Parents,

I want to share a few things with you about where we are with children’s ministry at The Vine and where we’re headed. First, I want you to know this: we are working hard to build a children’s ministry that is safe, effective, gospel-centered, and genuinely helps our kids grow in their faith. And right now, we’re building the speedboat while we’re driving it!

1. Sunday Mornings: What a Blessing!

For the longest time, we had two kids at The Vine. We prayed for God to bring families and children and He has answered those prayers!

This past Sunday, we had 18 kids, with the majority between ages 5–9. We also continue to have new families visit who bring children with them. What a gift!

But growth also brings challenges. We have a lot of kids, some big behaviors, limited space, and a kids ministry team that is working incredibly hard. We have also lost some team members along the way. So we are asking our parents for three things: patience, encouragement, and partnership.

Please be patient with us as we make adjustments. Encourage the people serving our children; they are giving their time and energy to love and disciple our kids. And please partner with them when challenges arise.

During the sermon, we currently offer age-appropriate discipleship for children ages 4 through 4th grade. Our goal isn't simply to keep kids occupied while adults listen to a sermon. We want to create an environment where children can learn, participate, hear the gospel, and grow as disciples of Jesus.

That sometimes means a kids team member may need to contact a parent because of a child's behavior. If that happens, please know that it isn't personal, and it doesn't mean your child isn't wanted. They're simply trying to protect an environment where every child, including yours, can learn and grow. I understand the difficulty of this as a parent myself. Kids require extra effort! But I never want us to begin seeing children in our church as a burden. They are a blessing. We prayed for the day when one of our challenges would be having a building full of kids. God has given us that challenge! And ultimately, Scripture gives parents the primary responsibility for discipling our children. The church doesn't replace parents in that responsibility; the church comes alongside parents. Let's work together to disciple our kids well.

2. Tuesday Nights

I also want to clarify what we're currently able to provide on Tuesday nights. At this point, we do not have teachers for a children's Bible study or a formal midweek children's ministry. We're doing our best to provide a good environment for children while adults participate in discipleship and community, but we aren't yet at the point where we can offer full children's programming during the week.

Please pray with us about this need. There may even be someone from another church of like faith who is gifted in teaching children and would love to serve in this area. Until God provides the people and resources, we want to be honest about what we can and cannot currently offer.

3. An Opportunity for Our Kids: AWANA

This leads to something Heather and I are excited about. We knew a long time ago that The Vine wasn't yet large enough to provide everything we would eventually like to provide for our children. That's actually one reason we intentionally chose Tuesday nights for our midweek Bible study instead of Wednesday. Rather than becoming frustrated because The Vine doesn't currently have a large Wednesday-night children's program, we wanted our families to have the freedom to participate in a solid children's ministry elsewhere without having to leave their church family to do it. Heather and I have planned to do this with our own kids, and we'd like to invite other Vine families to join us.

We will be participating and serving in AWANA at Calvary Bible Church on Wednesday nights at 6:30 PM, and Calvary has graciously invited Vine families to join them. Our hope is that over the next couple of years The Vine will grow to the point where we can establish our own AWANA club or similar ministry. Until then, we can learn, serve, and grow while making sure our kids don't miss out on a great opportunity for Scripture-centered discipleship with other kids.

AWANA Kickoff & Registration: September 9 at 6:30 PM
Leader Training: September 2 for anyone interested in serving
Location: Calvary Bible Church
411 N Van Buren Ave
Mt. Pleasant, TX 75455

If you're interested in your children participating, or if you'd like to serve with us, please contact me and I'll get you the details.

Thank You for Partnering With Us

There will be growing pains as our church grows. There will be things we have to change, things we learn along the way, and ministries we simply aren't ready to offer yet. But I hope we don't miss what's happening in the middle of all of that: God has filled our church with kids. That's something we prayed for.

Thank you for being patient with us. Thank you for encouraging our kids ministry team. Thank you to those already serving. And thank you for partnering with us as parents and as a church family. Together, we're working to provide a gospel-rooted community that connects kids to Jesus.

If you have any questions, please reach out to me.

 Pastor Tim