1. Engage your congregation in a conversation about living our baptismal vows.

Talk together about the reality that when promises are made for an infant at baptism, they hold true for children all over the world. Explore ways of upholding the promises made during this sacrament through the use of Children in the Sanctuary.

2. Study the issues affecting children all across our world.

Use the Decade of the Child materials produced by the PC(USA) Office of Child Advocacy for issue papers describing many of these challenges.

3. Examine ways that we can be in ministry with children and advocate for them.

Attend the 2004 Montreat Christian Education Conference, “Wade in the Water: Living Our Baptismal Vows,” July 26–31, 2004.
Keynote speaker: Elizabeth Caldwell, Chicago, IL,
2004 APCE Educator of the Year
Worship leader: Doug Oldenburg, Davidson, NC, Moderator, 210th General Assembly
Music leadership: The Zehnder Group, Los Angeles, CA

Conference participants will be challenged to hold together an integrated understanding of children, advocacy, and Christian education; explore what it would mean to take seriously Jesus’ value of children as the foundation of children’s ministry; experience the conference as a vehicle for equipping the saints to be agents of change in their own congregations and communities; and recognize ways to build upon what we already know and are practicing regarding ministry with and for children.

In addition they will participate in workshops that explore educational themes and foundational Christian education practices, especially as they relate to children.

Brochure requests, workshop descriptions, and online registration are available at www.montreat.org.

Children’s Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study

The Children’s Mission Yearbook is intended as a personal devotional guide for each child, and it is also appropriate for family devotional use, church school, children’s worship, midweek programs, and other occasions. Designed for children in grades 3–6, the 2004 Yearbook is packed with new stories and facts about the PC(USA) and its mission domestically and overseas.

$5.50
Item #7061204451

Children in the Sanctuary

A study with video that explores the opportunities and issues of involving children fully in the worship life of a congregation. Each of the one-hour studies can stand alone, or the entire six-session study can be used as a weekly series or a one-time retreat for the session, the worship or education committee, the church staff, a parents group or an adult education course.

$29.95
Item #7025002923

Teaching Children Worship in the Sanctuary

This useful resource will help congregations teach children about worship while in the context of the worship service. Using fourteen elements of worship, this resource provides suggested children’s times, worship exploration lessons for younger children, and activity pages to be used by older children during worship.

$12.95
Item #7025003928

Children Among Us: Foundations in Children’s Ministry

In this new book, respected authors provide a multilayered approach to welcoming children into the life of the church. They call for a commitment on the part of the entire faith community to engage children in multiple venues of ministry. The contributions are biblically based, theologically grounded, and informed by current scholarship. They provide practical information on how children learn, grow, and respond in the often-too-adult world of Christian faith. This is a multifaceted, multidisciplined look at what it means to walk with our youngest people on the path
of faith.

$18.95
Item #095644

The author, Carl E. Horton, is Coordinator for Church Leader Support. He can be reached at (888) 728-7228, x5453, or by e-mail.