John UpChurch wonders if youth ministry is Biblical:
I tried to keep my skepticism in check. After all, my friend pastored this new church plant, and we wanted to be there for their first Sunday to support him. But the focus on “family-integrated worship” definitely took some getting used to—especially for those of us with small children. They had no youth classes, no kids’ church, no nursery. Everyone worshiped together in the small chapel.
Here’s how he describes it:
“The goal is to keep the generations together at all points in the Sunday morning service. We sing together, we pray together, we listen to the sermon together and then we celebrate a fellowship meal after church together…. Most USA Protestant pastors see the value of the family unit. We do not imply that we have a ‘corner on the market’ in this respect. However, we do believe that those models that divide the family on Sunday in every venue possibly do a disservice to the spiritual life of the family unit.”
Despite a few cries and some wiggles, the service went well. And the model has resonated with the community, as the church has grown out of two buildings so far.
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