Articles Zone

Practical and insightful articles about Children's Ministry.

Looking for some expert advice? This Zone is a treasury of Children's Ministry expertise from the Kidologist and other veterans in children's ministry.

Some of the most popular articles are:

Getting into the Home | Mailbox Ministry | Discipline that Disciples | Entering the World of Kids | First Steps for a New Children's Pastor | The Great KID Mission |

Looking for something you didn't find here? Let us know!

Submit an Idea

‹ Back to Zones
Membership Levels:
Guest Starter All Access
Level Title Topic
All Access Da Bible Feet - Caleb

A Kids Church Video featuring “Da Feet.” An introduction for a lesson on Caleb.

Caleb,
All Access Da Bible Feet - Joshua

A Kids Church Video featuring “Da Feet.” An introduction for a lesson on Joshua.

Joshua
All Access Da Bible Feet - Moses

A Kids Church Video featuring “Da Feet.” An introduction for a lesson on Moses.

Moses
All Access Dealing with Parent Conflict

Karl Bastian provides tips on how to keep your cool and deal with parents when they get upset with you!

Parent Conflict
All Access Dealing with Personal Criticism

Originally published in Children's Ministry Magazine Professional Edition, Karl Bastian shares insights on how to deal with criticism in leadership.  

Critism in Leadership
All Access Disney Models Making the Most of a Bad Situation

Learn to turn something boring into something creative, the way disney does.

Creative, Disney, CPC
All Access Effective Tele-Ministry

The phone can be an effective tool in building stronger relationships with the children in your ministry. So here are some ideas for ways you can use the phone to touch kids lives and some tips to make you r calls more meaningful.

Relational Ministry
Free Facts About Psalm 118

Some things you likely never knew about Psalm 118 that are pretty cool!  

Psalm 118
All Access Family Ministry: Trading One Extreme for Another

Are "FIC" (Family Integrated Churches) really better? Or are we merely trading one ineffective extreme for another?

Family Ministry
Starter Finding Your Ministry Calling

Would you like to KNOW why God put you here on this earth? Wouldn’t it be great at the end of your life to be able to say, “I have finished the race?” But how will you know if you have finished the race unless you know what race you are running? This article, which reveals the personal story of the Kidologist's calling, will give you some insight on how YOU can discover YOUR calling.

Leadership
All Access First Things First

Take care of the "Big Rocks" in your life, and then worry about everything else. If you can't, then you simply are doing more than God is asking you to, and you need to take a hard look at your life and ministry. It may require some heart-searching prayer about what God is asking you to do.

Priorities
All Access Getting into the Home

If you want to understand children, you've got to get into their homes. It is amazing what you can learn about the interests and influencers of children from their bedrooms! A kid's room is like a diorama of their heart.

Relational Ministry
All Access Getting on Top of Your Own Personal Discipline

This is a teaching outline on personal discipline. Can be used for individual study, or for teaching a workshop.

Time Management
All Access Getting Started in Kidmin

A look at great resources to help you get started in kidmin

Kidology, training
All Access God's Word is for Kids

The power of the word of God will work for kids. We often quote Paul from 2 Timothy 3 about the power of God’s word. Rightfully so. We forgot, however, the context of Paul’s statement is in reference to Timothy having learned the word as a child.

Teaching
All Access HELP! I'm Recruiting!

8 Tips on Recruiting from Karl Bastian

Recruiting
All Access HELP! My Student Has ADD - 8 Ideas That Work!

Info and Tips for working with ADD / ADHD kids.

ADD / ADHD
All Access Helping Kids Find God in a Hectic World

How can we slow kids and families down and bring them closer to a walk with God? Here are a few suggestions.

Parents
Starter How a Palm Pilot Can Enhance Your Ministry!

CLASSIC POST: These are the workshop notes and additional details from the workshop that the Kidologist taught at the Children's Pastor's Conference in Nashville and San Diego in 2001.

Technology
All Access How to be an AWESOME Small Group Leader

Many churches today use a Large Group / Small Group format. For small group leaders, here are FIVE TIPS to make your time as effective as possible.

Small Group Training
All Access How to Fire a Volunteer

How do you fire a volunteer? That's a tough question, but here are some guidelines you will find helpful as you approach this delicate duty!

Volunteers, Guidelines
All Access How to Recruit F.A.T. Volunteers

Improve your volunteer retention by finding the right volunteers from the start!

Recruiting
All Access I Was a Kid with Special Needs

Our goal isn’t to have a completely controlled classroom – it is to minister to each and every child according to their needs. And that includes every child!

Special Needs Kids
All Access Introduction to Solo Puppeteering

Puppet Training on doing a puppet all by yourself - ventriloquism NOT required! (Although the AVC's of Ventriloquism are included!) Tips and Advice on how to do a puppet by yourself, how to develop a character, and things you can do to enhance your lesson with a solo puppet.

Puppetry Training
All Access Is Your Kidmin in Survival or Creative Mode?

I love Minecraft. I play it with my son and other kids. It also teaches me things about children's ministry.

