1 Corinthians 14

I've written about this before, but I've been thinking about it a lot lately again.  1 Corinthians 14:3 says that prophecy is "strengthening, encouragement, comfort"!   My post from April 23rd, talks about how people have been drawn to Freedom Valley in the past because they got strengthened, encouraged, and comforted within the walls of the church, from church people, like they never got anywhere before in their lives.

I would venture to say that kids are even more drawn to someone who strengthens, encourages, and comforts them than adults!  I think that is why some teachers in Kids Ministry are loved and met with with exclamations in the hallways!  They LOVE the kids!  They put the time in to ask them questions, and remember their name, and ask how their week is going!  Kids know when you are genuinely listening and when you're just humoring them.  They know when someone really cares, and when they're just going through the motions.  You can be an expert at teaching or classroom management or discipline...but if you don't LOVE the kids...if you don't encourage them, and comfort them, and strengthen them, they won't care.  They probably won't learn much either.  


Think back to your favorite teacher growing up...was it the most educated one?  Was it the most prepared?  The funniest?  My guess is, for most people, it was the one that took the time to get to know you.  The one that invested some time into you.  

There are plenty of churches out there with gorgeous, pristine, perfect facilities.  There are churches out there that have the most expensive and cutting edge curriculum on the market today.  There are churches that paid top-dollar for the most experienced Kids Ministry Team available.  All of that is good, and helpful, I'm sure...but none of it means anything, without love. (See 1 Corinthians 13:1-3)  


Help me communicate Jesus' love to the kids that come through our ministry.  Help me ask them what their favorite color is, and how their week went, and what's new in their lives!  Don't let them walk out the doors of your classroom without the knowledge that at church, they are loved.  That idea will be what makes them beg their parents to come back every Sunday morning.  That idea will carry them through the rest of their lives.