Children's Ministries
What is the chief end of man? Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
Our desire for the Children’s Ministry here at New Hope Christian Fellowship is to glorify God, and to obey His exhortation to train up the next generation of believers to love, delight in, and worship Him. Specifically, the directive to teach our children about God is given to parents in Deuteronomy 6. We’re told . . .
“. . . the Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”
New Hope recognizes the authority to teach children rests first and foremost on their parents. The church is responsible to come alongside to reinforce what is already being taught, to ensure doctrine is sound, and to encourage as necessary. Therefore, the Children’s Ministry here at New Hope is not just a ministry to our youngest congregants, but a ministry to their parents as well.
Children of all ages are welcome to join our congregation in Sunday morning worship. We believe that children will learn to worship God by first watching their parents worship. By joining the congregation, children learn that they are an essential part of the church, and over time learn how to participate in a way that glorifies God. We understand that this is a training process, one that takes time and intentionality, but nothing else prepares a child for worship better than being immersed in it.
In addition, classes are provided during the sermon for children ages birth through grade 4. Classes and curriculum are listed below.
Birth-18 months
Using A Sure Foundation: The Fragrance of the Knowledge of Christ by Sally Michael (published by Truth78), our volunteers strive to impart the “fragrance of the knowledge of Christ” to our littlest ones. Rather than teaching a story or lesson, they speak to the children about God and what He has done. This can take the form of praying Scripture over the children, telling the children that God made the horses and chickens as they play together with the plastic farm animals, or reminding the children that “God is kind, so we need to be kind” when playing together. As the children in the Nursery are too young to sit through a lesson, we weave the Truth of God into the conversations we have with the children and each other. The atmosphere in the Nursery, as much as possible, is one of peace, calm, and joy.
18-36 months
Curriculum: A Sure Foundation: His Praiseworthy Deeds (published by Truth78). This curriculum builds upon that used in the Nursery, and continues in the construction of that foundation of a simple, but accurate, understanding of who God is, based on what He’s revealed of Himself in His Word. Our children learn concepts like God made everything, God is big, and God is good.
3 & 4-year-olds & preschoolers
Curriculum: He Established a Testimony: Old Testament Stories for Young Children and He Has Spoken by His Son: New Testament Stories for Young Children (published by Truth78). This chronological curriculum builds on the simple truths the children have been learning about God in earlier classes; rather than teaching the children to focus on man as they work through Scripture, they’re taught to consider what Scripture reveals about God Himself – and this is a skill that will serve them well as they continue to grow.
Kindergarten – Grade 1
Curriculum: Jesus, What a Savior! (published by Truth78)
Our children (like us) are helpless sinners, deserving of God’s eternal wrath. Children need to hear this truth so that they, like us, can turn to the perfect and only remedy—the free gift of salvation through Jesus the Savior! This chronological study on redemption focuses on God’s revelation of His Son, Jesus, as the one and only hope for desperate sinners—the good news of the gospel!
Grades 2-4
Curriculum: In the Beginning . . . Jesus! (published by Truth78)
The Bible is one complete true story that progressively reveals God’s redemptive plan, which comes to complete fulfillment in the Person and work of Jesus Christ. In the Beginning…Jesus begins with a historical mystery—Jesus’ death on the cross—and asks the questions: “What really happened here?” “Why did Jesus die?” and “Who did it?”.
To find the answers to these questions, the study goes to the beginning of the Bible narrative in Genesis and then moves chronologically through the Old Testament text as students search for clues that foreshadow the coming of Jesus and His redemptive work on the cross. Special emphasis is given to showing that the Bible is God’s story from beginning to end and that Jesus is the key to understanding the story.