Angela Hosner mentioned the needs of the Children’s and Preschool Ministries a few weeks ago. I wanted to share something you might not be are of: Our vision for being intentional with an hour each week with your children in Connections to spread God’s fame to the next generation! I am encouraged as I am reminded and reflect upon this each year. It is something we take very seriously and I am honored to be part of a church that values this:

For too long nurseries have been part of church life because “somebody” has to take care of the infants and toddlers while their parents participate in worship services and Connections classes. Infants and toddlers can be a distraction in these settings; therefore, nurseries exist. But the church nursery should be an exciting and vital ministry in the church. It can be more than a babysitting service-it can be a launching pad for nurturing the faith of the next generation. If the nursery is viewed as a place of prayer for young children, a place where children learn simple truth statements as they for their language skills, and a place where they hear foundational Bible stories, the nursery can be transformed into an integral beginning of ministry to children.

How can this transformation take place? Nursery workers must view themselves not only as childcare workers but also as prayer warriors and ministers to children. If every child is prayed for every time he or she is in the nursery what might God be pleased to do in response to those prayers? If nursery workers see their chief functions as not only changing diapers but sowing truth in the lives of these little ones, what might God be pleased to accomplish? The nursery should be seen as a place where kingdom business takes place.

God is not limited by language, and His work in the soul of a child can begin long before that child understands words. Since God is not limited by the lack of cognitive ability in children, we should not limit our efforts to nurture faith in the youngest of children. We should conscientiously “spread the fragrance of the knowledge” of Jesus Christ and trust God to use our simple efforts for the eternal joy of our children. Little by little, as children begin to understand words, they can understand and respond to the truth of the gospel.

This puts nursery ministry in a whole new light. Nursery ministry is not just a ministry to parents by caring for their children. It is more than changing diapers, feeding a baby a bottle, and putting clean sheets on a crib. The nursery is a ministry to the soul. It is participation in the work of God in a child’s soul. A nursery worker who understands this will work differently than a nursery worker who looks upon nursery work as only a ministry of babysitting. The foundations laid in the nursery ministry can bear fruit throughout a child’s life reaching even to the next generation. An hour strategically used for kingdom purposes can reap a harvest of souls.

I pray you are encouraged by this! Please pray for the teachers as they strive to do this each and every Sunday. If you would like to be a part of this vital ministry, please contact me.

For His glory,
Taaryn Holbrook

*Excerpt taken from our curriculum, A Sure Foundation