Once upon a time, there was a season in the church year known as “Advent.” The word comes to us from the Latin for “coming.” The purpose of the season was to anticipate the coming of Christ to earth; it was a season that focused on waiting.
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Family Ministry: Free Curriculum for Equipping Children’s Ministry and Student Ministry Volunteers
You now have access to free training curriculum for family ministry, for youth ministry and children’s ministry volunteers in your church.
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Family Ministry: When the Coronavirus Hits Home
“I’m having a really hard time breathing.” One day earlier, our oldest daughter had stayed home from work because of a low-grade fever. By the time Hannah called us from her apartment, the fever had refused to recede, and she was struggling to breathe. “Drive yourself to the emergency room,” my wife told her, “and […]
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Family Ministry: What Should We Do with Children in Community Groups?
One question that I frequently receive from churches runs something like this: “There are so many children in our community groups! We want to do something with them, but we can’t figure out what to do. Right now, groups are just hiring babysitters, but there’s got to be a better way. What do we do […]
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Family Ministry: Leaving Behind the One-Eared Mickey Mouse Model of Youth Ministry
In the late 1980s, one student minister depicted the relationship between his ministry and the rest of his congregation as a “one-eared Mickey Mouse.” To understand this analogy, imagine with me the most basic depiction of Mickey Mouse in three circles—the two smaller circles represent his ears, while the larger circle is his head. Now, […]
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History: Five Points from a Protestant Reformer to Remember on Your Birthday
I recently ran across these words about birthdays in The Complete Psalter, a commentary penned in the sixteenth century by a little-known German Protestant named Nikolaus Selneccer. In his exposition of Psalm 139, Selneccer saw this song of David as a text that legitimates the celebration of one’s birthday. Along the way, Selneccer also listed […]
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Family Ministry: Who Is Responsible for the Discipleship of Your Children?
Discipleship is Too Important to Hand Over to Specialists There are some tasks so significant that they can’t be surrendered to someone else. Taking your spouse on a date, for example. Think of it this way: Suppose I called my wife this afternoon and announced, “Honey, guess what? Remember how you asked about a date […]
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Podcast: Caring for Your Family as a Church Planter
What you do for God beyond your home will typically never be greater than what you practice with God within your home. Whether you’re single or married, with children or without, your family has a profound impact on your ministry. That’s why one of the qualifications that Paul gave for pastors was “to manage his own household well.” So how can you as a pastor or a church planter care for your family well? I have with me today two urban pastors–Charles Shannon and Nick Nye–to discuss this topic. If you want to lead your family well as a pastor, you won’t want to miss this episode of the Urban Ministry Podcast.
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Family Ministry: Why the Church Needs Single Parents and Single Parents Need the Church
Some time back, I was interviewed by Ruth Moon Mari for an article on single parents and the church. Here’s an excerpt from the article.
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Family Ministry: The Simplicity of Family Discipleship
How does family discipleship happen? The same way that we “disciple” our children in certain sports and certain teams. Read this brief post to find out how to form your children’s souls in the same way you form their preferences in sports.
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Meditation: Worship as Remembering Our Place
“The captain has turned off the seat belt sign.” My wife and children are at home, but I am not. The conference has been long, the flight has been delayed, it is late, and I am longing to see the lights of Louisville. Sparkling crystals of light unfurl beneath me, not evenly scattered across the […]
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Family Ministry: When and Why Did Weekly Children’s Classes Begin in Churches? (Part Three)
This research into the history of age-organized catechetical classes in the church is based on an academic paper that I presented to the practical theology section of the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society in Providence, Rhode Island, on November 16, 2017. This post is the third in a three-part series. Click here for […]
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Family Ministry: When and Why Did Weekly Children’s Classes Begin in Churches? (Part Two)
This research into the history of age-organized ministries in the church is based on an academic paper that I presented to the practical theology section of the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society in Providence, Rhode Island, on November 16, 2017. This post is the second in a three-part series. Click here for Part […]
[Read More...]Family Ministry: When and Why Did Weekly Children’s Classes Begin in Churches? (Part One)
When did age-organized ministries for children begin? If you thought children’s classes didn’t begin until the introduction of Sunday School, you have a lot to learn!
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Family Ministry: DiscipleGuide Church Leaders Cruise
Interested in apologetics and family ministry? If so, then you’re likely to be interested in this upcoming conference. God willing, I will be part of an experience in January 2018 that will bring together apologetics and family ministry in a way that will equip you and your church’s staff for far more effective future ministry.
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Family Ministry: The Discipline of Generational Diversity (Part 2)
This post on intergenerational diversity in the church is the second part of a two-part series. Click here for the first post in the series. A Model for Movement toward the Discipline of Generational Diversity If you look at your church and glimpse a lack of intergenerational ministry, it may seem at first as if […]
[Read More...]Family Ministry: The Discipline of Generational Diversity (Part 1)
The Function of the Family in the Storyline of God At the center of God’s story stands this singular act: In Jesus Christ, God personally intersected human history and redeemed humanity at a particular time in a particular place. Yet this central act of redemption does not stand alone. It is bordered by God’s good […]
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Family Ministry: Where We’ve Been, Where We Are, and Where We Might Go
The first family ministry book I ever read was Family-Based Youth Ministry by Mark DeVries. My first response was to reject family ministry as a preposterous idea in my particular context. It took two years for the struggles of ministry and the work of the Holy Spirit to change my mind.
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Family Ministry: A New Definition for Family Ministry (Part 3)
I delivered this paper on an expanded definition for family ministry in May 2017 at the HOUSE Conference in Australia, a conference sponsored by YouthWorks and themed around the intersection between family ministry and ecclesiology. This post is the third part of a three-part series. Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 _____ A RENEWAL OF […]
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Family Ministry: A New Definition for Family Ministry (Part 2)
I delivered this paper proposing a revised definition for family ministry in May 2017 at the HOUSE Conference in Australia, a gathering sponsored by YouthWorks and themed around the intersection between family ministry and ecclesiology. This post is the second part of a three-part series articulating the need for a revised definition for family ministry. Part […]
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