Knockin' on Heaven’s Door

Wow! A new year of ministry has just begun! What an exciting and busy time for all of us who are involved in helping kids find and follow Jesus. I always approach the new year with a high level of anticipation because I know new kids will come to church, which means more kids will get to learn how awesome God is. With each passing year, I also love to watch kids grow in their understanding of who God is and how they can know Him better and love Him more.

For those of us who are responsible for preparing lessons, Bible stories, worship sets, craft activities, games or other activities for kids, it’s tempting to think the success of our ministry is solely dependent on our ability to prepare and execute well. Being prepared IS vital, but it’s not the most important way to ensure success.

If you are desperate for God to use you to influence kids this year, the first step toward being effective is to pray.

Why should I pray?
We should bathe our ministry in prayer because “The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” James 5:16 (NLT).

Make sure to keep your priorities in the right order.

• Prep without prayer is pointless.
• Prayer without prep is laziness.
• Prep bathed in prayer is powerful.

When should I pray?
If you want God to work powerfully through you this year, pray regularly for your ministry. Connecting this prayer time with something else you already do is one way to ensure consistency. You might want to choose one of these activities and commit to praying for your ministry then.

Pray while you are:

• brushing your teeth
• shaving
• taking a shower
• waiting at stop lights
• driving to or from school or work
• doing the dishes
• folding laundry
• exercising

What should I pray for?
If, after 30 seconds, you’ve exhausted all your prayer topics and you aren’t quite sure what to say next, take a look at my previous post on prayer. This is in no way an exhaustive list, but it’s a great start.

Jesus encourages us to be persistent in our prayer, so go ahead. Knock on heaven’s door. And then, knock some more. And some more. And more.