Our Blog

Dear friends: October 21

As part of First Pres Children’s Ministry, our 4th and 5th graders gather once a month throughout the school year. Through service projects and fun activities, they build stronger friendships, deepen their faith, and strengthen their connection to the church. Our hope is that these experiences help prepare them for a smooth transition into the Youth Program.

As we kicked off a new fall semester last month, our 4th and 5th graders celebrated with an exciting tie-dye party. At first glance, it might have looked like a typical children’s ministry event: t-shirts, cotton candy, and plenty of tie-dye supplies.

But sometimes, the best things happen when someone gets an idea and runs with it.

During our summer Children’s Ministry Workgroup meeting, one of our young guests, a 3rd grader attending with his mom, heard us discussing the upcoming event and immediately sprang into action. He contacted his godfather, Ben, a tie-dye expert from Nebraska. Before long, Ben and his wife, Marie, were on their way to Fort Worth to share their tie-dye talents with our kids.

Moments like these are one of my favorite parts of children’s ministry. I love seeing our kids get excited, share their gifts and ideas, and discover what they can share with the life of the church.  

Ann Nielsen
Director of Children & Family Ministries

Dear friends: July 15

This summer I have been encouraging parents, grandparents, and anyone with children in their lives to read Meredith Miller's book, Woven. (shameless plug: Meredith Miller will be here on August 23 from 4:30-6 p.m. Click here to learn more and register.) Throughout the book, Meredith describes faith as a web that is woven over time through relationships, experiences, and moments that help us know God's love. The hope is that if one strand of that web is stretched or even broken at some point in life, the rest of the web remains strong enough to hold us. We don't place the weight of faith on a single experience, person, or moment. Instead, we help our children build a lifelong web of connections that continually remind them that they belong to God and to a community of faith.

That image has stayed with me as I think about the way we shape children's ministry at First Pres. Our goal isn't simply to create one unforgettable event. Rather, we seek to weave together countless opportunities for children to encounter God through meaningful relationships, time in creation, serving others, making music, going on hikes, acting out Bible stories, worshiping together, and discovering that church is a place where they are known and loved. Every experience becomes another strand in the web of faith that is being formed.

As summer continues, I give thanks for every person who helps weave those strands. Whether you volunteer in Church School, serve at VBS or as a Grandfriend at Mission on the Move, sponsor a retreat, pray for our children, greet kids on Sunday mornings, or simply take the time to listen to a child, you are helping build a web of faith. Thank you for being part of the beautiful web God is weaving through the children of First Pres.

Ann Nielsen
Director of Children & Family Ministries