Wow is it still 2020? What a year it has been! What started out as a longer March break that turned into a summer unlike any other is now launching us towards a fall ministry start up…maybe?? Ministry in a COVID-shaped world is one that continues to shift. As we head into September 2020 there may be many questions you are still wrestling through when it comes to church and children’s ministry. For some of us, Sunday morning in person worship has resumed or is about to restart but not children’s ministry and so there may be questions of what do for families that show up with kids. For some of us, Sunday morning in person worship has resumed and now there are questions about whether to resume children’s ministry and/or how to do so. For some of us resuming in person worship is still a long way off and so questions of what should children and family ministry look like this year? My role as Children and Family Ministries Associate is to support you as ministry leaders and churches as you minister to your children and families. Know that I am your your cheerleader, your prayer warrior, your resource to contact with your questions, concerns, ideas, etc. As we head into this fall season I have gathered together some key resources that may be helpful for you as you consider your direction this fall. This is not a comprehensive list and if there are specific topics or questions you have or helpful resources you have discovered, please email me and let me know! Do you have a strategy of family ministry developed for the fall? Email me for ideas on this as well as a sample of one church’s Family Ministry Strategy during COVID-19.

On  August 27, a group of children’s ministry leaders gathered on Zoom to share about plans, ideas and questions as they head into fall ministry. You may request the link to the recording of the call by emailing me.

If you have not already checkout out our CBOQ theme for this year, you will find all the details here.

The first think I want to encourage you to do, if you have not done so already (besides Pray!) is to take some time reflecting on your purpose for kids ministry and specifically your purpose for this fall. You might find this article from Carey Nieuwhof helpful in your reflection.

Secondly, I encourage you to consider reflecting on how you are feeling as a ministry leader. This article may be helpful to consider.

Thirdly, it is helpful to remember that while there are many different ideas, and churches are discerning the best decisions for their particular contexts, there are many different thoughts and ideas being expressed. This sermon of Andy Stanley is worth listening to and came highly recommended by one of our family ministry pastors.

The following list of resources cover a range of topics that you may find helpful in considering your fall ministry. If you are looking for other topics or have specific questions please do not hesitate to contact me as I may be able to point you to other resources more pertinent to your context.

Children’s Ministry in Partial Reopening is a helpful resource page from the Christian Reformed Children’s Ministry Network.

This list of COVID friendly fall ministry ideas has been put together by Deeper Kidmin.

Vibrant Faith @Home has made available for free hundreds of resources they created from 2012-2015 that 5-10 activities for families with children, families with adolescents, young adults, adults and couples, and activities just for kids.

Praise Packs is an idea to consider if Sunday morning in person worship is resuming but not any children’s ministry. There are helpful tips and ideas for creating worship activity bags.

Big Life Journal has made this Back to School Pack available as a free download. This might be a helpful resource to share with parents.

Looking for curriculum to use online with kids? Contact me for a list of recommendations.

Looking for resources to share with parents that are related to mask wearing and hygiene procedures? Check out these:

Vaccines, Masks and Handwashing: A Coronavirus Update is a podcast of But Why: A Podcast for Curious Kids. Parents may find this very helpful to listen to with their kids.

This Peppa Pig Handwashing video and this Jack Hartman video about masks may be helpful for younger kids.

This video from Tech-nic Allie on How to Wear a Mask may be helpful for kids, particularly older elementary kids.

This video from Meet the Helpers may be helpful for kids to learn how wearing a mask helps stop the spread of germs