What do we do with the kids?

Almost all of those who are in a house church or house church network say that they include the kids, no matter what age, in their meeting time: they let the kids pick the music, participate in prayer time, ask questions, etc. Some groups keep the kids in the room the entire time, some part of the time. The reason this is done is that studies show that children with relationships with non-blood relative adults function much better and develop much better than those children who don’t. Micro-church places the responsibility of children not on a curriculum or a class but on the group and the parents.

Here are some things to try:

• No matter what, include the children in at least part of your time together. Let them drive some of what you do—music, asking questions, giving answers, etc. Think about doing some teaching with the kids during this time.
• Get creative in your church coming up with solutions. If the children are to go out after a certain time, you can provide some kind of teaching time but don’t feel pressured to do so. They can play with supervision—they’ll be strengthening their friendships.
• Whatever you do, share the responsibility—rotate it among the church members. Do not place the responsibility for the kids on one or two people every time you get together. Develop some boundaries and expectations for the children and adults in the group.