Do Your Kids Hate Church?

Should children have a choice as to whether they go to church? Are children going to church because their parents are forcing them to go? What is the reasoning behind why children do not want to go to church? Are there many children in your church?

children church

Possibly when you and your family joined church and your children were younger, they accepted going to church. Your children going to church was a norm at one time. Then as your children got older into the adolescent and teen years, they started questioning going to church possibly saying that it was not for them.

Boys Checkered Hoodie

According to Christian women.com, as children get older they start wanting to find expressions of faith that they can call their own. They further add that as parents they have made it clear to their children that church is not an option that they are committed to their church and that is non-negotiable.

This Church

Possibly your children feel that they do not fit in at this particular church. Could there be a disconnect with with pastor, leaders, or other children at the church? According to christianmomsthoughts.com this might just be what is happening. Possibly they have visited other churches and in comparison they feel this church is less than. My Pastor emphasizes he wants you to be Saved and that you do not have to stay at our church, but feel free to go to another church.

New Balance Boys Jacket

Boring

Are Your children saying that church is boring? I recall one of my children stating, “Church is so boring, I do not understand what that man is talking about?” According to a survey from the Barna Group at Barna.org. 31% of teens stated that church was boring. They further added that 24% felt church was irrelevant to their careers.  So when teenagers and young adults start working, does church take a back seat for them?   Do they arrive at church halfway through the program on purpose, because they just do not want to be there?

Belonging

Do your children feel as though they belong in your church? Sometimes children may feel as though they are not apart of the church even though they attend it, according to ministrytodaymag.com. When you think about it, everyone wants to feel as though they are apart of something, including children.

Invitation

Children love their peer group. Have your children ever invited a friend to church? Sometimes just having their friend there can make all the difference. Now if their friends go with them to sporting events, skating, or the arcades, why not invite a friend to church?

Involvement

How involved are your children in the church service? According to reformed worship.org., Some of the 15 churches they talked to had children participating in church at least once a month, some had children's choirs, some children would play instruments, others would offer prayers, and others would read literature.

So do your kids hate church? Are they actively involved in your church? Do they even want to be there?

Photo Caption:

Wikimedia.org., by Billy Hathorn, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

Source:

I hate Church, by Jim Burns

http://www.todayschristianwoman.com/articles/2002/september/19.26.html

Should You Force Your Kids to Go to Church, by Natasha Crain

http://christianmomthoughts.com/should-you-force-your-kids-to-go-to-church/

6 Reasons Young Christians Leave Church

https://www.barna.org/teens-next-gen-articles/528-six-reasons-young-christians-leave-church

3 Reasons Why Some Churched Kids Hate Church

http://ministrytodaymag.com/index.php/ministry-life/youth/21341-3-reasons-why-some-churched-kids-hate-church

Kids in Worship: Fifteen Church report what they're doing

http://www.reformedworship.org/article/june-1995/kids-worship-fifteen-churches-report-what-theyre-doing

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