
CHILDREN
We love kids at Hope Fellowship! We also love parents and are committed to helping them fulfill their role as their children's primary teachers on spiritual issues. Scripture makes it clear that parents are ultimately responsible for the discipleship of their children. At Hope Fellowship, one of our missions is to communicate God’s beautiful design for discipleship in the home and to assist parents in this endeavor.
Unlike many churches, Hope Fellowship does not separate families during the corporate worship service. We believe worshiping together as a family is not only commanded in Scripture, but is one of the greatest blessings on earth. We don't view children as a distraction, but as a great addition. Yes, infants will cry at times. Yes, toddlers squirm and make noise. And yes, we could keep the little ones out and the service would be quieter, but the blessings associated with a multigenerational corporate worship service far outweigh the occasional sounds of kids being kids. We love to hear the sound of children among us! Our children learn the importance of worshiping God corporately through the examples of our adults, and all ages benefit from the interactions that take place during this time together.
However, while we believe in having families sit together during worship, we also realize there are times, as parents are in the process of training their small children to do this, that it is helpful for them to have some assistance. That is why we offer optional classes for children under 5 during the Pastor's message. Our teachers use this structured time to help reinforce what our parents are doing at home and church as they train their children to participate in corporate worship.