Build On Jesus: A Comprehensive Guide to Gospel-Based Children's Ministry
Anyone who has tried it, even for a day, knows that children’s ministry is challenging. Pastors Deepak Reju and Marty Machowski have been in your shoes and they want to help. Drawing on decades of family ministry experience, they have a passion to help children’s ministry directors, pastors, and volunteers remember the “why” of children’s ministry and gain a fresh vision for the “how” of effective discipleship and proactive nurturing of the next generation. As you recruit volunteers, organize materials, set up safety policies, and manage the many needs that come your way, you may feel overwhelmed, discouraged, and wonder if your ministry is even effective. Reju and Machowski have a passion to help those involved in children’s ministry remember that it's more than just providing safe childcare so that parents can attend worship services; it’s about raising up faithful believers who love the Lord, stand firm in the gospel, treasure Scripture, and have a heart for others. These goals can only be met if the whole church is committed to prioritizing time and energy into disciple-making and sets proactive policies for children’s safety. Readers will learn about highlighting Bible-based content, recruiting church members, planning for emergencies, and partnering with parents. Build On Jesus equips ministry leaders with the right priorities, people, and practicalities needed for fruitful nurturing and care of the youngest disciples in the church.
Publisher: New Growth Press
Type: Paperback
ISBN: 9781645070832
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Deepak Reju, MDiv, PhD, serves as the pastor of biblical counseling and families at Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, DC, as well as a member of the board of directors of the Biblical Counseling Coalition and a trustee for the Christian Counseling & Education Foundation. He is the author of several books and articles, including On Guard: Preventing and Responding to Child Abuse at Church, She’s Got the Wrong Guy: Why Smart Women Settle, and The Pastor and Counseling, and is coauthor of Build on Jesus. Deepak and his wife, Sarah, have been married since 2001 for twenty years and have five children. Marty Machowski is a Family Life Pastor at Covenant Fellowship Church in Glen Mills, PA, where he has served on the pastoral staff for over thirty years. He is the author of a number of family devotionals, curriculums (including the Gospel Story for Kids), children’s books, and parenting titles. His latest releases include WonderFull, God Made Me for Heaven, Brave and Bold, and Build on Jesus (coauthored with Deepak Reju). He and his wife, Lois, have six children and several grandchildren, and reside in West Chester, PA.
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“The title and subtitle this book say it all and say it well. I’ve never seen a more thorough, helpful, insightful, practical, and Christ-centered book on children’s ministry. Whether you are just beginning a children’s ministry or looking to improve an existing one, whether your church is large or small, whether you are a pastor or a layperson, whether you have a paid staff member overseeing the children’s ministry or staff it with volunteers only, whether you have many people in your church ministering to children or only a few—this book is for you. I cannot imagine any church or any children’s worker who wouldn’t find this book immensely useful.” Donald S. Whitney, Professor of Biblical Spirituality and Associate Dean, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, KY; author of Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, Praying the Bible,and Family Worship