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The Chapel - OUR MISSION: Bring The Good News To Our Children
Children matter to God.
Right from the beginning, God made it clear that adults – parents as well as the whole community of faith – needed to invest time and energy into making sure that faith was passed on to the next generation. “Remember today that your children were not the ones who saw and experienced the discipline of the LORD your God: his majesty, his mighty hand, his outstretched arm, and the things he did…teach them to your children.” Deuteronomy 11:2,3,19
Recent research confirms how important this is. George Barna, a leading national cultural researcher and author of the book says: Most people decide what they will do about Jesus – either wholeheartedly follow, merely acknowledge, or ignore or reject Him – while they are young. Most children are bombarded with cues regarding their eternal condition and fate, and they develop a rather deeply held perspective on the matter prior to entering high school.” If we do not teach our children about God and the purpose for which he created us, they will find alternate false purposes that will only leave them empty and deceived.
The Chapel is committed to doing whatever it takes to reach our children. We realize we are competing with the best our culture can throw at them (Madison Ave. realizes that if you win them when they are children, you have them for life). So, we need the necessary space, technology and training for our staff and volunteers to make our children’s experience in Kid’s Celebration and Youth ministries attractive to them and an environment in which they will hear and accept the truth of God’s Word.
We also need to partner with parents to provide training in the spiritual formation of children, so that our children are powerfully impacted at home as well as in church.
What will this take?
- We need to increase (at least double) the space available for children and youth ministries – including the addition of a gymnasium.
- We need to upgrade the technology available to our children and youth ministries.
- We need to provide more adult fellowship and learning areas for parents to learn and grow together.
- We would like to be involved in the development of a community center for the spiritual, physical, and educational well being of children and youth in our surrounding community.
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