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CHILDREN and WORSHIP
(5) Give Directions Loudly and Clearly
Bold and clear leadership is essential to unite the worshippers. Children need to be reminded that someone's in control.
(6) Become Invisible as God Becomes Visible
Do this by limiting chatter and give succinct directions. Encourage children to close their eyes when they worship and see "the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted" (Isa 6:1). This helps to avoid distractions and opens their spiritual eyes. They can also be encouraged to fold their hands. This will help to limit their wandering and mischief. The leader needs to "watch and pray" to ensure that hands are not wandering. If a disturbance is noted, a simple reminder or a stern look should be sufficient. Deal with problems later - don't break the atmosphere!
(7) Remain Aware of the Time
Worship can't be squeezed into tight time schedules but at the same time we must realise that a child's worship cannot be sustained as long as an adults worship. Children have a shorter attention-span and a more limited ability to express his emotions. Sensitivity to children and common sense will dictate when to move on with the service or programme.
(8) Encourage Times of Silence
When children are experiencing a sense of the presence of God do not be afraid to allow time for silence. Use these moments to encourage children to hear if Jesus has something to say to them. Encourage soft speaking of praise, or expressing love to the Father in their own words. If the leader is sensitive to the Holy Spirit's promptings he may receive the direction to allow children the opportunity to ask Jesus to come into their lives, or to allow children to confess their sin.
(9) Use Fun and Colourful Transparencies
When using transparency for songs, make use of coloured drawings on the same sheet. They will capture their imagination and, if well chosen, will reinforce the message of the songs.
(10) Continually Narrow the Focus of the Children
The leader's role is to continually narrow the children's focus until their full attention is focused on God the Father.
5. PRAYER AND CHILDREN IN WORSHIP
When a leader stands in front of a group of children and shuts his eyes to pray, three things can happen to the children: They can listen, agree and say amen as a sign that they accept the prayer as their own; or they can retreat into their own private thoughts and imagination; or they can communicate with each other in that informal sign language they know so well. There are ways to ensure that the first of the three options happen.
A. PRAY IN THEIR LANGUAGE
Beware of obstacles to understanding, such as: out of date language; big words and religious cliches. A prayer like, "Thou O Lord art highly to be praised because of thine exceeding holiness," uses foreign language and complex religious words. An alternative would be, "Lord God, you are so great and so good that, when we think of you, we want to tell you how wonderful you are."
B. PRAY SPECIFICALLY
Pray in such a way that children will be able to see that God has answered them. If a mother is expecting, ask God for the save delivery of the baby, etc. This involves a risk, as God may answer Yes, No or Wait. But it is good for children to understand from a young age that we are dependent upon God for His will and the way He chooses to answer prayer.
C. BE BRIEF
Children don't have an ability to spend half an hour in prayer. You can always have another time for prayer later in the worship. Be aware of their attention span.
D. ENCOURAGE RESPONSE
Teach children to say "Amen" if they agree with what is being prayed. This will ensure that the amens that are heard are genuine. A lot of children think that "Amen" means "please", whereas it means "let it happen as we have said" - so tell children that by saying "amen" they mean, "I agree".
E. ENCOURAGE CHILDREN TO PRAY
Help children overcome their shyness and fear of a long prayer by saying a word or phrase. This will build their confidence. Introduce the time of prayer by asking each child to give one reason why they are thankful to God or one thing that they like about God. Then have them say what they have contributed in a short time of prayer.
F. EQUIP CHILDREN TO PRAY BY THEMSELVES
Encourage children and give them the structure that they can use to pray on their own at home, school, etc. Be creative: Give the child a "teaspoon" to keep by their bedside. Tell them that the TSP of teaspoon stands for Thank you, Sorry and Please - things which they can say to God every night.
6. CREATIVITY AND CHILDREN IN WORSHIP
A. ANTIPHONAL PRAISE
Divide children into two groups, select a Psalm and ask one group to read the odd numbered verses and the other to read the even verses. Then ask the children in pairs to discuss what the verses tell them about God.
B. LISTEN TO MUSIC
Select music to help children think through the teaching they've heard. Choose music that is age-appropriate and suitable to the culture of the children.
C. CHANGE THE WORDS/PITCH OF SONGS
Change words of songs, such as, "God is so Good," to "God, You're so good" Change the key of songs - simple songs can be raised a semitone at a time.
D. READ SCRIPTURE AS PRAISE TO GOD
Many passages such as, 1 Chron 29:10-13; Revelation 4 and 2 Timothy 2:11-13 are ideal, where the leader can read the first half of the statement and the children can read out the second. Devise chants which the children can respond to, ie. Victory Chant and Psalm 136. Teach children to respond to the statement: "What do we believe?" with the following: "Christ has died, Christ has risen, Christ will come again, Yeah!" On "Yeah" the whole group leaps into the air with their right hands raised.
