You are the Best Resource in Your Kid’s Ministry!
I took a week away to wait on the Lord. I was running a Kid’s Club every Saturday night and Kid’s Church every Sunday morning non-stop. I’d noticed my teaching had lost some pizazz. I asked the Lord, ‘What’s going on?’ He spoke to my heart immediately. ‘Step away from the lectern.’
Obviously, there were other issues at play like needing more volunteers. I’d been asked to run the Kid’s Ministry for a year to rest the former leader and many volunteers, who had no allegiance to me, had taken the opportunity to leave. (But that’s a story for another time!)
I realised I had become too dependent on technology and my notes. All the screen time in the world can’t create the relationship you have with your kids as you share your heart and tell them about the time God spoke to you. Or when you give your testimony about how He answered your prayer. Or when you relate firsthand what it feels like to be baptised in water or in the Holy Spirit. And frankly, there’s no substitute to you dressed as a camel, a crazy scientist, or a shepherd that brings a Bible story to life!
Technology has made it possible for leaders and volunteers to use engaging and up to date resources in their Kid’s Ministry. Children can experience the latest praise and worship songs and Bible story animation thanks to creative ministries from around the world. And much of it for free!
I could just about cry when I remember the ‘olden days’. We had to make our own visual aids, which were usually flashcards, and I took classes in how to prepare them. I’d photocopy pictures from a Christian colouring book, colour and cut them out, and use a black permanent marker to go over the outline to make them pop when I glued them on to contrasting coloured cardboard. Then it was time to cover them in clear contact because nobody had their own laminating machine. We even made our own flannel graph pictures using PVC glue and old sheets! (My grandfather told me that during and after the war years, they used sandpaper to back pictures, because fabric was hard to find.)
Technology that Helps Your Kid’s Ministry
You Tube:
You Tube lyric videos for Praise and Worship are wonderful. (I used to have to make my own song sheets, too!) Many are professionally made and available for free. You will need an ad blocker. The words appear so children can sing along. There’s often someone demonstrating dance moves so kids can really engage with the songs.
PowerPoint:
Free Bible Images is a wonderful organisation out of the UK that provides free illustrated Bible stories to download. Some are animated, some are photographs or stills from Bible movies using actors. PowerPoint allows you to add your own photographs or illustrations to build on the Bible story.
https://www.freebibleimages.org/
Pixabay:
A site that provides free photographic images so you don’t need to worry about copyright issues. The photographs are supplied by photographers from around the world, so please use your ‘safe search’ options to filter them.
Open Clip Art:
Free clip art donated by amateur artists. Varying quality but if you find what you want you know you can download it without copyright concerns.
Max 7:
This site is loaded with so many free resources you’ll need to give yourself time to navigate it and get a feel for how it works. It’s really amazing what you can find and in many languages, too. Sign up for their email so you can keep up to date with the latest material. They’re adding more resources all the time.
So, I’m all for technology and downloading with abandon, but there’s something all the technological resources in the world can’t replace and that’s YOU.
Kid’s Ministry can be challenging and tiring. It was easy for me to default to reading behind the lectern. But children become passive without active response or involvement. Jesus said Spirit gives birth to spirit. Let God’s Spirit minister through you to their spirit and bring life. (John 3:6) I don’t know your circumstances but I want to encourage you. Use the technology that will help you but remember that God has called you to Kid’s Ministry and He will equip you to get the job done creatively, enthusiastically and with the right amount of zany so you can make an eternal impact in the lives of the kids He has given you.