Before i share this secret with you i have to preface. This secret is NOT an overnight solution to numerical growth in your student ministry. Like everything in life, there is no magic pill to instant success. That being said, this secret has been one of the greatest influences on our student ministry’s growth over the past several years.

The Secret Is: A Great Children’s Ministry

In every church it should be noted that a healthy and growing children’s ministry is going to naturally feed and establish a healthy and growing student (middle school & high school) ministry.

I love what God is doing in our children’s ministry here at NewSpring Church. They are continually pushing the envelope of excellence to give kids ‘Jesus on their level’. Here’s a promo of their next teaching series to prove my point:

Here are some practical things we do in partnering with our children’s ministry.

1) Recruit & Encourage Volunteering: As we see students growing up in their faith we believe that saved people will serve people. We literally have hundreds of students that serve in KidSpring ministry across our 5 campuses.

2) Share Volunteers: I will say upfront that this takes trust between ministries, but the benefits are worth the effort. Both our ministries want the same things. We want to see kids meet Christ & grow up in Him. We know this takes time and we know that this is nurtured by intentional, long-term relationships with older Christians. This means that kids & students would be best served by adult volunteers who walk with them in Small Groups for multiple years. We encourage this. I can’t tell you how many Fuse volunteers we have serving in our ministry that started with their class of students in the 4th or 5th grade @ KidSpring. We have dozens of volunteers who have lovingly served their students for multiple years. The fruit of these relationships is exponential. THAT DOES NOT HAPPEN IF KIDS & STUDENT MINISTRIES ARE TERRITORIAL WITH THEIR VOLUNTEERS.

3) Build Bridges: If you study church stats you’ll see that there are major areas of vulnerability in certain seasons of a young person’s life. Those season are when a student leaves elementary school to enter middle school, then again when they leave middle school and enter high school, then a final one as they leave high school and enter college/work force. That being the case we have found much success in trying to build great bridges. In this blog we’re really focusing on that 5th grade to 6th grade transition. We fight to be intentional with our information to 5th graders for several months before their ‘move up’ day. We host a family cookout and orientation for new 6th graders and their parents. We move up many familiar volunteer faces that have been serving these students for years.

Be intentional with your support & encouragement of kids’ ministry at your church and i guarantee the numerical growth of your student ministry won’t be the only fruit you’ll be reaping.

Cherie is our KidSpring director — you (and anyone you know in CM) should connect with her and the rest of her team.