Southminster Children's Ministry

One of the unique practices in the Presbyterian church is Infant Baptism. When we baptize infants we are recognizing that God reaches out and claims us as His own before we have the ability to respond. As a church we make promises to each family that we will partner with them as they raise their child and support them in their journey of faith. We hope that one day everyone who is baptized as an infant will be able to confirm their faith as their own when they are older. While parents can wait to baptize their children at a later point in life, this practice helps shape our congregation and explains the importance of the church partnering with families to help raise their children. Since we are a family we help raise other children like they are our own.


At Southminster the primary ways we help to raise children in the faith are through Children's Church for our elementary children, GAP for our Preschool children and the Nursery for our younger children and babies.

Psalms 127:3-5

"Children are a heritage from the LORD, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court."

Children's Ministry at Southminster

Currently our discipleship opportunities for children take place on Sunday mornings alongside our weekly worship service. To learn more about Children's Ministry at Southminster contact Rev. Andrew Keyes - akeyes@southminpres.org

  • Nursery: Newborn - 35 Months

    Our nursery is staffed with caring ladies who love babies and infants. They are trained in CPR and first aid and attend regular training on nursery care. No worries for you as you leave your little one with us - we have a pager system that will allow us to discreetly call you to the nursery if ever needed. On busier Sundays one room is for mobile children, and one room is for our youngest children. The nursery is available during Sunday morning. Children may be dropped off and picked up at any time during the service. 


    Nursery Staff: Laneta McDonald, Mary Khajed, Jordan Keyes (Nursery Supervisor)

  • GAP (God's Active Preschoolers): 3 YO - Pre-K

    Our newest addition to our Children's Ministry at Southminster is GAP, a new program for children 3 years-old through Pre-K. We use a curriculum called Play-n-Worship, and it's simple: kids play, and kids worship. All in a way that young children can understand. They sing songs, tell stories, have tons of interaction, and they learn about Jesus! It's practically impossible for even the wiggliest or squirmiest children not to be fully engaged. 


    Children may be dropped off before the service in our Puppies and Kittens room (preschool hallway), and picked up after the service. 


    Below is our schedule for the next few weeks. We repeat the same lesson for 4 weeks to help children retain the stories, but we change up our activities and how they experience the story each week.


    Schedule

    • 2/16 - Jesus Walks on Water: Dramatic Play Activity
    • 2/23 - Jesus Walks on Water: Art Activity
    • 3/1 - Jesus Walks on Water: Action Prayer Activity
    • 3/8 - Triumphal Entry: Muis Activity 1
    • 3/15 - Triumphal Entry: Game Activity
    • 3/22 - Triumphal Entry: Dramatic Play Activity
    • 3/29 - Triumphal Entry: Art Activity
    • 4/5 - Triumphal Entry:  Block Play Activity
    • 4/12 - Jesus' Resurrection: Easter Party!!!
    • 4/19 - Jesus' Resurrection: Art Activity
    • 4/26 - Jesus' Resurrection:  Dramatic Play Activity
    • 5/3 - Jesus' Resurrection: Action Play Activity
    GAP Teams: Each of our GAP teams serves 1 out of every 5 Sundays.
    • Team 1: Janice Hodge, Barb Reynolds, Camilla Flores
    • Team 2: Judy Blacklock, Kay Hardcastle, Amanda Funderburk
    • Team 3: Benny Gilbert, Caroyl Gilbert
    • Team 4: Sam Federwisch, Nancy Kosarek
    • .Team 5: Ali Dickson, Dorothy Goforth

  • Children's Church: Elementary (Kindergarten-5th Grade)

    Children's Church is a worship service in our fellowship hall that happens during the middle section of our main worship service. At Southminster we value having our children in worship, but we also value them learning in an environment in way that captures their attention and imagination. This service is structured similarly to our main service in the sanctuary, but it is also structured to engage children in ways that are appropriate for their age. Children are always accompanied by a team of adults and youth who lead them each Sunday. They leave the main worship service after the first hymn, and then return after around the doxology. Children are always back with the main worship service during baptisms and communion. 


    Current Series - The Life of Jesus

    During Lent until the end of the school year our children will be studying the life of Jesus to show them that we can follow Jesus' example and live like he did.


