Our grandchildren are precious and adorable! Of course all grandparents say that, but it’s really true . . . I've got the photos and testimonies to prove it! Patty and I praise the Lord every single day for our daughters and their families. We have “no greater joy than to hear that [our] children are walking in the truth” (3 John 4), and that they are raising our grandchildren in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
Covenant Church has over 160 children, age 11 and younger. Most of them attend our Sunday School program and about half of them attend our Wednesday night catechism program (Covenant Corps). As Director of Christian Education at CPC, it is my commitment to you parents to ensure that your children receive solid biblical training. It’s great; in this way, I get to be a grandfather to more than my own grandchildren.
There are many curriculum resources available for teaching children. Each have strengths and weaknesses, but I want to explain why we have chosen the materials from Great Commission Publications (GCP) as the main curriculum source for our children’s programs.
If your child is raised as a covenant child here at CPC, he or she will be taught the "whole counsel of God" from a reformed and covenantal perspective. We use the GCP curriculum for our children because we believe it provides them with a solid biblical foundation for life. Over their critical years of development they will be consistently taught the practical application of covenant theology from God’s Word. That is our commitment to you and your children.
While you parents have the primary responsibility of raising your children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, we are privileged to assist you in this “great adventure.” We are blessed with great teachers and helpers in the children’s ministry of CPC. We take very seriously the vow we make every time one of your children is baptized.
Here are a couple of ways you can help us share this awesome responsibility with you: periodically ask your child, “What did you learn in Sunday School today (or Covenant Corps tonight)?” And regularly help them practice their bible verses and catechism questions. Even better, let them quiz you to see if you’re learning with them!
Several young people have become “communicant members” recently. They’ve grown up as covenant children at CPC and now come before the Session making their own personal profession of faith. We, the ruling elders, along with the pastors, get to do some pretty great stuff in the life of the church. But there is just no way to adequately describe the joy of hearing the testimony of folks when they join the church. And even better, we get to watch these children grow up . . . and be involved in their lives . . . and witness their profession of faith in Christ; wow – this is exciting stuff!
We are truly blessed to be a part of what God is doing in the lives of the children at CPC. Thank you for allowing so many of us in the body at CPC to partner with you in the great adventure of raising your child to be a warrior for the cross of Jesus Christ. Thank you!
Mark Wilson