Dear Emmanuel Baptist Church family,
Your ministry staff has been hard at work developing a strategy to bring more of our church body together on a regular basis. A large part of that strategy is something we’re calling All-Family Worship, which is planned to happen on select Sundays throughout the year. It is an intentional time of inter-generational gathering where families will attend Sunday morning worship together. On All-Family Worship Sundays, there will be no children’s church for elementary-age children. Instead, they will be attending the regularly scheduled worship services with their families or guardians. We understand that this means some things will need to shift around for you, your family, and our church, but we strongly believe that this will be beneficial for our entire church family.
When and how often will All-Family Worship happen?
The launch of All-Family Worship will be on November 19, 2023. It is our plan at this time to have four All-Family Worship Sundays a year, one for each quarter.
What is the purpose behind All-Family Worship?
There are quite a few reasons as to why we feel these occasional Sundays will be beneficial for our church. It will be helpful to explore these reasons by how this change might affect individual groups of our church body.
Parents: Emmanuel Baptist Church holds to the belief that parents are the primary disciplers of their children. While age-appropriate teaching is beneficial, the church can only do so much in the limited time that children are on campus. All-Family Worship is one of several steps we will be taking to equip parents to be successful disciple-makers to their children. All-Family worship will provide parents an opportunity to model genuine worship and the receiving of biblical teaching. When kids see their parents engage with worship and submit to the authority of the pastor, they will begin to value those things more in their time at church.
Children: A child’s understanding of the church body is limited to only the elements they see or experience for themselves. Our goal is to help kids understand that the church serves the purposes of evangelizing, equipping, fellowshipping, and helping people grow in their relationship with their Lord and Savior. They will see a larger picture of how God works among His people through those who lead by serving God and each other by giving their time and talents. Our hope is that as kids come to have a larger understanding of the church body, they will appreciate their own classes and worship services more. In other words, without All-Family Worship, we are missing out on crucial opportunities to “train up a child in the way he should go.”
Other adults and students: For those who don’t have children in the elementary-age ministry area of EBC, we hope you will appreciate the opportunity these services will also provide you. Just like parents, you can model appropriate worship and submission to biblical authority for children. We hope you can be an encouragement to families and children who might struggle during a service. When we all strive for unity of the body, we can let intergenerational-worship bring the generations in our church closer together.
What will an All-Family Worship Sunday look like?
On a typical Sunday morning, there are four primary ministries happening: the main worship services, children’s church for elementary-age children, preschool/babies classes and care, and adult small groups meeting throughout the campus. All-Family Worship will primarily affect the main worship services and children’s church for elementary-age children.
On an All-Family Worship Sunday, the Hangar (the Children’s Ministry building) will not be used for children’s church. Instead, elementary-age children are to attend the worship service with their parents or guardians. If you have children younger than elementary age, they are still welcome to attend worship with you, but Discovery Park will remain open and continue with normal operation if you wish to check them in there.
In the worship services on an All-Family Worship Sunday, some minor differences are planned. There will be a song incorporated into the service that kids have learned in children’s church along with a brief lesson to help them understand the teaching for that day.
What if my family isn’t ready to attend the worship service together?
In introducing All-Family Worship, we understand that some families may be nervous about bringing kids into the main worship service. For that reason, we will have a space in the children’s building where your family can attend worship together while watching the service live. We don’t want families to see this as a permanent solution, however. We hope families can use this space as a way to train children in how to be respectful and responsible during a worship service. The worship space in the children’s building should not be a play area for children, but should be respected just like the main worship center.
What can I do to help my children to be successful in a worship service?
For some children, a full worship service can seem long as they may not understand much of what is happening. That is why the primary way you can help your children get through a service is to encourage them to participate. While the worship team is leading worship, have your children stand with you and sing (remember, the point is to model good participation). For older kids, bring a notepad and tell them to write down how many times our pastor says a certain group of words. You may bring snacks, coloring books, and other items to help your children get through a service. Although, we ask you to be mindful that the goal is to help them behave and participate during the service and not to rely on entertainment.
I serve or attend a small group on Sunday mornings, what should I do with my kids during those times?
We want parents to have the freedom to continue to serve or attend their small groups on All-Family Worship Sundays. If you are serving, your children can serve with you. If you are in a small group, bring something for them to do while the group is meeting. If you are concerned that having your children with you during these times, please reach out to your ministry area leader or small group leader and we can work with you.
Can I bring my children into the worship service on any Sunday morning?
Absolutely, yes! Elementary-age children are more than capable of attending and benefiting from the main worship services. On any regular Sunday morning, we encourage families to attend one of the two worship services together. During the other service, children can attend children’s church while parents and teenagers serve or attend a small group. It may take extra effort to plan your Sunday mornings around this type of schedule, but we believe it is an important step in the discipleship process.
This isn’t meant to diminish the importance of why we offer children’s church, however. The children’s church services are meant to be engaging, fun, and biblically educational and help children learn on their own level. Yet, we hope children’s church is seen more as a supportive element in your family’s discipleship process rather than the main feature. If you have elementary-age children in the Children’s Ministry, serving where your children are learning is another great way to model godly practices.
Who can I approach with my concerns about my family’s participation in All-Family Worship?
Feel free to contact Greg Allen (greg@ebccrestview.com) with any concerns you may have about All-Family Worship.