Worship Ideas for Children’s Ministry

Teaching children to worship is not just sitting and listening, but is actively thinking about God, appreciating God for who He is, thanking God for what He has done, giving back to God, and praising God through song and other expressions. Children need guidance to learn how to worship God.

Consider some of the following worship encouragement ideas:

• Help children recognize, understand and accept God’s gift of Salvation, as an act of faith, not based on works.

Salvation teaching idea: Visuals are not only captivating attention getting method of teaching, visual images are much longer lasting than any direct verbal teaching. Using visuals to teach about salvation has long lasting impact on the learner.

The Wordless Book, first developed by Charles Spurgeon in the late 1800’s and has had over a century of verified success in teaching about salvation worldwide. The use of colors crosses all cultures and languages.

Whether using a construction paper booklet of blank color pages, different colors of cloth, color flags, or other color approaches, using colors also enables children to easily restate God’s plan of salvation.

Dark: (black) Use the dark color to present the fall of man and sin entering the human race. We are all born into sin and sin’s darkness. (Romans 3:23)

Red: Use red to present God’s requirement of a blood sacrifice for sin. In the very beginning God had to kill animals to clothe Adam and Eve after they disobeyed and sinned. In the Old Testament God required animal sacrifices and their blood to have sin forgiven. Finally, God sent His only Son Jesus, who bled and died for all sin of all everyone for all times.

Clean (white) In God’s Word, the Bible in, 1 John 1:9 says if we confess our sin to God He will forgive us and clean us. We will be clean as this clean page (flag, cloth, etc.) (1 John 1:9)

Green: God’s Word tell us that once we believe that Jesus is the Son of God and we have asked God to forgive us our sin, we need to grow in our faith. We grow by hearing and reading His Word, the Bible, by praying and by being with others who have asked God to forgive them of their sin. (2 Peter 3:18)             

Yellow-Gold: In the Bible Jesus has said that if we know Him as our Lord and Savior and have been forgiven, after we die and leave this earth we will be with Him in Heaven forever. The Bible says Heaven is where God and Jesus live and where the Bible says the streets are paved like gold. (Rev. 21:21)

• Encourage children to discover the importance of corporate worship. Structure experiences where children both contribute to and receive from others through corporate worship.

Being part of the worship experience idea: This is where children can be included in family worship or in separate children’s worship where they can all have a part from time to time in the worship experience; taking offering, a skill, a praise choir, memorizing and saying a scripture verse or passage, doing a small drama, puppet skit, holding a banner, etc.

• Instruct children how to worship when they are alone. Use selected Psalms to help children discover expressions of worship.

Create a psalm to appreciate God: Study or present selected psalms and then help children write their own song of praise to God. You can have a page of fill in the blank by having children state or write and complete the beginning of a praise line,

“Praise God for _______________, when I see ___________________ I know my God is real, in the morning I say to God __________________________________________

Then have these psalms read by the child or an adult as part of the worship experience.

• Help children discover the greatness of God through all of His creation.

God of creation teaching idea for worship: Each worship time have an item from nature displayed or a large nature picture and discuss how great God is through this item. Talk about the qualities or features of each object or picture and how wonderful God is in making this for us to enjoy.

• Teach children and encourage children to worship through prayer.

Praying cards idea for worship: Many adults have difficulty verbalizing prayer out loud. Children may or c an struggle even more. Structure several varieties of prayers and then have children fill in a few words then read the prayer.

Example:

Heavenly Father, today we are praying for __________________ who is sick. We pray that you will heal him/her and ease their pain and suffering. Help us to encourage them by praying for _______________ this week.

Heavenly father, in your Word You tell us to pray for others. Today I pray for ____________

whose family is having problems and he/she is very sad. I pray you will come close to ____________________ so he/she will know You love and care for him/her.

• Make full use of musical experiences to enable children to worship God through voice and instruments. Use God’s Word as examples of how people worshipped God through music and song.

Worship music for the nonmusical teaching idea: The childhood years are a great time to educate children in music. Use simple songs and hand motions to treach children to worship through music and then have them individually or in small groups present those songs as part of worship time. Children who have good musical talent can be used in the worship time.

• Teach children that part of worship is giving to God both materially (offerings) and through Christian service.

Offering idea for worship: Not all children have money they can give. BUT… children can give much of what they have to benefit others. Children can give a personal item to another child in need or children can give of their time.

Develop offering cards with short commitments that children can place in an offering container. Use systems like;

*This week I will help another child

*This week I will give my time to draw a picture for someone who is ill

*This week I will call someone and tell them that God loves them