    Schedule (click each link below for the Parent Page that tells you what the kids learn and gives you some ideas to continue the conversation after church)

    • 3/1 - Jesus Was Born - Jesus came to earth as a baby born to parents who were so poor that he had to be born in a barn for animals. Because Jesus is God’s son, he deserved to be born in the nicest palace to the richest family. But by choosing to let his son be born in a barn, God showed us that it doesn’t matter who you are or what you’ve done,  God loves you and sent Jesus for you. Luke 2:1-20, The Birth of Jesus
    • 3/8 - Jesus Studied God's Word - Jesus set an example for kids by studying God’s Word. Even though he was the son of God, he still studied God’s word to learn what it says and obeyed what God taught him. Luke 2:41-52, The Boy Jesus in the Temple
    • 3/15 - Jesus Was Obedient - John the Baptist told other people about the coming Savior. When Jesus came to him to be baptized, John knew that the Savior had arrived. Kids will learn that Jesus set an example for us by being obedient to God when he was baptized. Jesus taught us that we show God we love Him when we obey Him. Matthew 3:1-17, The Baptism of Jesus
    • 3/22 - Jesus Never Sinned - Every single one of us has sinned at some point when we were tempted. As the Son of God, Jesus is the only person in history who lived a perfect life without sin. Kids will learn that with Jesus’ help, we can resist temptation too. Luke 4:1- 13, The Temptation of Jesus.
    • 3/29 - Jesus Came to Bring Peace - When Jesus entered Jerusalem the week before he was crucified, he rode on a donkey. The donkey was a symbol of a king who came in peace. Jesus showed us that he came in peace to let the world know how much God loves us. Kids will name one way that knowing Jesus loves them gives them peace right now. Matthew 21:1-11, The Triumphal Entry
    • 4/5 - Jesus Paid the Price for Sin - Jesus was arrested even though he had done nothing wrong. He was sentenced to die a very painful death on the cross. We have all sinned and don’t deserve to be in Heaven with God. Jesus was the only person who never sinned and deserved to go to heaven without dying, but he chose to die in this way to pay the price for our sin so we could go to heaven too. Kids will thank God for dying for their sin. Matthew 26:47-56, Luke 23:32-47, Jesus Arrest and Crucifixion
    • 4/12 - NO Children's Church - Family Worship for Easter Service
    • 4/19 - Jesus Rose from the Dead! - Jesus died for our sins, but on the third day He was raised back to life in power! Kids will learn that because Jesus paid the price for our sin and has power over sin and death. We can live forever with him in heaven. Kids will be given an opportunity to accept Jesus as their Savior. John 20:1-23, The Resurrection
    • 4/26 - Jesus Will Return - Jesus told his followers that he would be coming back to earth, but that their job and our job until then was to to tell people how much God loves them, and to make new disciples of Jesus. Jesus wants us to share the good news of Jesus with other people so that when he returns to earth there will be many more people who believe that he is the Savior. Kids will name 1 person they are going to invite to church to hear about Jesus this week. Matthew 28:16-20, The Great Commission
    • 5/3 - Jesus Called His Disciples - When Jesus began his ministry, he asked 12 men to be his disciples and to follow in his footsteps and learn from his teaching and his actions. Kids will learn that even today Jesus wants us to be his disciples and commit to following him by obeying what he has taught us in the Bible. Mark 1:16-20, Calling the First Disciples
    • 5/10 - Jesus Preached - Jesus gave many sermons during his ministry, teaching people a different way to live and telling them that we could never do enough good things to go to heaven, but that God loves us and will forgive our sins if we will believe in Jesus as our Savior. Kids will identify something they would have to do differently to live like Jesus describes in this sermon. Matthew 5:1-16, The Sermon on the Mount
    • 5/17 - Jesus Calmed a Storm - When a storm threatened to sink the small boat that Jesus and the disciples were sailing in, Jesus commanded the storm to stop. And it did! We can trust Jesus with any problem, because He is powerful. Kids will name something  that they want to ask and trust God to help them with. Mark 4:35-41, Jesus Calms the Storm
    • 5/24 - Jesus Healed – Because of his great love and compassion, Jesus healed many people that He encountered during his time on earth. One of them was a man who did not have the ability to walk. Kids will learn that Jesus loves us and cares about each of us. Luke 5:17-26, Jesus Heals a Paralytic

    Children's Church Team Leaders: Lisa Landry & Sheila James, Doris Funderburk & Jane Rusk, Susan Evans & Heather Hardee, Billy & Carla Lynch