Dear All,
St. Paul’s has been invited by the Diocese to participate as one of three churches in a pilot program known as The Children’s Ministry Development Residency. This is a one-year project that is designed to assist our church develop new opportunities for families and children. The Diocese will assist us and provide resources to reimagine the way families and children are supported in formation.
A team of 3-5 St. Paul’s persons will be primarily responsible for the development and implementation of this ministry. We will start by setting goal(s) we hope to achieve during the year. These may be in any area of family/children ministry such as; creating a program that will support at-home faith practices that will be reinforced on Sunday, or creating intergenerational practices in our worship, or integrating justice and service opportunities into children’s formation time. What might you envision for our children and families?
Carmen Piggins, Canon for Ministry with Young People, will partner with us and provide resources, support in developing materials; develop tools and systems to track progress towards our goal(s), visit us several times a year, and offer support in other ways. Our part will be to create the team, develop and implement the program, participate in pilot churches meetings, and ensure that whatever program/ministry we implement, it can be sustainable in the future once the residency is completed.
I think this is a great opportunity for us to lift up our children and find new ways to assist in their formation as Christians. It also is a way to provide parents with the materials and support they need to raise their children as faithful Christians.
My hope is that the good people of St. Paul’s will support this Children’s Ministry Development Residency as a way of illustrating their care for our children. Of course, we will keep you informed of all that is happening with this pilot program. And to start, Carmen Piggins will be here Sunday, April 6th to preach and provide us with more information at our coffee hour.
Please join me in lifting up this exciting opportunity in prayer. I also invite you to ask questions and offer suggestions regarding this new ministry. We are blessed to have this opportunity to show how much we care for our children and their formation. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me or Barb Heany.
Blessings to you and yours,
Karen+