Leadership
All Access Jesus and the Theology of Children through the Ages

This is a masters level paper on the 'gradual historical return to Jesus' Theology of Children. Includes extensive footnotes and bibliography.

Children
All Access Keepin' It Simple

Karl talks about ways to Keep It S.I.M.P.L.E. in your ministry when you are starting to feel overwhelmed (Post includes an MP3)

Leadership Volunteers
All Access Let the Children Come to Me (a sermon)

This is a sermon on the passages of Jesus blessing the children that you can use to teach about the value of children.

Children
All Access Mailbox Ministry

Children expect you to be there in the classroom during the Sunday School hour, or whenever your club or ministry meets. But they DON'T expect you to touch their life during the week! So surprise them!

Relational Ministry
All Access Memo From CP: No More Child Care

How to Release the CM from providing Child Care to other ministries.

Child Care Policy
All Access Ministering to Kids of the New Millenium

No doubt about it! The kids of today are not the same as when YOU were a kid! Their interests are different, they grow up much faster, and even their 'toys' are amazing! SO HOW DO YOU REACH THEM?

Relational Ministry
All Access Name Tag Fun

Help kids understand their own attitudes through this easy activity with Name Tags. Plus, help build community as the kids get to know each other a little bit better.

Community, Attitude
All Access No more Sinner's Prayer in Kidmin?

While we may have valid concerns to many of the practices associated with inviting children to receive Jesus into their hearts, Jesus' imperative to bring kids to him must be a priority for children's ministry.

Evangelism, Spiritual Formation
All Access On the Wheel

Have you every blown it? Here is some encouragement not to give up as you serve "On the Potter's Wheel"

Personal Development and Growth
All Access PHILOSOPHY OF MINISTRY - I. The Foundation

Understanding ministry in progress.

Leadership
All Access PHILOSOPHY of MINISTRY - II. The Builders

Using People, not Programs

Leadership
All Access PHILOSOPHY OF MINISTRY - III. The Building: Utilizing the Program Pyramid

Learn a strategy that will give unique meaning and purpose to every event - rather than just planning events and tossing in some spiritual impact so it can be called ministry.

Leadership
All Access Pocket Puzzle Evangelism?

Learn how to naturally and safley invite kids to church.

Evangelism, Invites
All Access Pokemon Help

Anything done in extremes isn't healthy, and parents should limit both the time and money invested in Pokémon, but like baseball cards, P.O.G.S, stickers, and anything else kids get into, it needs to be balanced, and they need to know what is real and what is make believe. God gave children incredible imaginations.... the creators of Pokémon have tapped into that in a way that baffles adults who aren't on the inside track.

Pokemon
All Access Proactive Leadership

If you want to be a more proactive leader – don't start your day by checking your e-mail, voice mail, or mail slot at the office. Here is what you do...

Leadership
Starter Puppets – A Helpful Hand in Teaching

Kids and adults respond better to puppets than to almost any other creative teaching method.

Puppetry
All Access Purpose, Mission and Vision in Children's Ministry

Often the words Purpose, Mission and Vision are used interchangeably. What do they mean and what impact can they have on your children's ministry? A HUGE impact!

Leadership
All Access Reaching Disconnected Families

Pastor Karl addresses this critical issue that faces all of our ministries. Families visit our church, and don't return. Or, families that once were regular, fade away and we wonder what happened to them. How do we bring them back?

Family Ministry
All Access Relational Ministry vs. Respect as a Leader

How can I lead relationally while maintaining respect for my position. 

Relationships, Leadership
All Access Resolute in the New Year

I think because New Year’s Resolutions often don’t last or are forgotten after several months, some people give up even making them. Others even encourage people not to for this very reason. I disagree. I think they are fantastic!

New Year's Resolutions
All Access Sack Lunch Sunday

A simple to plan event that both the kids and parents love.

Fun, Party
Starter Scope and Seekwhat?

Educators have long called it a Scope and Sequence. Every thoughtful Bible curriculum has one. If it doesn’t, you might want to re-evaluate the quality of the material or the intentionality of its creators. If there is no scope and sequence, then it is a haphazard approach to education, and that is dangerous.

Curricululm Writing
All Access Setting GOALS for Your Ministry

Purpose, Mission and Vision are critical to a ministry's success, but without goals they are difficult to bring into reality. Evaluating your progress also becomes nearly impossible! Goals break down a grand vision into attainable action steps. Let us show you how to setup these goals.

Goals
Starter Shepherd or Sheepherder?

You went into children's ministry because you wanted to be a shepherd of children – and all too soon you became more sheepherder than shepherd. What changed?

Shepherding
All Access Shepherding the Hearts of God's Children (sermon)

A Shepherd Guides, Provides, and Protects. We need to do the same for our children.

Shepherding Children
it Bible Curriculum Protect My Ministry 2023 KidCheck YouthCheck Girl FUNtastic Bible Activity Book U-Turn Cards Gospel Presentation Kidology's Ultimate Toolbox for Children's Ministr My Awesome Adventure DiscipleTown Unit 10 - How to Explain My Faith ToyBox Tales Kidology Online Training
Kidology Curriculum

Kids Church Lessons
written by the Kidologist!

Kidology on Twitter