Should children worship together with their parents on Sunday in church, or should they attend a separate children's service?
Pastor John Piper, founder of Desiring God, writes on his website that it is important for families to do the act of worship together, because there is something really powerful when children witness their parents worshipping the Lord.
"You can't impart what you don't possess. And this is what you want your children to catch. You want them to catch authentic worship. Authentic, heartfelt worship is the most valuable thing in human experience. Think of it. The cumulative effect of 650 worship services spent with mom and dad in authentic communion with God and his people between the ages of four and 17 is utterly incalculable," Piper says.
However, Pastor J.D. Greear from The Summit Church holds a different opinion. He sees nothing wrong with children worshipping with their parents, but there are times when children should be left to their own devices.
"We think it is important for families to worship together, and would hate the idea that a child at The Summit Church grows up and goes off to college and has never participated in an adult worship service," he tells The Christian Post. "At the same time, we realise that there are certain things kids and students can learn best if the content is tailored specifically for them."
Greear says parents must exercise proper judgment in determining when it is right to bring their children to worship services. Personally, Greear says he brought his kids to church at the age of 8.
Meanwhile, Michael Seawright, director of Family Ministries at Truro Anglican Church, says he asks his kids to join the main worship service with him. But right after the sermon, they are dismissed to hold kids' programmes. Later, parents and kids will rejoin for Communion.
"Of course it is inconvenient at times to have children in the pews," Seawright says. "They squirm and wiggle and make all sorts of noise, and they don't always understand what is going on. But we believe that God loves children – wiggles and all – and that every moment in the service is a teaching opportunity."
