“From the parents’ perspective, children—especially very young children—pose an impediment to adults engaging in the worship service. Though I see legitimacy in these perspectives, it’s important to affirm that corporate worship is not like the workplace. Rather, corporate worship is, in fact, for children.” - 9 Marks
From Credulity to Conviction: Helping Children Grow a Faith That Lasts
“Children don’t remain credulous forever. Beliefs mature. When they do, they usually abandon beliefs in Santa, but they are far more likely to keep believing in Jesus. Our calling is to guide them from childlike credulity to mature conviction, helping them discard what’s false while rooting them deeply in the truth.” - CPPL
Study: Parents and Church Leaders Disagree on How Best to Disciple Children
“Half (51%) expect the church to take the lead, while nearly as many parents (49%) believe it’s their responsibility. Many parents also admit they feel under-equipped—86 percent say their children learn spiritual lessons at church that they themselves cannot teach.” - Barna Research
Ten Non-Negotiable Rules for Child Safety in Churches
“Child security is one of the most important discipleship issues in the church. We must create robust security measures in our churches, making our campuses internally safe for children, so they can grow to spiritual maturity and become equipped to confront the dangers of evil in the world.” - Sam Rainer
Study: Many churches use background checks. What about abuse training?
“Nearly 3 in 5 congregations affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention (58%) use background checks. More than a third (36%) are trained in reporting sexual abuse, while 16% are trained in caring for survivors.” - The Baptist Paper
Background checks essential, but how many churches use them?
“In the wake of various sexual abuse scandals, many churches are weighing the importance of background checks in their hiring processes and working to find the way to best protect children within the church.” - The Baptist Paper
Give Them Time: How to Protect the Assuring Nature of a Child’s Baptism
“I walked down the aisle, shook the preacher’s hand, and professed faith in Christ. A few weeks after that scary walk, I had the scarier experience of being baptized one Sunday morning with a bunch of other people. I was officially saved.” - 9 Marks
What about SBC churches with female children’s pastors?
“the Law Amendment does not make removal automatic. Someone would still have to refer such a church to the Credentials Committee. The Credentials Committee and the EC would still have to vote whether or not to recommend removal, and upon appeal so would the messengers.” - BPNews
72% of Evangelicals came to faith before adulthood: study
“The survey revealed that 72% of respondents came to faith before the age of 18, while the remaining 28% didn’t start holding Evangelical beliefs until they were adults.” - CPost
Child Evangelism Fellowship seeks to reach 100M children with the Gospel, urges Christians to mobilize
“Located in all 50 American states and in most countries around the world, CEF’s newly-established goal is to minister to 100 million children each year globally with the Gospel in the near future.” - CPost