If you have attended Kiokee for any length of time now, you have most likely heard us refer to certain Sundays as Family Worship days. What is a Family Worship day? These are Sundays that we purposefully schedule and set aside throughout the year for our families to attend the worship of the Lord together. On a Family Worship Sunday, children ages 4 and up attend the main Worship Service in the sanctuary with their parents. Upon hearing this, the first question for some of you is most likely, “Can a 4-year-old really get anything out of an adult worship service?” My answer would depend on what is meant by the word get. If it means, “Will young children get what the pastor is talking about during the service?”; the answer is most likely not always. In fact, young children may not get or understand much of what takes place in an adult worship service; hence the reason for designated Family Worship Sundays. These Sundays provide parents the opportunity to not only teach their children about the worship of the Lord, but to also model what worship looks like. Although a child might not get why something is taking place in a worship service, they see everything that is happening. They see their parents stand and sing. They see them bow their head and pray. They see them open their bible and read scripture. They see money being placed in the offering plate. And all of this seeing = children getting or understanding over time that the worship of the Lord matters. Children who see their parents in love with the worship of the Lord can’t help but fall in love with worship too.
As a church, we believe it is essential for us to have a healthy balance between the times our families participate in worship together and the times we offer a Children’s Worship. By doing this, we allow ample opportunity for the Family + Church to work together to ensure that our children know that the worship of the Lord is important and of great value to us. So, we begin by asking parents to model worship for their children in an adult Worship Service and then on other designated Sundays throughout the year, we offer a Children’s Worship for 4 year old – 2nd graders to learn about worship in an environment that is relevant to their age and stage of life. Our Children’s Worship is designed to parallel what happens in the adult Worship Service therefore it will always have similar elements such as a welcome, praise and worship songs, prayer, bible teaching, and a time of offering. In addition, Children’s Worship offers a Small Group time when children review what they have learned and discuss how they can apply that knowledge to their life.
At Kiokee, Children’s Worship meets the 2nd – 5th Sundays during the school year months (Aug – May). The first Sunday of each month, along with the summer months and certain designated holidays, are Family Worship Sundays.
The two greatest influences in a child’s life are the Family + the Church. They are two combined influences that make a greater impact in the life of a child than one single influence working alone. As we work together, may we all be found faithful in passing the faith to the next generation.