050 - The Faith of Our Children with Matt Markins
The Effective Ministry Podcast
English - March 05, 2024 19:00 - 52 minutes - 47.9 MBChristianity Religion & Spirituality children's ministry youth ministry church Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
In this episode of The Effective Ministry Podcast, host Tim Beilharz interviews Awana CEO Matt Markins, author of The Faith of Our Children: Eight Timely Research Insights for Discipling the Next Generation.
Matt shares his personal journey from growing up in a dysfunctional family to finding solace and direction in the church, which sparked his passion for child discipleship. He discusses the critical role of the church in intentionally forming children's faith and counters the common approach of general children's ministry with a focused, relationship-based model of child discipleship.
Matt also talks about his role as president and CEO of Awana, a global organization dedicated to child discipleship, outlining its history, goals, and the importance of fostering relationships and biblical engagement for lasting faith in children.
The episode covers various insights from Matt's book, highlighting the essential factors of biblical faithfulness, stewardship of orthodoxy, and formational fruitfulness for effective child discipleship.
Additionally, the discussion touches on the challenges and opportunities in recruiting volunteers, equipping parents, and the necessity of creating a scripture-rich environment for kids.
Matt emphasizes the early formation of worldview by the age of 13 and the strategic shift needed in ministry to focus on younger children, asserting the importance of investing resources effectively to shape the future of the church.
Youthworks
Click on through to discover more from the Youthworks Ministry Support Team and find out how Youthworks can help you have an effective youth and children's ministry in your local church.
You can partner in the ministry of Youthworks by donating here.
We would love to hear from you. Send your thoughts, comments, suggestions, and critiques to [email protected].
Matt Markins, The Faith of our Children: Eight Timely Research Insights for Discipling the Next Generation
Valerie Bell with Chris Marchand, Matt Markins & Mike Handler, Resilient: Child Discipleship and the Fearless Future of the Church
Barna, Children's Ministry in a New Reality