Dear friends,
We are blessed to have a thriving community of children and young people at St Stephen's. We are also blessed to have a wonderful team of staff and volunteers who delight in serving our younger members. All of these people disappear out of the main worship area and into their various groups during our 10.30am service. But it's important we remember that they are not just part of our church; they are valued members of it too.
At the moment, our youngest age group (JAM Tots for 0-5 years) is blossoming and accounts for as many as 15 children on a given Sunday. This is wonderful in so many ways, but it presents some challenges both for keeping them safe and for keeping them engaged. Some changes to the 10.30am service are therefore needed, changes that will take effect from 11th May.
Let me begin with what won't be changing:
-
The service time - We'll still meet at 10.30am with tea and coffee served from 10am. We'll be wrapped up by 11.45am.
-
The service pattern - This will continue as normal, with All-Age worship on the 1st Sunday of the month, Holy Communion on the 2nd and 4th Sunday of the month, and Word and Worship on the 3rd Sunday.
-
The service style - The service will continue to be more contemporary in style and lighter on spoken liturgy.
-
The location of JAM - These groups will continue to meet in the church hall.
What will be changing?
-
The service order - Most recently, the 10.30am service has had the sermon coming after Holy Communion or an extended time of sung worship. From 11th May, we'll be turning this around, with the sermon coming first. Children and young people will go to their groups after a short time of opening worship, and they will return to the main worship area after the sermon. We will then have a time of Holy Communion or extended worship as a whole church family.
-
New crèche option - We will be creating a crèche in the meeting room for use as needed by children aged 0-2 years and their carers. This will be a safe, unstaffed space with toys and activities available for any babies or toddlers who need a space to wriggle. This space will also be ideal for any mothers valuing a little more privacy for feeding. The service will be streamed into the crèche so that parents/carers don't miss out.
-
Location of our young people - With the meeting room now a crèche, our young people will meet with their leaders in the vicarage, just a 30 second walk away.
-
JAM Tots age bracket - With a crèche now available, JAM Tots will be for children aged 3-5 years (with some leeway for older 2-year-olds). This will be a structured session led by our staff and volunteers. Carers will not be allowed to stay with their children unless there is a clear need to do so; they will be called if needed.
We want to be a church that serves our younger members well and equips them to follow Jesus for the whole of their lives. We already serve these groups so well at St Stephen's. My prayer and expectation is that by making these changes to our life together, we'll be able to serve them even better.
As always, please do be in touch if there is anything you want to discuss with me.
With love in Christ,
David