The Smartest Thing I Ever Did

I made a decision early in my ministry training that built the foundation for my ministry to kids. I was only 20 years old and didn’t even realize I was doing something wise. This is my story about the most intelligent ministry decision I ever made. 

It was October of 1978. I was attending Rhema Bible College in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

One of my classes was entitled Ministering To Children and was taught by Willie George, a children’s pastor at a local church in Tulsa. I had no intention of ministering to kids, but this became my favorite class. I looked forward to it every day.

I’m unsure when I felt called to minister to kids. I just knew I needed to learn everything I could from this man – Willie George.

One day after class, I approached Pastor Willie and said, “I’d like to get involved with your children’s ministry.”

Pastor Willie responded, “Come watch me minister in the kids’ church for a few weeks, and then I will assign you to a class.”

After four weeks, Willie told me, “Mark, I want you to help Jeanne in the Preschool class at the 11:00 am service.” 

After several weeks of teaching in the preschool class, I realized that I missed watching Pastor Willie, so Instead of attending the main service at 9:00 am, I went to the children’s church and watched Pastor Willie. Then, I served in the preschool class at 11:00 AM. 

One day, during some volunteer training, Pastor Willie looked at me, and in front of everybody, he said, “You are a wise man, Mark Harper.”

I never really thought about it like that, but 46 years later, I’ve seen the wisdom of my decision. Watching Pastor Willie minister to kids for nine months built the foundation for my ministry. Willie was teaching the kids but mentoring me at the same time.

The best advice I can give you is to find a mentor. Find somebody that is doing it well and watch him or her. Learn from them and ask them questions. 

I want to be your mentor. I’ve spent my whole ministry preparing for this moment. We are launching an online school:  Lamplight Academy. What is Lamplight Academy? Lamplight Academy is an online school and mentorship for Kids Pastors and Children’s Ministry Leaders. 

Lamplight Academy will offer ten courses covering every aspect of kids’ ministry over the next two years. 

The first twelve-session course, Building a Kids Ministry From the Ground Up, will launch on April 8. After that, we will be offering a new course every three months. 

We know many churches are on a tight budget, so our courses are – only $97. 

I have some good news. We are offering a pre-launch price of $77 for the first course. Registering and paying for the course before April 8 gives you a $20 discount. 

To sign up for Lamplight Academy, click here. I hope to see you there.