children's ministry in the urban context - tuesday

we are continuing the conversation in how to best reach children in the urban context. today's thoughts from darlene kelley relate to building on a different foundation and limited ministry resources.

building on a different foundation
urban ministry to children is a ministry that is built on a foundation that is vastly distinct from that of many suburban churches. many suburban churches are built on the foundation of spiritually forming children so that they live for and serve God as children and into adulthood, while many urban ministries are built upon a foundation of cementing biblical truth into the minds of children in order for them to store it up for a later time when they are old enough to use it. the expectation of many is that they will eventually leave church and return some day when they are adults because we have taught them well enough. the drop – out rate of young people continues to repeat itself because kids are not experiencing relevancy when they come to church, rather they are forced to sit through worship gatherings that are designed to be relevant to adults who are present.  change is necessary to achieve the desired result of developing children who passionately follow Jesus

limited resources and adult ministry focus
many urban churches tend to be adult focused. urban leaders are focused on repairing the lives of the broken adults they see within urban communities with a seeming unawareness that part of the reason for the brokenness they see is because of a failure on the part of adults to properly invest in the lives of those broken people while they were young children. an additional unspoken barrier to giving adequate attention to ministry to children is the financial needs of congregations – kids' allowances are not adequate to finance the ministry. this remains a frustrating reality and is in desperate need of innovative and fresh solutions.

join us wednesday as darlene leads conversation in developing a children's ministry that has a holistic approach, and encourages children to develop a proper view of self.


Darlene R. Kelley has served as a leader of various ministry teams throughout the East Coast and Midwest teaching and shepherding children, parents and volunteers, hosting various community wide family events, and preaching to local congregations. She is a pastor and teacher with a heart for teaching the Bible and training others for ministry. She currently holds a Master of Arts in Educational Ministries from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary and is currently studying full time as she pursues a Master of Divinity from North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago, IL

children's ministry in the urban context - monday

recently i had the privilege of chatting over coffee with darlene kelley - a leader in children's ministry in urban settings. we had such wonderful conversation as darlene described in great detail how we can rise to the challenge of leading children and families in today's city context. i asked her if she would share her thoughts on this blog - and i'm thrilled that today kicks off an entire week of conversation. darlene offers her thoughts on the characteristics of the city church, and some suggestions for how we might more efficiently reach these children and families.

cultural diversity



the need to speak the gospel in the language of more than one cultural group to ensure receptivity is part and parcel of urban ministry to children/families. in urban contexts, a person is often surrounded by a vast number of cultural groups that is distinct from his/her own. in such an environment the reality is that many, if not most churches tend to segregate and zero in on producing a worshipping community that caters to one individual culture. subsequently many congregations experience limited growth in relation to the potential growth that could be experienced. many congregations are unwilling to stretch themselves beyond this pattern, however those that do find that real community and effective ministry does not come easy – especially as it relates to ministries for children and families, yet it is nevertheless worth celebrating once achieved!

concern for safety and well being

local news reports often provide a warped view of city life that leaves an outsider with a misguided view of what urban environments are like. certainly there are a vast number of negatives, yet there are even more positives that are overlooked and unreported. with the presence of both negative and positive experiences in urban environments, it is important to be spiritually prepared when ministering to the urban child. In the city of chicago where i live, we approached the month of June – six months into the year 2009 and reported that approximately 40 kids/teens had been victims of violent shootings. presenting god to children in such an environment requires contextualizing the bible to address the pain and frustration that many urban kids live with daily.

join us tuesday for conversation in limited resources and building on a different foundation.

Darlene R. Kelley has served as a leader of various ministry teams throughout the East Coast and Midwest teaching and shepherding children, parents and volunteers, hosting various community wide family events, and preaching to local congregations. She is a pastor and teacher with a heart for teaching the Bible and training others for ministry. She currently holds a Master of Arts in Educational Ministries from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary and is currently studying full time as she pursues a Master of Divinity from North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago, IL.

growing into leadership

lately, i've been reflecting on how i grew into my leadership. specifically who had influence in my life to challenge and encourage me to lead as myself. today i'm thinking about the influence of my family.

it all started with my grandpa, my Papa Paul. he told my parents when i was just 3 years old that i was a leader – and that they could expect to work for me someday. my papa paul passed away when i was just 7 so i never had the chance to fully discuss what specifically he saw in me – my sneaking suspicion is that he saw a 3 year old who loved to boss around her parents and her little baby sister, used her charm to get what she wanted, and most importantly never took the word “no” as an official answer to any question.  i maybe didn’t exemplify the definition of leadership at age 3, but i am grateful that Papa Paul saw something in me before anyone else did.

