Formational Children's Ministry ─ Shaping Children Using Story, Ritual, and Relationship

Much ministry to children looks more like mere entertainment than authentic spiritual formation. But what if children's ministries were rooted in a mind set whereby we taught children, with our words and actions, how the story of God, the story of church history, the story of the local community, and the story of the child intersect and speak to one another? What if children's ministry was less about downloading information into kids' heads and more about leading them into these powerful, compelling stories? Beckwith aims to help ministers and parents create a ministry that captures children's imaginations not just to keep them occupied, but to live as citizens of the kingdom of God. In addition to providing theological reasons for formational children's ministry, the book offers examples of how Ivy and other practitioners are implementing a formational model.

Ivy Beckwith (PhD, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School) is the author of Postmodern Children's Ministry and has served churches of all sizes. She has worked as an editor and education consultant for Group Publishing and Gospel Light Publications. She currently serves the Congregational Church of New Canaan, Connecticut, as the Minister for Children and Families.