'Let the little ones come'
Oct 30, 2012
A parent must provide all of a child’s needs and that includes spiritual needs. But many times, children in Church can be a nuisance. How can we handle this?
By Stella Naigino
A parent must provide all of a child’s needs and that includes spiritual needs. But many times, children in Church can be a nuisance. How can we handle this?
The preacher stands in front of the congregation preaching as everyone pays attention to him.
During the service different people are strategically seated where they feel they can capture the word without interruption.
But while others watch and listen attentively and try to take notes of what the preacher is saying, Ruth is busy comforting a sobbing baby.
Before she notices it, everybody is looking at her and wondering what she has done to the baby to make it cry that loud.
A few moments later an usher comes running to help by taking the crying child out of the church for a while.
Outside the child goes quiet and the usher brings it back to the mother. No sooner has the mother received the child than it starts crying again.
When the noise becomes unbearable, she moves out of church, but the crying only increases, prompting her to go back home.
This mother went through this for several weeks until she decided to leave the child at home.
Many parents are torn between going to church with their children or waiting for them to grow a little so as to take on as little inconvenience as possible.
Pastor Solomon Male of Arising for Christ Ministries says children disturb because they are not comfortable and the only way they can communicate is by crying.
“When children cry while prayers are being conducted, they draw the attention of everybody, leaving their parents with no option but to either move out of church or go back home.
“Some children cry because they are seeing so many people they are not used to, but once comforted, they get used to the idea and eventually settle down,” he notes.
“Carry some drinks and snacks or even more diapers for that particular age group so that they are attended to even while in church,” says Male.
Some services last a long time and once children get tired and restless, they really inconvenience the parents and other worshippers.
He notes that some parents are forced to leave their children at home just to avoid the inconveniences they could get into when they come with them to church.
“A parent can carry the child’s favourite toy just to occupy the child at church or even take the child’s nanny to attend to the kid at church helps you enjoy service,” Male reveals.
Why you should take your child to church
According to Pastor Martin Ssempa of One Love Church, Makerere, God relates to the family as a unit. The most obvious is the divine promise made to Abraham and his offspring. While each individual is accountable before God, some aspects of familial covenant are evident.
He says it is the parents responsibility to see their children develop their spiritual being and this can be achieved by going to church, fellowshipping with others or even reading the Bible to them.
“A parent must provide each child’s needs and that includes spiritual needs. This is the rationale behind much common advice; you wouldn’t let your child stay home from school,” stresses Ssempa.