So last week during worship time little Emma asks me why we have to sing the same songs every week. And honestly? I didn't have a great answer.
That got me thinking. We talk about worship all the time but do kids actually get what it means? Like really get it?
Turns out most of them think worship just means singing. Which makes sense because that's basically what we show them. Stand up, sing songs, sit down. Repeat next week.
But worship is so much bigger than that. And kids can totally understand it if we actually explain it in ways that make sense to them.
Here's what I've been trying lately.
1. Make It About Their Whole Life
Kids think worship only happens at church. Wrong.
I started asking them about their favorite things. Video games. Ice cream. Their dog. Whatever.
Then I ask - when you're really excited about something, what do you do? They light up. "I tell everyone!" "I jump around!" "I can't stop talking about it!"
Exactly.
That's worship. When you love God so much you can't help but show it.
We practiced this during snack time. Instead of just praying for the goldfish crackers I had them think of one thing they wanted to thank God for from their whole week. Not just church stuff.
Maddie thanked God for her new kitten. Tyler thanked God for winning his soccer game. Simple but it clicked.
Worship isn't just Sunday morning. It's every day when you remember how good God is.
2. Let Them Move
Kids aren't meant to stand still and sing quietly. I don't know who decided that was worship but they obviously never met a 6-year-old.
Now we do more than just stand and sway. We clap. We march. We do simple motions that go with the words.
During "How Great Is Our God" we stretch our arms wide on "great" and point up on "God." Basic stuff but they love it.
And you know what? The adults started joining in too. Turns out worship gets better when you use your whole body not just your voice.
Sometimes I let them make up their own motions. Chaos? Maybe. But they're engaged and thinking about the words instead of just mumbling along.
3. Talk About What the Songs Actually Mean
Most worship songs use words kids don't understand. "Steadfast love." "Refuge." "Righteousness."
I started stopping in the middle of songs to explain.
"Anyone know what steadfast means?" Blank stares. "It means it never changes. God's love for you is exactly the same today as it was yesterday and will be tomorrow."
Oh.
Now when we sing about God's steadfast love some of them actually smile because they know what we're talking about.
Takes longer to get through songs but who cares? Better to understand one line than sing ten verses of words that mean nothing to them.
4. Use Different Types of Music
We got stuck in this rut of only doing contemporary worship songs. Fast ones for energy, slow ones for reverence. Same pattern every week.
Then I remembered kids actually like different kinds of music.
We tried some simple hymns. "Jesus Loves Me" but with hand motions. "This Little Light of Mine" where they actually get to shine flashlights.
We did some call and response songs where half the kids sing one part and half sing another. Gets loud but they love it.
Sometimes we just hum together. Or do songs with only hand motions and no words. Quiet worship hits different when you're 7.
5. Make Prayer More Than Just Asking for Stuff
Kids think prayer is just asking God for things. Help me pass my test. Make grandma feel better. Give me a new bike.
All good things to pray for but that's not all prayer is.
I started teaching them different types of prayer:
- Thank you prayers (easier than you'd think)
- Sorry prayers (harder but important)
- Wow prayers (when you notice something amazing about God)
- Help prayers (the ones they already knew)
We practiced wow prayers by looking at pictures of mountains and oceans and butterflies. "God, you're amazing because you made all this!"
Thank you prayers during snack time. Sorry prayers when someone was mean to a friend.
Now prayer feels less like begging and more like talking to someone who loves them.
6. Let Them Create Something
Kids worship through making stuff. Give them art supplies and watch what happens.
We did worship coloring where they could draw or write prayers while we played quiet music. No rules. Just create something for God.
Rebecca drew her family with big smiles because "God makes us happy." Austin wrote "GOD IS GOOD" in huge letters with every color marker we had.
Another time we made paper chains where each link had something they were thankful for. Hung them around the room as decoration but really it was worship.
Craft time becomes worship time when you frame it right. "Let's make something beautiful for God because he made us."
Works every time.
7. Show Them Worship in the Bible
Kids need to see that worship isn't just something we made up for church.
We looked at David dancing when the ark came back. I mean really looked at it. "David was so excited about God he couldn't help but dance!"
We talked about the woman who poured expensive perfume on Jesus' feet. "She loved Jesus so much she gave him her most valuable thing."
We read about Paul and Silas singing in prison. "Even when bad things happened they still praised God."
These stories show kids that worship is a normal response when you know how awesome God is. It's not just something adults make you do on Sunday morning.
The Big Picture
Here's what I figured out - kids understand worship better than we think they do. They just need us to explain it in ways that make sense to their world.
When my nephew gets excited about Pokemon he talks about it nonstop. Shows everyone his cards. Acts out battles in the living room.
That's the energy we want for worship. Not quiet and still and proper. Excited and eager and can't-help-but-show-it.
Some weeks our worship time is loud and chaotic. Sometimes it's quiet and thoughtful. Both are good. Both are real.
The goal isn't perfect behavior during worship time. It's helping kids understand that worship is what happens when you really get how much God loves you.
And honestly? When kids worship with their whole hearts it reminds adults what we're supposed to be doing too.
We've been using a mix of resources to help with this. Orange has some good worship ideas for kids. Kids Sunday School Place has simple songs that work well. Sometimes we pull worship activities from Grow Curriculum when they fit what we're teaching.
But mostly we just pay attention to what engages the kids and do more of that. They'll tell you what works if you watch and listen.
Worship doesn't have to be complicated. It just has to be real.
