What Is Family Ministry?

The term "Family Ministry" has been bouncing around First Baptist for several months now. I have written a couple of Encounters articles about it, the staff has been discussing it, and I have shared certain elements of it with individuals. However, I don't think I have adequately communicated a proper definition of the term "family ministry" as it is being used. In this post, I want to attempt to do just that as briefly and as clearly as possible.

First of all, when you hear me, or any other staff member, speaking about family ministry we are not talking about a program. We are talking about a philosophy that will guide our ministry efforts. The staff believes this philosophy provides us with a more biblical approach for ministering to families, helps us better define the church’s role in that, and helps us prioritize everything we do.

Using a much overused term, the staff is going through a "paradigm shift". We are moving from the traditional church centered, home supported ministry approach to one that is home centered and church supported. The traditional approach encourages families to provide support and resources to the church so it can disciple their children effectively. In other words, the home helps the church to be the best it can be.

The new approach promotes that the church do all it can to provide training and support for parents to disciple their own children effectively. The church exists to partner with homes to help them be all that God desires them to be. In other words, the church says to the parents, “Our role is to be a resource of ideas, training, and encouragement that helps you provide spiritual leadership and biblical training for your children in the environment of your home.”

I read an article recently that said most churches operate their preschool, children, and youth ministries like a Dry Cleaners. The quote went something like this; “You swing in, drop off your precious personals into the hands of a stranger, get a little impatient if it takes too long, and pick up your items all 'fixed.' In a world of drop-off children’s activities, many ministries have followed suit. You drop off your kids at school, athletics, tutoring, etc, so why not drop off your children for their spiritual education at the local church?” This presents a fairly accurate picture of the traditional approach of which I am speaking. You can see that it clearly usurps the biblical responsibility of parents.

Let me give you a real life example of how the new approach operates. In a recent planning meeting, the youth staff was discussing the idea of hosting another abstinence education weekend. Traditionally, we would have had an organization like True Love Waits come in for the weekend and teach the youth about the dangers of sexual promiscuity. With our new approach guiding them, the youth staff decided that hosting this type event would usurp the biblical role of parents to provide that instruction. Instead they decided to host an event where parents could come and receive training on how to discuss abstinence issues with their children. Do you see what a tremendous difference this makes in how the church attempts to minister to families?

In closing, there are other elements to family ministry that are important as well. We will promote a strong biblical view of marriage. We will encourage and equip men to be the spiritual leaders of their homes. We will provide support for single parents and blended families. And finally, we will provide opportunities for families to Connect, Grow, Serve, and Share together (I will address this in future articles).

I am aware that this new approach to family ministry certainly raises many questions. For example, what about youth and children that attend FBC but their parents don’t? This question, and many others, is what the staff is working to provide answers for as we meet together. Your comments and suggestions are always welcomed.

David

P.S. Look for a new post on Thursday!