The Ministry of Children

After writing last week’s blog about wanting children and youth to have more of a voice in what happens in churches, I came across a gem of a book in my to-read pile that filled time waiting for someone at the hospital. The Ministry of the Child was written by Dennis C. Benson and Stan J. Stewart with a foreword by Mister Rogers.

Rather than chapters, the book includes 27 Propositions about the importance of Starchildren (the name is inspired by the star of Bethlehem which guides us to the baby in the manger). Starchildren are described in the introduction as those who “permit the spirit of God to lead them to become as little children again and again”. Some of the propositions include: Starchildren are the most immediate access to God’s generosity, Starchildren are the healing hands of Christ, Starchildren know nothing of prejudice, Starchildren are the only guides to the Kingdom, Starchildren embody and enable gifts of the spirit, and Starchildren are apostles of community.

Copyrighted in 1978 and not found in a quick Amazon search, I would be sad if this resource is no longer available except at used book stores and sales. I loved what it had to say about how children not only minister to the rest of the congregation in unique and meaningful ways, but that they are essential to the health of the congregation. Each proposition begins with a story of something experienced by one of the authors. Many of these I could relate to and have witnessed, including a room of people bored by a lesson or presentation being lit up with energy by a baby entering. Or a child walking into a difficult situation and defusing tension by being an innocent bearer of grace and love. Or a child sharing generously to support the church. Or a child’s spirit threatening to be snuffed out by self-centred or abusive parents.

As I sat in a workshop this past Saturday where Sunday school curriculum was being considered for the fall, I felt a range of emotions. In most churches where I worship and preach, the number of children seems to keep going down. Broken families and those struggling with crisis situations and illness take a toll on attendance. Churches tend to attract the wounded and hurting who seek help. Families that are self-sufficient and over-scheduled often don’t see the need to come, and parents can be seeking to avoid the politics and issues they remember from their own growing up. Whether we argue that we should expect more commitment, offer better content or provide more support and resources, the reality is we struggle to keep our kids. And the cost is high, not only for them not coming to know God in community, but for us not knowing God through them.

It seems to me that for many of us, the real work is in gradually re-shaping congregational culture. In the book, the authors talked about the challenge of again and again creating an environment where children of all ages are welcome all the time, where kids have positive behaviour explained to them in the sanctuary but they aren’t expected to sit perfectly still and silent, where sometimes what is “planned” goes out the window because a child suddenly shares something more important, where people are re-taught what it means to be the family of God and a child of God. And we need to take this seriously, because our comments, reactions and lack of engagement with children have far-reaching Kingdom consequences.

Just imagine how different church would be if children were believed to be important vessels of God’s Spirit, if they were allowed to be themselves and were given freedom of expression to share their innocent wisdom, if they were seen as valued participants in ministry, and if, by allowing children to inspire us, we were able to rediscover the Starchild in each one of us to the glory of God.

This Sunday is Mother’s Day, often called Christian Family Sunday. While we celebrate the role of moms on this day, many churches also celebrate the whole family. May we truly celebrate that we are all called to be part of God’s family, each child of God being important regardless of age and able to show us something of Christ.