Serving The Next Generation

What comes to mind when you think of the children at New Covenant? Gift? Joy? Future? Potential? Nuisance? Necessary evil? At New Covenant, we want to be a church that truly loves children well. Perhaps you have noticed that we have been seeing exciting growth in the number of children who are part of our church. God is graciously giving families in our church new children, and he is also bringing many new young families to our church.

Psalm 145:4 says “One generation shall commend Your works to another.” At New Covenant Bible Church, we love the next generation and desire to see them raised for God’s glory. We seek to serve families who are raising their children to bring glory to God through Spirit-transformed lives by the beauty and power of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

So what are some ways that we can all serve the children and families at New Covenant?

Pray - Regularly pray for the salvation of our children. Pray that our church would love families with children and be a source of help and encouragement. Pray that God would give grace and wisdom to parents to faithfully raise their children to fear the Lord. Pray for our teachers and volunteers in the nursery and children’s ministry.

Serve - We have many in our church who faithfully serve families in some way by caring for children in classrooms or in the nursery. I’m so grateful for their loving service which often goes unnoticed. But we could use more help! If you are a member of New Covenant, please prayerfully consider serving in the children’s ministry in some way. We have many opportunities through various nursery times, Sunday morning classes during both services, and AWANA on Wednesday nights. We have some volunteers who serve regularly and also some who serve on a rotation so that there is less time commitment. If you are interested in learning more about where you could serve, contact me at dleeper@newcbc.org

I found the following excerpt from an article on the Gospel Coalition Blog very helpful and convicting.

“This type of service is also a great way to grow in love toward the parents in your church. At the risk of being captain obvious, parenting is hard work. Bearing the responsibility for someone else’s children so that weary-worn parents can be nurtured in the corporate gathering is one of the most practical ways you can carry the burdens of your fellow members (Gal. 6:2). Additionally, children provide a unique window into the life of a family. The more you know the particular struggles parents face as they raise the children God has placed in their homes, the more sympathetic and tenderhearted you will be toward them. Nursery also gives you a profound sense of gratefulness for the precious saints who labor to oversee nursery and children’s Sunday school as part of their regular ministry to the church. If John 13 has anything to teach us about the character of Jesus, these brothers and sisters just might be some of the most Christlike people you ever encounter.”

What a helpful reminder that Jesus modeled and taught that we should show love toward one another by serving each other!

“In our cultural context, picking up saliva-soggy Cheerios off the floor, changing a diaper, and telling a toddler about Jesus may just be the closest thing you ever do to washing someone’s feet.”

You can read the whole article here.

https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/brothers-serve-in-the-nursery