oriented in the teaching? Can the child in everyday life next Wednesday still do something with the presented teaching part? Does the biblical teaching relate to the child's everyday life?

... characterized by creative, biblical preaching? Are there various elements in the preaching that make it easier for the children to relate to everyday life? Are as many senses of the young audience as possible addressed? Are the methods taking the child out of his or her world?

...designed to be fun for the children and leaders? Work with and around the Bible can be fun. Where joy is involved, children like to invite and adults much prefer to invest their energies.

... a safe place for children? Can children and parents be sure that the children are not put in danger physically or psychologically? Are the leaders able to supervise the young people safely?

• The KIDS-TREFF structure should be in place
• We want to attract three families to our church through the work of KIDS TREFF
• We don't want to just have a casual program, but work and pray that kids will decide to follow Jesus - and we will know about it

A goal is specific and verifiable. It prevents daydreaming and helps you keep at it.

Values of our work at hand!

Meaningful work works with values. Whether the group is called KIDS TREFF, Sunday School, or Jungschar, the six values below will be of help in preparation. The lesson can also be measured against them.

The six values are from Promiseland (Willow Creek). Check them out for yourself to see if they can't be applied to our work in exactly the same way - I'm convinced they can. They can also be adapted or added to for the local church:

Working according to gifts and relationships!

The new work of KIDS TREFF is geared towards using those in charge according to their gifts. Better to distribute the work according to the inclinations of individuals on several shoulders, than to offer a solo part that does not bring joy.

Willingness to be flexible present

From the very beginning, it should be clear that we are rehearsing and will change or adjust again after a trial period.

Important: Do not lose sight of values with all the changeover, otherwise a crash landing of the whole changeover becomes more and more likely.

Source reference:

Content + images:

Forum Child 3/02 Community: Kids and Leaders Have Fun, pages 5 + 6. article about Kids-Treff, its goals, structure and content
copyright www.forum-kind.ch

Author: Hans Forrer, KIDS-TREFF consultant and children's secretary of the Chrischona churches of Switzerland. He is significantly involved in the introduction of KIDS TREFF.