Helping Families Navigate Conversations About the Violence in Ukraine

Last year, the Lent season began around the 1-year-anniversary of the onset of a global pandemic. This year, the Lent season begins alongside an eruption of violence and chaos in the country of Ukraine that has ripple effects worldwide. Both situations (and all of the others that have happened in between) pull us out of our normal routines and force us to look both inward and outward. Janel Cubbage, a psychotherapist and Bloomberg Fellow with Johns Hopkins, recently tweeted: Respectfully, after the last two years I think we’re beyond the “is anyone else having trouble concentrating with everything going on” phase and need to be asking why we’re upholding a culture that expects us to carry on business as usual. Lent is historically a season to focus on suffering, confession, fasting, and prayer. It's a season when we're supposed to...

Kids Devotion Giveaway: The Bible Food Truck

Vanessa Myers always finds ways to help kids connect with God's Word, and The Bible Food Truck does exactly that! I love this food-truck-themed devotion for kids that invites them to dig into the Bible. There are 75 devotions total that focus on Bible verses that talk about food, drink, or fasting, starting in Genesis and working through both the Old and New Testaments. Each devotion is straightforward and simple enough for kids to digest, but also deep enough to give them something to chew on and apply. The action steps at the end of each devotional help kids take their faith to go and make it applicable in their everyday lives. These ideas help kids not just read Scripture but put it into action too. The overarching project of creating your own food truck is such a fun way to tie all of the devotions together, and what a great goal for kids to...

5 Ways to Make Birthdays Special For the Kids In Your Ministry

Last week, our daughter turned 2, and while we had lots of birthday celebrations at home, it was such a special treat to see how our church family celebrated her for her birthday too! So it got me thinking about how important (and easy) it can be to make birthdays special for the kids in your ministry. Recognizing a child’s birthday lets them know that they are valued and worthy of special attention. And when kids feel special, that opens doors with their parents for even more ministry opportunities. So how do you make birthdays special? Here are some ideas... Know about birthdays ahead of time. Set up notifications on your phone to remind you of birthdays or keep a printable like this one on your desk. When you recognize a child’s birthday before they even tell you about it, it heightens their excitement and makes them feel so...

Birthdays to Remember List Printable

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Use this birthday tracker printable to keep track of the birthdays of all the kids in your ministry. Just write the date number and name of each child under the corresponding month! Then keep this list handy to send birthday cards several months at a time or for a quick reference on Sunday morning to see who you should be on the lookout for to celebrate their birthday![/vc_column_text][vc_btn title="Download the Birthdays to Remember List Here!" align="center" link="url:https%3A%2F%2Fdeeperkidmin.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2022%2F02%2FDKM-Birthdays-to-Remember-List-Printable-Birthday-Calendar-List-1.pdf|target:_blank"][vc_single_image image="76430" img_size="medium" alignment="center" onclick="custom_link" img_link_target="_blank"...

Family Fasting Plan Printable

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Share the printable on the following page with the families in your ministry to encourage them to think and pray together about what they can give up for Lent - as individual family members and as a whole family. Invite them to hang the printable on their fridge and encourage each other throughout the entire season of Lent. Remind them that Lent isn't just about giving something up. Lent is about making room in our hearts and lives for God to fill us up with His presence and His word. Find more ways to encourage families to celebrate Lent here.[/vc_column_text][vc_btn title="Download the Family Fasting Plan Printable Here" align="center" link="url:https%3A%2F%2Fdeeperkidmin.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2022%2F02%2FDKM-Family-Fasting-Plan-Printable.pdf|target:_blank"][vc_single_image image="76015"...

8 Ways to Encourage Families To Celebrate Lent (No Matter Their Background)

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Lent is the Christian season, beginning on Ash Wednesday and ending with Holy Week, that encourages believers to pray, fast, and serve as a way to prepare their hearts for the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The ultimate goal of Lent is to draw closer to God. Much like Advent prepares our hearts for Christmas, Lent prepares our hearts for Easter. Not all Christian traditions place the same emphasis on Lent. I never observed Lent growing up, and 99% of what I know about Lent, I've learned as an adult. I have friends who take the season very seriously with daily devotions and family-wide fasting, and I have other friends who don't really pay much attention until Holy Week. At our current church, we host an Ash Wednesday service, our pastor leads us through a Lenten series each Sunday leading up...

Review Questions Slide Canva Template Freebie

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Use this free Canva Template to create your own review games! Follow the instructions below and on the slides to set up your review questions. [/vc_column_text][vc_btn title="Download Printable Version Here" align="center" link="url:https%3A%2F%2Fdeeperkidmin.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2022%2F02%2FDKM-Review-Question-Slide-Templates-Freebie.pdf|target:_blank"][vc_column_text] How to Access & Use: Access the Canva template in the printable linked above that has some simple Q&A slide templates ready to go! All you need is a free Canva account. Open the template, edit the slides, download the new slides as .jpgs or .pngs, and you’re ready to play! These templates make it easy to create and customize a simple and effective review game for your Bible story lesson. How to play: Call the game "Bible...

6 Reasons to Include Games in Your Children’s Ministry Time

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Games are a key part of children's ministry. But have you ever thought about the value games can really bring? Here's an excerpt from our Ultimate KidMin Game Bundle that shares 6 reasons why you should include games in your children’s ministry time: Games help build relationships – Play and fun help create shared memories among kids and kids/leaders. When kids feel known and loved by their peers and leaders, they are more receptive to learning. Games bring FUN to the lesson – When kids have fun, they want to participate, they want to hear more, and they want to come back next time. Games allow for more engagement – Kids can engage and participate in a game rather than merely sitting and listening to a lecture. This engagement piques more areas of their brains, creating a deeper level of...