by Carol Lim
This month (August) marks my 10 years here at Lighthouse San Diego. Looking back at all those years of learning and serving at our church reminds me of the faithful One who saved me and sustains me. I’m humbled by the fact that when I first joined nursery soon after becoming a member in Oct 2006, I was looking forward to having fun playing with the babies and toddlers. Since then I have learned much about the importance of children’s ministry, particularly the nursery, and teaching the young ones about the truths of God that are grounded in His Word. God has also been teaching me over the years of how He chooses to use the believers in the local church to accomplish His work, with all the implications of serving and building up “one another” in the spirit of unity, as mentioned in Ephesians 4.
So I just wanted to share a few blessings of being in a part of this ministry:
I get to teach the children the truth about who God is
Whether the children are listening to the story of Namaan being healed from his owies (2 Kings 5:1-15), or of Zacchaeus being visited by his friend Jesus (Luke 19:1-9), the main character for every lesson is always God. He is the one always initiating the love, goodness, power, and friendship to the people. Last month in July we taught that God is everywhere through the story of Jonah. The children learned that although Jonah tried to run away from God in the hopes of hiding from Him, God is everywhere and no one can escape from His presence. Not only did they learn about His omnipresence, but the children also discovered that God is compassionate towards people who do not know Him and wants His people to tell them about Him!
God uses lessons like these not only to build biblical foundation for our children, but also to remind the grownups like me of His awesome character and how that should affect my thinking, attitude, and daily actions. The ultimate goal for our ministry is to draw children to the Savior through the filling of their minds with the truth of God’s Word. What we teach are simple truth statements and simple Bible stories, yet are filled with substantial nuggets of life-changing power. What an awesome privilege!
I get to serve alongside fellow sisters in Christ
Our staff is comprised of ladies from CollegeLife, SingleLife, and GraceLife, with a wide range of ages as well as walks of life. Some of us are married, some are married with children, and some are single and working, studying, or both. We even have a grandma!
We are a diverse group, yet like-minded about teaching and reaching the children with God’s Word. I’m truly thankful for each and every one of them. It’s really neat to see God-given gifts being used in various ways each Sunday. Those gifted with artistic talents come up with really creative ideas for crafts, and some utilize their organizational skills to help create our rooms to be more efficient, beautiful, and safe for the children.
With the recent departure of some college graduates moving out of town, we were a bit short-staffed, especially during the summer, but God is always so faithful in providing our staff needs year after year!
I get to connect with the parents and families as well as minister to them
We’ve been seeing a significant growth in the number of families at our church within the last 3-4 years, and it can sometimes get difficult to keep in touch with all of them. On the days that I serve, however brief it may be, I’m able to re-connect with many parents during their check-in/check-out times. I also enjoy meeting parents who are visiting for the first time as well as frequent attenders.
The nursery ministry seeks to serve the parents by freeing them to worship God without distraction. As they grow in the knowledge of God, He will then be able to use the parents to minister/reach out to others. We also aim to help parents bring about discipleship at home (Deut 6:4-9; 11:8-19; Ps 78:1-7). As they learn the importance of biblical parenting, this will allow more opportunity of parents to teach their children to worship, elicit faith, and to obey God.
Parents of young children oftentimes are attracted by a nursery ministry that is inviting, safe, friendly, and that is filled with warmth. As they hand their children to me, I want to establish and maintain trust with the parents!
I must admit, I’m pretty beat by the time the last child is picked up. The ladies in the room are so tired that we often burst out in laughter in sheer excitement that we get to go home and take a 2-hour nap! But I’m truly thankful for the opportunity to serve in this way, knowing that the seeds of His Word are planted in their hearts, and that God is faithful to save them according to His Will. What a privilege it is for me to know that despite all my shortcomings and weaknesses, God continues to grow me and use me in this local church that I love so much.