By Jocelyn Van Heest, Children’s Ministry Director
In the Worship Centers, the children are well aware that there are important and meaningful seasons before each great celebration in our church year. The season of Lent is the time when we are preparing and making our hearts ready to celebrate Easter. The Lenten journey is a time for each of us to find ways to reflect on our relationship with God, spending more time in hearing Bible stories or reading the Bible, praying, and finding ways to serve others.
The children will continue to see and hear the stories of Jesus through weekly Children in Worship videos and also on Zoom during the worship services on February 21 and March 21. On those two Sundays, families are invited to watch the service live on Facebook and then switch to the Zoom gathering for a story, fellowship, and communion. It is wonderful to be able to see our Hope Church family together.
This time of physical separation from our Hope Church families has been challenging, but we are finding a variety of ways to keep a meaningful connection. Families can receive another special package of ideas and supplies to help in our partnership with parents to foster and develop their children’s faith. We hope each family, with their own circumstances, will find some activities, discussion questions, or suggestions that are meaningful.
A Hope Church tradition of “Burying our Alleluias” will be done a little differently, but each family will receive a container in which to put their alleluias until the wonderful celebration on Easter morning. Each family will be sent devotions to use as we mark the days of Lent, beginning with Ash Wednesday and leading to Easter Sunday. Families are also encouraged to participate in some of the special church events, including the imposition of ashes on Ash Wednesday and the Seder gathering on March 24. The support of our families during these challenging times is important to us all and we hope that you feel that love and support every day.
