Jolanda Howe

Hehe!

My husband's Iphone is really handy for morning devotions. We use the Today App, which also includes a link to the Bible, so we're never hunting for the little book or the Bible--it's all right there on the phone! 

If you do start sending out emails, you can easily look up the Bible passage in biblegateway.com and then send the link to your group. I hope you'll post again to let us know how it works.

That's helpful, Kris, thanks. I hadn't been able to find an app that includes the NIV--I'll check it out.

Great, I just found it!

Oh, isn't that so true!! You plan for that one or two kids that you know will need extra engagement and then they aren't there. And it's so disappointing because you want to know if your strategy would have worked! Flexibility is key, thanks for these thoughts Laura!

Colin, you raise an interesting point! You’re right—the primary place for faith nurture is the home.  And if Sunday school was seen as a replacement for that, we’d have a problem! Let me cast a different vision of Sunday school for you.

I believe that the whole church community has a role to play in shaping the faith of every member, from the newborn baby to person who is 100 +. We live in community so that as iron sharpens iron we can sharpen one another. I am about to become a parent, so this is something I'm thinking a lot about lately. I want my kids to have other adults in their lives who are sharing faith stories with them, who are modeling what it means to belong to Jesus, and who are echoing the things that I teach them at home. I want my kids to be able to draw on my wisdom and experience with God and also the wisdom of others when they have questions and when they face challenges. That can only happen when I immerse them in a nurturing, learning community where they can build relationships and hear God's story.

You might be surprised how many resources our denomination does offer for parents to use at home for passing on faith to their children! Here are some examples: the Kid Connection curriculum offers a section at the back of each lesson that is called "one-on-one-fun" that shows a person how to use that lesson with just one or a few children. That was included specifically so that Kid Connection could be used in smaller churches or at home. It also includes a family magazine that goes home each month with kids that is full of Bible activities to do as a family, and devotional ideas. Another resource called God Loves Me is a set of 52 Bible stories for 2 and 3 year olds. It’s perfect for home. Families can spend each week focusing on one Bible story and using the learning through play activities included with each book. The new Dwell curriculum includes a component called God's Big Story Cards which invites families to explore 165 stories from the Old and New Testament in fun and creative ways. In both theDwell curriculum and the Walk With Me curriculum there are at home devotional books for middle schoolers that invite the participation of families through questions that are geared for discussion. The Synod Faith Formation Committee has also endorsed a resource called Home Grown which is a handbook for Christian parenting. It includes a study guide and video to be used for small group study by parents to talk about how they nurture faith at home and to share best practices. In the next few years other resources will also be coming based on the work of that committee. Other voices in the CRC, like  Robert Keeley (who posted above) have also contributed works like the books, Helping Our Children Grow in Faith and Shaped by Godt hat are aimed at encouraging parents in their role as the primary faith nurturers. 

As Mark Holmen points out in the book Faith Begins at Home, there is a problem when parents outsource the faith nurture of their kids to the church. But that doesn’t mean we should throw away Sunday school! Our role as Sunday school teachers is to walk along side parents as we support and encourage them in the faith nurture of their children. That’s the vision—and with all the resources the CRC offers to help churches in this role, it’s an exciting reality!

This is a great question, Laura. I'd love to hear what other churches do when it comes to scheduling Sunday school. Until last year we had Sunday school on Sunday nights. But the attendance was low, so we made the transition to having Sunday school before worship. We have more people of all ages attending, but it does make for a LONG morning--especially for the youngest kids. Our worship service lasts about two hours, so we begin at 9:30 with Sunday school and usually leave church around 12:30.

I wish there was a better way--we've talked about mid-week programming, but have never been able to get everyone on the same page with the days and the times. Plus we have a mid-week Cadet's program, so it would be hard to juggle that along with another day for Sunday school. For now, what we have is better than before but not perfect...

Nice work!

Haha! Great story and quite true. Ministry is so much about being there for and with the kids!

I have such fond memories of events called "Hope's Hearth" that were intergenerational gatherings that took place in people's homes at the church I belong to in New Jersey. Back then I was a single young adult living 700 miles from my family. These events gave me the chance to interact in a family sort of way with people of all different ages. We shared a meal and a story and prayed for one another. I loved it when the kids prayed for the adults. It blessed me deeply and deepened my relationship with many people in our congregation. I can't wait until Faith Alive's new intergenerational curriculum comes out in the fall. I'm excited to give it a try at my church!

Welcome aboard, Laura!

Sounds like a great idea!! What are some of the other forms of worship you hope to have the kids explore? I love the weWorship/WiiWorship mix up--made me laugh out loud!!!