Many thinkers, scholars, and pastors are worried about the American church and the sad state of evangelism in the church. As I have often reminded us, there is not a single county in the USA that has seen the percentage of church growth increase in 40 years. We do have some larger churches today, but it is primarily because they are taking people from small churches, or they are sometimes the only churches doing outreach (mostly in the form of advertising and entertainment) but not really making disciples of Jesus Christ. This attraction conversion model is producing converts who barely know their bibles, who lack depth or commitment. It is not in spite of our efforts but as a direct result of them. Our system is perfectly designed to get the results that we are getting.
What does all of this have to do with children? Well, we know that our most effective efforts in evangelism are our efforts to reach children between 4 years old and 14 years of age. We call it the 4-14 window. Over eighty percent of all people who come to Christ do so between the ages of 4-14. Despite the stats, we tend to spend 95% of our budgets trying to reach the other twenty percent (those over 14). We spend the majority of our teaching efforts, and our energy on them too. And in many cases children’s ministry is left with warm bodies to do little more than babysit while the adults get their church on. This should not be!
I know that not everyone is cut out for children’s ministry, but everyone can pray for and support the children's ministry. One of the advantages we have is that we have two services. You can attend a service and serve a service. Meaning you don’t have to miss out on anything the adults do, and still do some teaching. You can still be a mentor, and help keep our children’s environment safe, comfortable, and encouraging. You can invest in the future, and do some effective evangelism. If we want the church of the future to be there, then we must invest in the children in the present. So that we not only reach them, but we disciple them, so that they will Love God, Love People, and Pass It On, not just now, but for the rest of their lives. I am certain the dropout rate after high school is not in spite of our efforts but as a result of not making disciples of Jesus among our children and grandchildren, but rather placating them with color pages, moralisms, and using the Bible to scold bad behavior. Please join me in making our children a priority at the Vineyard.
Grace and peace,
Hal
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