Drawing Kids into Worship {With Sanctuary Scribes by Augsburg Fortress}
- mel96066
- Nov 5
- 2 min read
The most fun box just arrived in the mail.
Last October I was selected as a contributor for the Unbridled Presence project with Augsburg Fortress. The defined objective was to create materials to engage students in faith. Opportunities existed for toddlers through teens, but I knew right away I wanted to audition for elementary-age children and submitted writing accordingly.
I was ecstatic to be selected.
For years faith leaders have begged questions about children in worship. With desire to keep them in the worship space to learn how to be a worship participant, conversations like, "What do we do to keep children occupied while there?" have been unending. While there are many good solutions like KidTalks, Childrens' Bibles on seats, and, more recently, praygrounds, growth opportunity remains in building ministry moment connections.
Needless to say, when I discovered the elementary project would be booklets to draw kids into the worship setting I was energized. What do you see? What do you hear? This work would be a child-friendly way of connecting their worship environment with fun to create spiritual growth.
I got to work imagining what a child could notice, and what I would pray for them to pick up on, sketching out my designs. This required leaning in on Matthew 19:26 because I got a B in art in elementary school and the perfectionist in me has never quite regained confidence in my drawing abilities. :) With God (and the promise of a good illustrator down the road) I released my fear and insecurities and leaned into a myriad of concepts.
Here is an example of one of my submissions. Isn't it worked into the most adorably perfect page?!
Every page within the booklet involves writing, coloring, circling, drawing, doodling, or mirroring something that the child sees or hears in worship. It pulls them in and makes them a participant while helping them learn. Each booklet is 12 pages and about 4x6 in size. And, every page is positively delightful.
This is what we need to be handing out or adding to our busy bags.
They will aid in faith formation for our youngest members. Beyond that, if you are a congregation that uses worship notes somewhere along the way, it'll help students develop observational habits from the time they are young, making that transition smoother and yielding more quality responses.
Check out more examples and order your copies here. You will be glad you did!
xx Melissa
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