Every pastor and ministry leader wants to make a lasting Kingdom impact, especially for the next generation. A church that effectively disciples kids and families is a thriving church. A church that fails to disciple kids and families is a dying church.
Kids Ministries are racing to catch up to their church’s growth. Others are reevaluating their approach for a new season. No matter where you fall on that spectrum, your Kids Ministry must be an extension of the preaching ministry of your church – not an alternative. Your Kids Ministry leadership must be an extension of your pastors’ or elders’ leadership. Defining and aligning your Kids Ministry “why” will take you to the next level of effectiveness. Here are three free steps that can make a big impact:
1. Define your theology
Before organizing classrooms, choosing curriculum, or planning large group gatherings, you must define your Kids Ministry theology. It sounds obvious, but too often theology is assumed rather than articulated. Ask yourself:
- What does our church leadership believe theologically about Kids Ministry?
- What theological focuses does our church teach that we can emulate?
- What theological statement defines our ministry?
These answers will guide every decision you make. At our church, we believe kids can understand and respond to the gospel. We also believe there is no “Holy Spirit Jr.” When kids place their faith in Jesus, they receive the same Holy Spirit as every believer throughout history.
We focus on tier one gospel truths and tier two church issues like baptism—not tier three debates like end-times timelines. We also believe God’s design is for parents to be the primary means of faith transfer to their children. One phrase we use often is: “Parents are the primary disciplers of their kids.” A well-defined theology doesn’t limit your ministry—it frees and focuses it.
2. Communicate a clear philosophy
Once your theology is defined, clearly communicate your Kids Ministry philosophy. Build your philosophy on your theology and align it with your church’s overall mission and values. Ask yourself:
- What’s our church’s mission statement and how does Kids Ministry align with it?
- What are our church’s core values?
- Based on the above, what are the key priorities of our Kids Ministry?
Kids Ministry is a training ground. It should equip kids to think about church the same way their parents are being taught to think about church. That means embracing the same mission, values and priorities. Your priorities are crucial and the emphasis you place on them tells others a lot about your ministry.
It’s our job to partner with parents in the spiritual formation of their kids. We describe ourselves as the spiritual Home Depot for families: “You can do it; we can help!” Our role is to equip parents with the tools, resources, and encouragement to disciple their kids at home.
When your team, your volunteers, and your families clearly understand your ministry philosophy, your alignment and effectiveness grow.
3. Choose intentional methodology
There are endless ways to “do” Kids Ministry from small groups, large groups, age breakdowns, curriculum models and more. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed or default to whatever’s most convenient, cost-effective or familiar.
Instead, be intentional. Evaluate every option through the lens of your theology and philosophy. Many methods will quickly eliminate themselves if they don’t align. Be deliberate in how you structure age groups, format your gatherings, choose curriculum, and select volunteers. Ask yourself:
- Does this method support our theology?
- Does it reinforce or contradict our philosophy?
- Does it make sense for our context?
For example, we teach the same Bible passage in our large group Kids Worship that adults are learning in the main service. This allows families to engage in faith conversations together throughout the week. We also celebrate important life milestones with our families, and each milestone includes a class that requires parental involvement. We focus on helping parents lead their kids to take next steps in their walk with God. Each of our milestones are intentional, theologically aligned and philosophy driven.
Without intentional methods, your ministry will drift. You’ll feel stuck in routines that don’t bear fruit or get distracted by every shiny new curriculum that comes your way. But with thoughtful methodology, you’ll lead with clarity, confidence, and purpose.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed and don’t know where to begin, start where you are and do what you can. This process takes time, prayer, and consistency. Or maybe this is simply a timely reminder that you’re on the right track—keep going!
Either way, stay rooted in your “why” and keep pressing forward. Let’s do everything we can to help kids know and love Jesus. After all, we love kids—but even more importantly, God loves them more.
Zack Rickards is the co-author of “The Very Good News Storybook Bible: A 3 Circles Bible Storybook,” along with Jimmy Scroggins. Richards is the lead kids pastor at Family Church in South Florida, where he has served in multiple roles since 2014. Zack and his wife, Amber, have three children. Prior to joining the team at Family Church he was a public middle school math teacher. Richards is passionate about partnering with parents to help their children discover and pursue God’s design for their lives.
