“People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them,
but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do
not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.”
(Mark 10:13-14)
During offering praise each week, I invite children up to the front and gently pat each child’s back in prayer. In that moment, I become the hands and feet of Jesus, greeting each child like done in Mark 10:13. Gazing at the children running to the front, I suppose that parents too pray as they leave their children in the hands of Jesus, our true father. Our children’s participation in adult worship includes these prayers.
However, there are some parts of traditional adult worship services that do not align very well with children. To young children, staying quiet and still during worship is a difficult task— many children despise the “Thinking Chair” for the same reason. I’m afraid that adult worship might come across to children like the “Thinking Chair.” Children should be running around and playing.
I wonder how it would have been for Jesus when he preached. Even though the adults probably tried to calm the children down, I am sure that there would have been some disruptions here and there. Despite this, Jesus prevents the people from stopping the children from coming to Him. But how much of Jesus' sermon would the children have understood? Very little I suppose. However, I think that the children took the warm, gentle pats of Jesus to heart. Jesus must have laughed along with the children and smiled at them as they ran around. The children would have remembered this warm and caring image of Jesus.
I am experimenting and thinking about how children could experience the warm heart of Jesus during worship service. We don’t want worship to be too strict, but at the same time we don’t want it to be too loose either. Finding an adequate balance where the children can feel the warmth of Jesus without losing tension requires wisdom. How can we turn worship service into an enjoyable event for the children yet still direct their attention to God and others at the same time? For the last few weeks, I handed out knee blankets to the children and let them have fun drawing and playing during service. Then suddenly, Eun Chae started to praise loudly, singing, “Ah~ah~ah~amen a~men a~a~men '' while coloring in her coloring book. Yes! Eun Chae had been responding to the praise song she already knew! Although the children may have seemed oblivious during worship, their ears and eyes were open observing what was going on during service. Next to me, Yewon handed me a picture she had carefully drawn as well. I gladly accepted her heart, cradled her gently, and we praised together with little motions. I will keep doing these little experiments for the children so worship services could become a warm, enjoyable memory for them
Following the shepherd…
Pastor JiWon Choi.