Parenting Point

The Celebration of Worship

 

by Mary Halberg

             During a recent Sunday morning worship service, I observed the behavior of a pre-teen … a very pre-teen. It was obvious that this young person only had a passing interest in the service. Part of the time she read a secular book, part of the time she wanted to talk and play. She squirmed in her uncomfortable Sunday best. She was sleepy. She was 20 months old.

             Her mother responded by gently folding the child's hands to teach her to pray. She shushed her daughter and explained that the pastor was telling her a story about Jesus. She drew her child close and said that Jesus loves her just like Mommy does. The child smiled.

             Toddlers and teenagers both stand on the thresholds of new independence. They are social. One moment they can't sit still and the next moment they have fallen asleep. Their behavior draws the attention of others, especially their parents.

             My husband and I raised three teenagers. One couldn't wait to go to church because she knew that pleased us. One felt no urgency to go to church because, as he said, “I was saved on a hill 2000 years ago, I don't need to go”. The last one nearly burst at the seams during worship because she wanted to do the talking. Their behavior drew our attention.

             I was fascinated by the young mother's response to her child's behavior. Her discipline was firm, yet full of the Gospel. I usually got the firm part right, but I'm not sure how much Gospel my teens ever heard during a reprimand of behavior during worship.

             In the Large Catechism, Luther says that worship should be a celebration of God's Word and Promise. Jesus loves us. That is reason for great celebration. Young people like to celebrate. Luther may have the answer on how to get our teenagers to appreciate church: Make it a family celebration.

             Families can make decisions together regarding the celebration. If your church has several worship options, ask your children which service they would like to attend. Talk about ways to extend the celebration. Sundays can be the day the family goes out for a special lunch with dessert to dialogue about what they learned or appreciated most during worship.

             Teenagers are social beings. One way to help them celebrate is to encourage friendships at church. Youth ministry programs offer many wonderful opportunities to nurture relationships between Christian teens and families.

             In recent years, our congregation has encouraged youth led worship. Teens are entrusted with this opportunity to serve, and through this, youth have learned about the responsibility and joy of worship. They better respect the efforts that our pastor and worship committee put into the celebration. Many parents take the opportunity of youth led worship to discuss the ways they saw Jesus working in and with their children.

             Like the young mother, parents should tell their teens that Jesus loves them every day. It seems that as our children get older, parents recite the Law to their children more than the Gospel. To be sure, the Law is something every teen must hear, but it is equally important for them to hear the love of the Gospel. The recipe for raising worship loving teens may be a hill of the Law surrounded with mountains of Christ's love, the love which is ultimately manifested in church and understood in worship.

Practical Points

1. Give teens a voice in how the family worships and how the family celebrates together on the Lord's Day.
2. Encourage your teen to build relationships at church. Make attendance at church-led youth and family events a priority so that your child builds healthy relationships with his or her extended church family.
3. Encourage your child to become involved in Sunday morning worship by ushering, singing in the choir, serving as acolyte, or volunteering for other activities.


Suggested Parenting Point Resource*:
Parenting in the Pew, by Robbie Castleman
Available via Web and standard booksellers: $9 -- $12
Audience: Christian Parents
Major Message: Offers advice and
encouragement to parents interested
in teaching children and teens how
to worship while at church, as
opposed to “checking out” and
merely sitting still.

Mary Halberg is the mother of three grown children. Mary serves as the director of the youth ministry program for Immanuel Lutheran Church in Albuquerque, NM.

Parenting Points are designed to be shared with the families in your congregations. Feel free the download a reproducible version of this article! Click here!

*Part of the mission of DCS Youth Ministry is networking resources for our partners in ministry. thESource articles, bible studies, and resources produced by Concordia Publishing House have passed doctrinal review. Additional resources are recommended from time to time with the confidence that LCMS church workers are trained to discern what is useful and proper for Lutheran churches and schools.

thESource is published on the Web by LCMS District and Congregational Services—Youth Ministry. The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, 1333 S. Kirkwood Road, St. Louis, MO 63122-7295; 1-800-248-1930; www.lcms.org. Editor: Gretchen M. Jameson; Assistant Editor: Dawn Cornelius-Gaunt; Layout: Gretchen M. Jameson. VOL. 2 NO. 5 March 2005.

 

 

Nursing Home Visits

Vintage Park and

Louisburg Care Center

1:30 PM

April 24th

Thank you to DeAnn Dotson for sewing new paraments and thank you to Gloria Sharp for embroidering them.  HELP IS NEEDED in sewing several more sets.  If you are interested in helping contact Gloria Sharp or Debbie Keltner.