The Quiet Room

Recently, Chase and I were able to attend a Kid’s Ministry conference in Chicago, where we were able to attend several helpful seminars on how to do children’s ministry better. One of the principles emphasized at the conference was that children have the ability, the desire, and the need to connect with God on a personal level. Our services tend to be fast-paced, fun, and energetic, but this past Saturday we started to incorporate changes that will enable kids to meet with God more intimately. We sang slower worship songs, allowed kids to spend time during the service silently praying to God, and created a separate room where kids can go to be quiet and pray during the play times before and after the service. We had several kids request to go to the prayer room on Saturday. One boy came up to ask where the prayer room was, but since we were about to dismiss the kids, we told him that he could go next week, and he was clearly disappointed. We were told at the conference that many churches give kids what they “want” (fast, energetic entertainment) and not want they “yearn for” (a connection with their Creator). We certainly witnessed this to be true as kids responded so well to the new changes this week!