And the other six days?

Very often when I tell people I'm going in to full time ministry, or more specifically Children's Ministry, I receive that irritating response experienced by most ministers:


"I see... so what will you do the other six days of the week?"

Sigh. "Give me grace, Lord, give me grace that I might not hit a fellow human being." I jest. (But it is tempting.) So, what exactly will I fill my time with when I leave college?

The specifics I'm not yet sure of but the questions in recent classes have given me a clue as to the kind of work I want to be involved in. This semester I'm taking two Children's Ministry modules: "Children and Church" and "Children at Risk". Both are incredibly challenging classes, as not only the theory is so complex but it's implications for practice are even more so. Here are just a few of the questions we've been considering in the last week or so:



What are the immediate and long-term losses suffered by children in crisis (ie. those who have experience neglect, abuse, war, violence, trauma) and how does this affect their social, emotional, physical, spiritual and cognitive development?

How should the Church respond to these losses and intervene in the cycle of violence?

What hope does the Gospel have to offer children who are suffering?


Every week we read case studies of children who are involved in militant warfare; who suffer abuse or neglect at the hands of their carers; who are lost in illegal immigrations; who are separated from their families; who are exploited by adults for economic benefits; whose lives are in imminent danger from natural disaster; who are feeling so pressured by the demands of life that death seems an easier option. This is not an uplifting class but it is in every way a realistic and helpful one.


It is incredibly challenging and difficult stuff. In my current work situation with children in the East End of Glasgow I'm working alongside children who have experience loss, trauma, neglect, abuse and violence. It is not easy. What can I offer them in the way of help? What can I offer them in the way of hope? What does it mean to have compassion for these children? What would Jesus do to help these children? There are no easy answers - there are more difficult questions than easy answers. How do I remain strong in my faith in light of what these children are going through? How do I approach God and ask him "WHY?".


Though it is difficult ,it is good theoretical and emotional preparation for what I may face in my trip to Brazil this summer. I'm going out with a team from the church to visit our missionary partners who work in the favelas of Sao Paulo. There we'll help to do some building work on a house that will be used to shelter the children who live on the street or in abusive home situations. We'll go out to visit the children living on the streets of the city and build up relationships with them. We'll encourage the local churches to reach out and offer their help and support to these children in crisis. It's going to be tough stuff but definitly worth the challenge.


Children's ministry can be fun - but it's not always. These are the kind of things I know I'll be facing in my future ministry. It will be my job to offer help and hope to children who are at risk or in crisis. So, what will I do the other six days of the week?


Reach Out. Build Up. Persevere. Pray.


Lamentations 2:19 (NIV) "Arise, cry out in the night, as the watches of the night begin; pour out your heart like water in presence of the Lord. Lift up your hands to him for the live of your children, who faint from hunger at the head of every street."