Our kids are important to us, very important, as we realise that what they experience at a young age through the faith of their parents will influence them greatly as they grow up.
To let them experience what a worship service is like, the children stay in church for roughly the first 15 minutes. We often sing a children’s song with them, give them a short message, and sometimes they prepare and bring a song for the whole congregation.
After we have prayed for them they leave for their various programmes (in Dutch as almost all kids go to local Flemish speaking schools):
- Babies and toddlers go to the crèche room to play. We also read Bible stories with the oldest toddlers, followed by a creative activity or a game.
- Primary school children are split into two Kids’ Church groups:
- Ages 6 to 8
- Ages 9 to 11/12
Both groups have similar programmes adjusted to their age. They read Bible stories, discuss them, and do some creative activities or games on the same theme.
- Teenagers (12 – 18) meet every 2nd and 4th week of the month for their JIM (Jesus-In-Me) programme in which they mainly address and discuss a Bible passage or a theme that is relevant to them. On alternating weeks they stay in church for the entire worship service.
Besides these Sunday morning activities, there are various Children and Teenager clubs which also meet on other days of the week. You can get more info here.