3 More Midweek Service Alternatives
In kidmin, there is a lot of help out there for Sunday mornings and events. But there is one recurring event that churches all over the country deal with that seems to be silent.
Midweek.
Most churches meet on Wednesday nights and still do. I thought a few years ago that Midweek services were going to go the way of Sunday nights. But I’ve seen new life breathed into them. Many churches have moved from a Wednesday night service to Adult Small Groups.
There are a variety of reasons for this shift, but I think the biggest one is childcare. Some of the largest churches provide compensation for babysitters during their home groups. But most of us can’t afford that. As a result, many group ministries stall.
But Wednesday night has built in childcare. Church people are already used to coming on Wednesday night. And it typically has a full slate of ministries from birth to age 99.
So, kids’ pastors have to figure what to do with all their kids. I wrote this post a few years back about midweek alternatives. Those options are great if you’re trying to get Wednesday night off the ground. Or you’re really short on volunteers.
In this post, I’ll talk about three other ministry options. They've been used in churches for decades with great success. There are millions of children who have benefited from them including myself.
Before I dive in, I want to share my bias. I’ve been a part of the Assemblies of God my entire life. That’s why two of the three are AG programs. If they don’t line up with your theological beliefs, then I suggest you look at the other one. Whatever curriculum you use, you want to make sure it lines up with your church culture and beliefs. These questions can help.
1. Royal Rangers and Girls Ministries
Both ministries started back in the 60s and are designed to work in tandem. Leaders in the AG wanted to provide alternative midweek programming for kids like the Boy and Girl Scouts. As a product of Royal Rangers, many times I describe it as Boy Scouts with Jesus.
Girls Ministries provide programming from nursery all the way to high school. They combine boys and girls through preschool. When kids reach kindergarten, the boys split off to Rangers. Rangers also goes all the way to high school. But in my experience, most of these ministries end in elementary so kids can go to youth group.
Each week, kids learn about the Bible, and practical skills they can use in life. They do crafts, play games, and focus on character building. Many of Royal Rangers’ activities are designed for the outdoors. For instance, both groups learn how to cook. But Rangers do it over a campfire.
While I love both of these programs and have supported them throughout my ministry career, there are some drawbacks.
First, each is very volunteer heavy. To be successful, you need volunteers to serve every week with few if any breaks. In addition, Girls Ministries has 4 classes for elementary and Rangers has 3. If you keep to the rule of two, that’s 14 highly dedicated volunteers every week.
In addition, while costs have been reduced in recent years, these programs can be expensive. You need to buy books, badges kids earn, and many, many trips throughout the year.
If you already have dedicated volunteers, these two clubs may be a great option for you. They have discipled millions of kids throughout the years. I often say I wouldn’t be the man I am today if it wasn’t for the men who poured into my life through Rangers. If you’d like to know more, you can read about Rangers here and Girls Ministries here.
2. Kidmin Roadmap Clubs
Another AG product, Kidmin Roadmap provides high-quality kidmin curriculum through the Bible Engagement Project for free. When I was in day-to-day kidmin trying to figure out what to do on Wednesdays, I wish this product existed.
These clubs work great if your church does Groups on a semester system. They’re designed to be a self-contained 8-week course that bridges the gap over what you cover on Sunday. Currently there are only 5 courses, but I’m sure there are more coming down the line.
Each course focuses on a Bible truth through projects. Their clubs include science, cooking, duct-tape armor, outdoors, and all about me.
If you have a small team and/or a small group, this is a great option for you. They provide all the teaching material you need including graphics and social media. You’ll still need to provide the supplies for each week.
A drawback would be that these clubs only focus only on elementary aged kids. You’ll have to come up with another option for preschoolers. The Rainbows program from Girls Ministries may be a great option for you.
If you’d like to learn more about kidmin roadmap and their clubs, go here. You’ll need a login, but it’s free and they don’t spam you.
3. Awana
Full disclosure being an AG kid and now pastor, I only have a passing knowledge of this program. However, I do know that it’s very popular in churches across the country.
Similar to Rangers and Girls Ministries, Awana teaches the Bible in addition to practical skills through crafts, games, and projects. Awana also has all the kids together, so you don’t have to have as many classes. However, you still need dedicated volunteers that will serve almost every week.
Awana includes curriculum for kids ages 2 to 18 with only 4 groups within. That means to fully staff a program through elementary you’d only need 6 volunteers.
The drawbacks to Awana are similar to Rangers and Girls ministries. You still need many very dedicated volunteers. Also, it can also be expensive with books, badges, and trips. However, if you’re looking for a non-Pentecostal curriculum, Awana may be a good option for you.
I don’t think Wednesday programming is going away anytime soon. If you’re just starting a Midweek program, I suggest the alternatives in this post or the Kidmin Roadmap Clubs.
If you’ve been going for a while and want to focus on mentorship and discipleship, then the other two options could be great for your church. Whichever you choose, make sure it lines up with the mission/vision of your church and its theology. You never want to go your own way. That’s a recipe for disaster.
Instead of looking at Midweek programming as a bother, look at it as an opportunity to truly disciple your kids. You get an extra hour or two a week with some of your most dedicated families. You can dive deep into the Bible and mentor kids far better than the ones who just come on Sunday. And there’s nothing much better than watching kids flourish in their relationship with God.
