Our Future Depends on Us

“Your children shall be taught by the Lord.” – Isaiah 54:13 

Last night my church’s brand-new, state-of-the-art, almost completed Children’s Building was dedicated to the Lord.  Sweet kids sang “How Great is Our God”, our senior pastor and children’s pastor thanked those who were a part of this endeavor, and we prayed over this building that it would be a tool to bring thousands of children to a saving knowledge of Christ in the coming years.

In preparing print and screen media for the dedication service, I enjoyed seeing the rich legacy of the children’s ministry at First Baptist Church Morristown.  Our church historian found a photo from 1926 of what appears to be the very first children’s Sunday School class of our church.  He also found a lot of photos from other eras in time…all related to the children’s ministry (see the photo at the end of this post for a collage of pictures I put together for the program).  From Sunday School to Vacation Bible School to GA’s/RA’s to AWANA to so many other children’s activities and events…our church has had a century-long, deep-rooted desire to educate children in the knowledge of Jesus Christ.  Now that desire has developed into a beautiful building that today’s children and future children will come to enjoy from now until eternity.

My church’s former pastor, and the Tennessee Baptist Convention’s current executive director, Dr. Randy Davis, spoke a few words and prayed the dedication prayer over the building.  Something he said last night was especially poignant to me.  He said about our Children’s Building: 

It may be the most important strategic decision you’ve made as far as buildings go for the last 50 years.  The reason being is this: for the young adults that were born between 1980 to 2000, only 15% have come to known Jesus as Lord and Savior in the United States...the smallest since our founding.  And the projection is this: if our trends are an indication, only 1 out of every 10 of the children born and living right now under the age of 13 in the US will come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. 

Am I shocked at those numbers?  A resounding, YES!  Am I surprised at those numbers?  Sadly, no.  How can more children come to a saving knowledge of Jesus when they live in a world that values trash over dignity?  How can children know the sweet name of Jesus when all they’ve ever heard is His name associated with a curse word?  How can kids know that Christ changes your life when they see their celebrity role-models who say they are “Christians” behave immorally?  I’m not making any of these scenarios up.  These are things that today’s generation live with EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.  And not to be a “Debbie-downer,” but it’s only going to get worse…read 2 Timothy 3:1-5.

These examples combined with Bro. Randy’s statistics PROVE that it is imperative to spiritually educate our children in the knowledge of Christ!  How can they fight this world that so desperately tries to get them to join in on the filth?  With the strength and power of Jesus!  How can they show their friends that Jesus is love and not a curse word?  By knowing who He is!  How can they prove to others that being a Christian involves a life change?  By growing in their walk with Him!!!  Proverbs tells us well, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6). 

Praise God that He has bestowed upon First Baptist Morristown the gift of this Children’s Building.  You know, it’s more than a building…it’s a weapon against Satan and all that is evil and a training ground for future soldiers of the Cross.  It won’t be just the building’s job to educate those children, however, it will be the job of committed and dedicated workers who train these children…from babies to sixth graders…in the Truth of Jesus.  May we as workers NEVER take that lightly. 

Isaiah speaks so eloquently, when he says, “your children shall be taught by the Lord” (Isaiah 54:13).  Over time, in my church and really any and all other churches children’s ministries, there has always been one constant – the Father.  It is He, through His Spirit, who taught and continues to teach children about Himself.  As “grown-ups” we are His willing vessels as He uses us to speak His truth to countless numbers of children.  The Lord teaches His children because He desires to have a relationship with them.  It is He who wants them to learn to trust Him in all circumstances.  It is the Lord who wants them to spend eternity in heaven with Him.

Let me stop for a minute and say…I’m not just speaking to FBC Morristown folks...these words are meant for every single church-going person.  You don’t have to have a fancy children’s building…you can have a children’s ministry room and these words still apply.  Globally…children are aching to find something to fill their emptiness.  Some turn to music, some to celebrities, others to video games and sadly the list goes on and on and on.  Let’s help them turn to Jesus. 

Hopefully within the next month or so, we will be able to move into the children’s building and begin using this tool to reach the children in our area.  I can’t wait to see how God uses this building to glorify Him.  We have a big job and the task seems quite daunting, especially when you see what our kids are faced with on a daily basis.  But “greater is He that is in us, than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4).  If you’ve never been involved in anything children’s ministry related, I pray that you will consider doing so…whether it be through VBS, Sunday School, Wednesday night program, choir, or anything else that your church does to tell kids about Jesus.  Why?  Because our future depends on us.

FBC Morristown's rich history of children's ministry....from 1926 to present day.