“Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.”
PHILOSOPHY OF MINISTRY
At Mercy’s Door, we love kids! We place great emphasis on the value of children learning how to engage in worship and the life of the church from their parents and in community with the whole church body.
From this joyful conviction that children are best loved and served through inclusion rather than segregation, Mercy’s Door children’s ministries are oriented toward helping parents prepare their children for vibrant participation in church life right alongside their families. To this end, we offer you this Family Discipleship Guide for use in your home.
For further reading on this posture, we recommend checking out the following three articles:
Let the Children Worship in Church by Jason Helopoulos
Parents, Bring Your Children to Worship by William Boekestein
The Family: Together in God’s Presence by John Piper
NURSERY
On Sunday mornings, we offer a nursery to care for your little ones during worship service. This is available for ages 0-4. The nursery is subdivided to separate non-walking children from walking children for safety. All children are prayed for by name, and walking children receive brief gospel lessons as they play.
CHILDREN’S CLASSROOM
For children in grades K-3, we offer a Sunday school classroom during worship service.
The class includes:
- A time of group-led prayer and individual silent prayer.
- A time of worship through song.
- A time of teaching from the Scriptures.
- A time of missional focus.
- A time of Christian friendship & fun.
Our teachers primarily utilize curriculum from The Gospel Project. Through these lessons, the children are led through the meta-narrative of Scripture with a heavy focus on the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Our teachers also teach a segment we call, “Lord of the Nations,” by which the children are led through information about the state of Christianity in countries all over the world. We utilize content from Operation World in this portion of the lesson as we teach the children a few facts about the progress of the Great Commission in a different nation each week. Then the children are taught how to say, “Hello” and “Jesus Christ” in the native language of the country they are learning about before they are led to pray for the Church in that country to end that time.
Lastly, in various seasons, our teachers catechize the children, leading them through 52 theological questions and answers utilizing The New City Catechism for Kids.
YOUTH GROUP
On Sunday mornings, all children in 4th grade and up worship with their parents and the rest of the congregation.
Junior High and High School-aged students are encouraged to participate in the Rooted Gospel Community group, which gathers every Sunday evening at 6:00p for discipleship and community with their peer group.
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