Child in God's Church, The

Most pastors and congregations would agree that developing a child’s faith and including them in the life of the church deserves real thought and effort. However, so often the opposite is true in practice: Sunday schools are treated as child-minding services that allow the adults to have the actual gathering as God’s people; parenting and children’s ministries are siloed; older members of the church never speak to a single child there.

In The Child in God’s Church, Tim Beilharz provides the biblical reasons for including and nurturing children as precious members of the body of Christ. He sets the theological and theoretical foundations for understanding children and the church, then provides a framework for practising children’s ministry in the local church.

This book is a unique and invaluable resource that provides churches with the necessary foundations for revitalisation and growth.

If you love this quote, you’ll love this book: ‘As children’s ministry leaders, we can … teach and equip others to see the youngest brothers and sisters of their church as fellow members of Christ’s body—valuable members of the church today, not just in the future’. Tim has done the hard work for us, taking us on a journey through the historical factors that have shaped how we think about kids’ ministry today. Yet Tim’s commitment is to let the Bible have the final say. This book is a must-read as we think intentionally about discipling children in the context of the family, the age-specific kids’ church and the intergenerational context of the church community.

- Sandy Galea, Founder and Director of Kidswise