We are the church. That’s a special statement, even unique grammatically. It implies multiple people or parts making up one singular object. It’s similar to saying “We are a family.”
For those who are in Christ, being the church is not limited to taking a membership class or being baptized or attending church potlucks (though all of these are important to different degrees). When we are the church, we are invested. We invest not only with our finances, but our time, our commitment, our service.
When we are the church, we are invested. We invest not only with our finances, but our time, our commitment, our service.
How about children? It can be difficult to discern if a child is at the place of spiritual understanding to believe and follow Christ. How do we give children a good understanding of what the church is? Children are much more concrete in their thinking, so it helps to give them tangible ways to be involved. If we are unsure of their spiritual understanding, they are not ready for baptism or communion, but they can learn by participation tangibly in other ways. They can witness baptisms and communion, sing with the congregation, thoughtfully participate in class discussion and activities, and take notes if they have the capability. They can also serve the church.
Even children can serve one another in the body, though for adults guiding them, we do need to keep in mind what their abilities are. Often, a child’s first introduction to serving will be alongside their family. They may be helping in a very small way initially, mostly observing their parents or siblings, while offering occasional assistance. Then, as they can follow more detailed instructions and have more patience for a repetitive task, they can do more and more meaningful service.
We don’t want to do “token” service, service that makes us feel good about ourselves without truly benefiting anyone else. The same should be true for kids. The good news is that children are more capable than we expect them to be. They do need to be given clear instructions, but it is healthy for them to have responsibilities and to be contributors.
The good news is that children are more capable than we expect them to be.
As you may train children to help with chores and contribute to the family, how can a child learn to serve the church? Start small. They can observe and assist when their family volunteers even if tasks are a little out of their reach. They can find a way to serve their own small group or Sunday School class. Teach them to ask the teacher how they can help. Older children can handle responsibilities like stacking chairs or passing out paper. Even young children can be taught to not only share their own prayer request, but pray for others in their class. Can they contribute to class by participating thoughtfully, reading Scripture, praying, etc?
Through living it out, they can experience the church. If they are already spiritually in Christ’s family, they’ll be able to grow with the body, being the church. If they are not yet a follower of Christ, they will be learning more about the church and hopefully growing in their love for it and understanding of Christ as they experience it.
