Isn’t it great we get to participate in helping kids learn about the Lord, His Word, and His plan for their lives? Each week, in big and small ways, you are making a difference. I hope you believe this! The time you spend is a sure investment in the future.
We want to take every opportunity to set dads and moms up to be the heroes for their kids. We want to help boys and girls learn about the Lord and make connections between the church and their homes. Remember, if we have kids or teens come to everything we do at church each week, we probably will still only have them under our influence for no more than two to three hours. That leaves a huge chunk of time when they are at home or school.
One of the most important things you can do as a leader in your ministry is to be intentional in finding ways to come alongside parents and encourage them as they raise their kids to love Jesus. What we do has to be a partnership between the church and the home.
But how DO we partner with parents? How do we come alongside them to help their kids grow into the spiritual champions God has created them to be?
Pray for parents. This one may seem like a given, or even a cheap way to be able to list five priorities instead of only four, but it’s not included just to “round out the list.” We can never underestimate the power of prayer! Ministry leaders can get so busy doing ministry and working hard, we can sometimes forget to pray. Try setting aside specific prayer times to seek God’s leadership about helping parents pastor their kids. Yes, pastor their kids. You may not have ever heard it described in those terms, but that’s exactly the job God has given parents to do. They are literally to pastor, shepherd, and lead their kids through childhood and into adulthood as a disciple of the Lord. We need to pray for ideas but also pray for divine appointments where God orchestrates opportunities to speak with parents about their kid’s spiritual growth. Also, keep your prayer radar active at all times when speaking with parents so you pick up on ways you can intercede for them.
Encourage them. Every week when you are in your church environments, speak
to parents and let them know you’re praying for them and their kids. Regularly communicate with parents to let them know they can do it! They can trust in God and have His support to lead their kids. Let them know you understand that faith-at-home activities can be difficult to maintain, but it’s totally worth it. Encourage them to keep trying to lead, even if it seems awkward or the kids don’t like it. A lot of kids don’t like brushing their teeth, but do you know of any parents who just give up and let them neglect it? The fact is: we all need encouragement from time to time. So, you, as a valuable leader, be a force of encouragement for your families.
Equip them. Assume for a moment this priority is about helping parents take their kids fishing. If they have no fishing equipment, it doesn’t matter how inspiring the effort is, they can’t go fishing. The same effect is in place for the true topic of this article. Dads and moms usually have Bibles, and the Bible is definitely the number one place to start helping kids learn how to love the Lord. There are literally hundreds of helpful tools and resources available. There are books, videos, apps, and websites, and many have tons of potential to help kids learn to love the Lord. Well, you are the perfect person to make them aware of what’s out there to help them lead their kids. In many cases, you and your church will be able to obtain and put these helpful tools right into the hands of parents for use at home. I challenge you to make the decision today to become an expert on kids’ ministry tools for the age group you are leading. Regularly show parents easy ways they can be successful in this important effort.
Challenge them. Leaders have to say hard things at times. You may be one of the only leaders in a parent’s life who has the opportunity to speak the truth of God’s Word to them. You may be one of the only ones who can challenge them to step up their game and lead their kids to take the next step in following the Lord Jesus. Don’t hesitate to bring up popular family ministry passages like Deuteronomy 6:4-7 or Psalm 78 in your conversations with those parents to show them the biblical vision for the very important role they get to play. Challenge parents to think differently about what happens at church and help them see how spiritual activity in the home and at church complement one another. Help them remember that what happens at church is just a drop in the bucket compared to all of the other time they have with their kids away from the church.
Repeat what is excellent. Once you’ve plugged the first four priorities into your ministry mindset, commit yourself to repeating these things with determination and consistency. It won’t be easy! There will be times you wonder if any parents are listening to you, but don’t lose heart! Continue showing families the vision of what it can mean for their kids if they will begin to see themselves as the primary leaders for their kids’ spiritual growth. The goal to keep in mind is to see kids grow into spiritual champions. That’s not about us and not about what goes on at our church. It’s about what goes on in partnership between the church and the home.
Out of these priorities, develop strategies for being a partner with parents. These baby steps can provide the leadership direction necessary to move parents and families closer to Jesus.
Ten Ministry Strategies for Effective Partnerships With Parents
- Consistently cast vision for the importance of parents training their kids to know, love, and obey God.
- Partner with parents to teach their kids to know who they are in Jesus.
(John 1:12, Ephesians 2:10, 2 Corinthians 5:21) - Work together to teach kids to love God’s Word. (Psalm 119:9–11,
Hebrews 4:12) - Teach parents to recognize the importance of consistent church attendance.
Kids need to be a regular part of a faith community. - Engage parents in your ministry to help them model serving others.
(1 Peter 4:10, Ephesians 2:10) - Help parents teach their kids to realize their total dependence on God. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)
- Show parents how to lead and to have a sense of responsibility to God and the world around them. (Philippians 2:4)
- Help parents understand the necessity of training kids through appropriate discipleship and course corrections.
- Be faithful to always present a biblical view of marriage to kids. Teach them men and women are different but equal. (Genesis 2:18-23)
- Pray regularly FOR and WITH parents.
For additional resources aimed at enhancing your ministry’s partnership with parents, explore the D6 EveryDay Foundations curriculum Parent Pages and our Free Parent Tools. Don’t forget to check out the D6 Family app for even more tools to further connect the church and home.
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