From Under the Pew
I'm not sure exactly how I got in this predicament, but I looked up and there were strange people staring down at me. I wiggled around, maneuvered between some legs, and got back to the familiar faces. For some reason, my grandparents were attending church with us on this particular day. Not sure why. I'm also not sure why I was scooching around under the pews as I was. But I'm pretty sure it was my grandmother's stare that taught me to stop crawling around on the church floor during the sermon.
I've been attending church my whole entire life. By God's grace, we lived right across the street from a small, neighborhood church. I absolutely loved going to church. For a season, us little kids were dismissed to junior church, but that didn't last forever. By elementary school, we were sitting with the adults in church. I used to take the bulletin and check off things as they happened. There was this one long part labeled "sermon" that always took longer than I preferred!
As I grew older, little by little, I began to grasp what was happening in the service. I began to feel the Spirit's tug as we sang songs like "Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling." The pastor's sermons began to make more sense. At age 9, I "walked the aisle" and told the pastor I wanted to be a Christian. In the 11th grade, I verbalized my calling to be a pastor (though I had known about this calling since I was much younger).
At Southport Pres, we want to do an excellent job of discipling our kids. We believe it's important for their spiritual formation to begin to join us in the worship gathering. I know this will be a stretch for you if you have little ones . . . I also think in the long run, you'll be glad that you were willing to stretch. We want to offer you a book titled Parenting in the Pews, which will give you some ideas on how to navigate the worship service with your elementary age kids. Email me at gmassey@southportpres.org and we'll get you a copy.
Also, for those of you without little ones. You can help out by becoming "adopted grandparents" and asking a younger family to sit with you so that you can help the children navigate the service. This is a great way to be a part of passing the faith on to the next generation.
I've been attending church my whole entire life. By God's grace, we lived right across the street from a small, neighborhood church. I absolutely loved going to church. For a season, us little kids were dismissed to junior church, but that didn't last forever. By elementary school, we were sitting with the adults in church. I used to take the bulletin and check off things as they happened. There was this one long part labeled "sermon" that always took longer than I preferred!
As I grew older, little by little, I began to grasp what was happening in the service. I began to feel the Spirit's tug as we sang songs like "Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling." The pastor's sermons began to make more sense. At age 9, I "walked the aisle" and told the pastor I wanted to be a Christian. In the 11th grade, I verbalized my calling to be a pastor (though I had known about this calling since I was much younger).
At Southport Pres, we want to do an excellent job of discipling our kids. We believe it's important for their spiritual formation to begin to join us in the worship gathering. I know this will be a stretch for you if you have little ones . . . I also think in the long run, you'll be glad that you were willing to stretch. We want to offer you a book titled Parenting in the Pews, which will give you some ideas on how to navigate the worship service with your elementary age kids. Email me at gmassey@southportpres.org and we'll get you a copy.
Also, for those of you without little ones. You can help out by becoming "adopted grandparents" and asking a younger family to sit with you so that you can help the children navigate the service. This is a great way to be a part of passing the faith on to the next generation.
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