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 5 week to help children retain the stories, but we change up our activities and how they experience the story each week.


    Schedule

    • 9/9 - Noah Obeys God: God Keeps His Promises; Art Activity
    • 9/16 - Noah Obeys God: God Keeps His Promises; Dramatic Play Activity
    • 9/23 - Noah Obeys God: God Keeps His Promises; Block Play Activity
    • 9/30 - Noah Obeys God: God Keeps His Promises; Game Activity
    • 10/7 - Walls of Jericho: God Is With Us; Action Play Activity
    • 10/14 - Walls of Jericho: God Is With Us; Art Activity
    • 10/21 - Walls of Jericho: God Is With Us; Dramatic Play Activity
    • 10/28 - Walls of Jericho: God Is With Us; Active Prayer Activity
    GAP Teams: Each of our GAP teams serves 1 out of every 4 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: Brad Federwisch, Sam Federwisch, Katelyn Needler

  • Children's Church: Elementary (Bridge/Kinder-5th)

    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: Board Games

    Idea: Just like there are rules for playing each of these games, God has given us specific rules for how we are to live. These 12 weeks are divided into 6-week sets of "Games You Should Play" and "Games You Shouldn't Play." 


    Memory Verse for Games You Should Play: "The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining even brighter till the full light of day." - Proverbs 4:8 NIV


    Memory Verse for Games You Shouldn't Play: "Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evildoers." - Proverbs 4:14 NIV


    Schedule

    • 9/9 - Chess - Everyone has a role to play in the Body of Christ. 1 Corinthians 12:12-27
    • 9/16 - Chutes & Ladders - Ups and downs, the story of Joseph. Genesis 37:17b-35
    • 9/23 - Connect Four - Connect yourself and others to Jesus. John 1:43-51
    • 9/30 - Life - Solomon made wise choices. 1 Kings 3:4-15
    • 10/7 - Sorry - Jesus teaches what it means to really apologize. Matthew 5:23-24
    • 10/14 - Trouble - The story of Moses. Exodus 2:11-15, 3:1-10
    • 10/21 - Battleship - Stop destroying others through gossip. James 3:3-10
    • 10/28 - Candy Land - Solomon teaches against pursuing fun & pleasure all the time. Proverbs 14:12
    • 11/4 - Checkers - David wasn’t willing to “jump” to get ahead. 1 Samuel 24:1-7
    • 11/11 - Hungry Hippos - Jesus warns us about being greedy. Luke 12:13-21
    • 11/18 - Jenga - Don’t carry your burdens alone. Exodus 18:13-24
    • 11/25 - Operation - Jesus teaches us to remove the plank from our own eye first. Matthew 7:1-5


    Children's Church Team Leaders: Lisa Landry, Doris Funderburk, Susan Evans, Billy & Carla Lynch