E. MAKE USE OF SILENCE
Children can be moved by silence in valuable ways. But the leader must be very specific about what the children should think about. Explain that sometimes God uses pauses to get a message through to His people who are listening out for Him, but tell the children that they must not listen for an audible voice, for it is more likely that God will communicate by putting good ideas inside their heads. We speak of an uninterrupted flow of thoughts that are birthed in, and pass through, our minds as the voice of God.
7. OUTLINES FOR CHILDREN IN WORSHIP
With children the opening songs need to be fun songs where they can march, stomp, shout, clap and get actively involved. This helps to draw children into participate. Meeting children where they are means jumping in with both feet and having some fun with them. Follow fun songs with praise songs which help children tell one another about God and who he is to them. Once established in praise children are ready to move into worship songs which minister to God. From fun, to praise, to worship - the leader's role is to continually narrow the children's focus until their full attention is focused on God the Father. Sometimes the praise to worship transition can be made by changing a word or two of the song being sung (ie. "God is so good" to "God, you're so good").
Develop these simple outlines, mostly centred around Bible stories, using fun songs, praise songs and then worship songs.
A. JESUS HEALS TODAY! [Acts 3:1-10]
(1) Share the story of the lame man's healing
(2) Praise God like the lame man did [8]
(3) Pray for someone you know who is ill
B. PRAISE BRINGS VICTORY! [Acts 16:25-34]
(1) Sing songs to God and Pray [25]
(2) Praise brings release and victory [26]
C. JESUS IS HERE! [Matthew 18:20]
(1) The Promise of the Presence [Isa 43:1,2]
(2) The Fulfilment of the Presence [Matt 1:23; 18:20]
(3) Our Response to Jesus' Presence [Sing songs to Jesus]
D. JESUS GIVES LIGHT! [John 8:12]
(1) Worship Jesus as the light of the World
(2) Read John 9:1-7 Jesus gives sight to the blind man
(3) Prayer for sight, for guidance and comfort
(4) Read John 12:35,36
E. LOVE IS COOL! [1 John 4:9-12,19]
(1) We Celebrate our Love for God [9,10]
(2) We Express our Love to God[19]
(3) We Express our Love to Others [11,12]
F. THANK YOU JESUS! [Luke 17:11-19]
(1) Read the passage about the one grateful leper
(2) Allow children to express thanks in prayer
(3) Sings song that express gratitude
G. WITH JESUS IN THE STORMS OF LIFE! [Mark 4:35-41]
(1) Read the story of Jesus and the disciples in the storm
(2) Have the children think of a storm in their lives right now
(3) Apply the story to relate to their personal storm
(4) Sing songs that express confidence in Jesus
H. TAKE IT TO JESUS! [Isaiah 37:14-20]
(1) Read Isaiah 37:14-20
(2) Tell children to take a piece of paper and write their request to God [14a]
(3) Have children spread the letter out in God's presence [14b]
(4) Lead in Prayer for the requests while God "reads" them [15f]
(5) Speak about the God who answers prayers [21f]
I. THE FATHER AND THE DRIFTER! [Luke 15:11-32]
(1) Tell the story of the prodigal son from Luke 15:11-32
(2) Encourage children who have drifted to come back to father
(3) Sings songs that speak of restoration
J. PARABLES: MODERN MESSAGES OF GOD'S LOVE
(1) God's love for us: the prodigal son
(2) Love for ourselves: the lost sheep
(3) Love for others: the good Samaritan
(4) Love for God's world: the sower and seed
K. FOLLOW THE LEADER [Matthew 4:18-22]
(1) Sings songs about following Jesus
(2) Have the children play "follow the leader" while they sing
(3) Teach children that a Christian follows Jesus
(4) Prayer: asking God to help us to be good followers
L. JESUS LOVES CHILDREN! [Matthew 19:13-15]
(1) Read the Passage and speak of Jesus' love of children
(2) Sings songs that remind us of how Jesus loves us.
(3) Have children respond to: "I know Jesus loves me, because..."
(4) Sing songs that express our love for Jesus
M. THE CHILD WHO KILLED A GIANT [1 Sam 17]
(1) Read or tell the children the story of David and Goliath
(2) Thank the Lord for the Power we have through Him
(3) Sing songs that speak of us as victorious
(4) Teach a memory verse, ie. Philippians 4:13
N. EVERYONE A HERO! [Hebrews 11]
(1) Mention the heroes of the faith in the passage
(2) Sings songs about faith, ie "He that Believeth"
(3) Challenge the children to become heroes for God
O. JESUS, I'M SORRY! [Psalm 32]
(1) Sing songs about God's holy nature
(2) Briefly explain David's sin with Bathsheba
(3) Explain how He tried to cover it up
(4) Teach the children how to say, "Jesus, I'm sorry that I..."
(5) Sing songs about forgiveness and cleansing.
(6) Memory verse: "you may be sure that your sin will find you out" Num 32:23
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