A Heart for Kids...

 

 Let's just start from the beginning... So you've been handed the children's ministry at your church. (Temporarily, I know...haha.) And if you're attending a church in the United States, it's very likely that your church has less than 100 people.
     More than half of all churches in America have less than 100 people, with most of those churches having an average attendance of 85 or less! When you have less than 100 people, chances are, your children's ministry runs anywhere between 2-20 kids.
     And when you have that amount of children in your ministry, chances are, you are not given a budget to work with, besides what is given in the children's church offering.
      I've had many times in children's ministry where I've purchased snacks for my class each week out of my own pocket. Because, let's face it, the only snack we could afford from the children's ministry budget would be a single gumball...to share...if little Timmy brought his offering!
     None of that matters though, if you have a heart for kids, and to see them grow in their walk with the Lord. I've learned through the years that a heart for this, and a little creativity will get you everywhere!
     This new blog is for anyone who wants to have an awesome, thriving ministry, without the big cost! Here are a few tips to start you off:
1. Scour the internet! Teaching a lesson on the Fruit of the Spirit, but the material you're handed seems weak, out of date or boring? Google new ideas! I've found so many games, videos,crafts and lesson ideas after just a few minutes of research. Pinterest is my new best friend in children's ministry!
 2. Cardboard is your other new best friend. Need a cool backdrop, but can't afford to buy one on www.stumps.com or www.orientaltrading.com? (Which, by the way, are really cool places to go if you do have a little cashola to work with.) Use some cardboard to make your own. If you've got an old fashioned projector,

you can print a picture, project it onto cardboard and trace it, and cut it out for an instant cool picture for your backdrop.
      Large pieces of cardboard also make great puppet stages. I've made a puppet stage to look like a field goal during our sports camp, and I've even made one to look like a giant iPhone for our current series, "There's an App for That."
I cut a square to fit an old TV that was laying in storage. I use a DVD player to play cartoons during our station times. We've added several "apps" to the phone as we've gone through the curriculum.

3. Go through all those 70's books lying around your church. Yes, they're outdated, but every church seems to have a supply of 70's children's ministry books. You would think that the 70's was the only decade to produce curriculum, and that every church bought it in loads back then.

      But even outdated books provide ideas. Ideas that you have to re-think and change up a bit to make it fit the times, but the Bible is the Bible, and the stories don't change. Just the way you present them! I have loads of outdated books that I still look at for inspiration when I'm not feeling creative enough on my own.

4. Look at your curriculum. Does it fit your church size, budget and church vision? This was a hard one for me. Too many kid's church curriculum does not fit for a small church. I LOVE (aka, hate) when a curriculum advertised for smaller churches says something like this; "Break up your kids into groups of 10-20." When you only have 15 kids or less, this is not really possible!

      Is the curriculum long lasting, or do you need to purchase new material every 6-8 weeks? This gets pricey quick. Look for long lasting material or material that can be used again in the next year or so on a rotation.

     Church vision: If you don't know the direction your church is heading, and what your pastor is praying for, FIND OUT! This can be very important in finding the right direction for your kid's ministry!

5. Raid your kids' toy boxes! Need silly props for a skit? A kid's toy box is an awesome place to start.

Garage sales, thrift shops, your garage...All places to find the props, costumes and stuff to design your backdrop or set.

     We also do station times, since we have kids that come in on the bus ministry. They're often there almost a half hour early, and we needed to keep them occupied, so we started doing stations. We asked our church members for donations of board games, and we got them in droves. People are always happy to give something they can "spring clean" out of their closets.

What ideas do you have? What creative, but cheap or no-cost ideas have gotten you through children's ministry? Let me know! I'd love to hear from you.

Ciao!

Amy