maybe because of the words of my papa paul, my parents encouraged me as a leader each day of my childhood. my dad often told me to do my best, and stand out in the crowd, and work hard, and lead so that others would follow. and he modeled to me the life of a leader with integrity – to not play games with your co-workers, and to always tell the truth – despite how good it might feel in the moment to lie, and most importantly to never, never cheat. he convinced me that if i played by the rules and did my very best work each day – i would earn the right to lead, that i would be a respected and trustworthy leader. and he was right. 100% right.

i’ve often been in leadership situations in which i’ve been tempted to play games – to make the right move politically. to lead selfishly so that i could get ahead. and i always come back to the example my dad set and i choose to lead with honesty and integrity.

my mom, day by day encouraged my leadership with her words – which turned out great for me because my love language is words of affirmation. my mom used words to tell me what she saw in me – “i love the creativity that comes from your heart – i could never think the things you think.” or “i see the way people follow you when you lead.” my mom always supported and even encouraged my crazy expressions of leadership as a kid – specifically when i pitched the idea of turning our entire backyard, including her shed – into a “Summer’s Fun” kids camp – which included inviting all of the neighborhood kids over for a full week of games, art, races, prizes, and a carnival – in which we would invite all of the parents over for a bbq. i even hired my sister as the Assistant Director, and I typed up a contract for her (and i do mean “typed” as in i typed the contract on my parents’ typewriter) in which i promised to pay her $5 a day for her duties as Assistant Director (not Assistant to the Director). And to all of this – my mom said, yes! What a great idea, Amy! She really did encourage me with her words.

and so because of my family's influence, i began growing into my leadership. the first step was acknowledging it. fully embracing the fact that God gave me leadership gifts to be used for His good and His Kingdom and for His children. Leading well, and leading as myself so that others would be affected.

how are you growing into leadership? and who specifically influenced the leader you are today?

the next generation of leaders

what will the next generation of children's ministry leaders look like? for those of us in our 20's and 30's - how will we shape and form and lead children's ministry so that it influences and encourages children? and more specifically, how will we lead differently than those who led before us?

my own story in church leadership began when i was 18 years old - i began working part-time in promiseland, the children's ministry of willow creek community church - it was the summer before my jr. year of college, and  i was young and innocent and lucky. after graduating from college, i worked in promiseland full time for 6 years - and those years were some of the most leadership intensive and formative that i've ever experienced. i had the privilege of working alongside sue miller, and aaron reynolds, and pat cimo - children's ministry celebrities with passion and talent that oozed from their core.

and so i was formed and raised in children's ministry during those years - often observing that the most influential leaders led by speaking at conferences, and writing books, and publishing curriculum - these were the ways to gain credibility and encourage leaders. and for a long time it was the very best way to reach the most amount of people with a most important message.

but times have changed. today, it appears that the most influential voices aren't always the plenary speakers at big events - more and more, the experts are becoming those with a voice and a unique perspective -  those who blog, and tweet, and facebook and spread the word of their message virally. it's a new day...as leaders, we're learning online from each other - instead of at large events. and we're forming community and building relationships online with people we've yet to meet for those days we most need inspiration and encouragement. and we're feeling empowered to trust our own instincts as we collaborate and work in teams more than we work alone in isolation. and i suspect we'll only continue in this direction as we influence and encourage and lead each other for the sake of children.

i'm grateful for the children's ministry leaders who mentored me and led before me - i only want to make them proud by leading strong in my own context.

what do you think? what will the next generation of children's ministry leaders look like?

i heart you

dear children's leaders - i think the world of you.

i love that you work hard every single day to teach children how to grow in faith, love each other, and impact the world for good.  thank you

i love that you empower volunteers, just like me at my church, to use their best skills for a good cause, and that you challenge my faith as a i serve alongside you. thank you

i love that you are never satisfied with the way things were done last year. you are continually re-inventing yourself and the ministry until you come up with something more creative, more inspiring and more beautiful than last year. your creativity inspires me.  thank you

and i love your commitment to building families. you know the important role that parents play in their children's faith, and so you invest in parents making sure they have all the tools they need to lead their children in a genuine faith. thank you

what you do every day matters - to children, to adults, to families and to the community.

be inspired, encouraged and fully equipped.

i heart you.