Amazing conversations at
Christchurch Kids' Leaders meeting 2019

Kids’ leaders from across Canterbury enjoyed meeting together at the end of January.  2018 successes included seeing kids encounter God, increased numbers, survival despite low leader numbers, kids using what they have learned including praying for healing for others during the week, shy children continuing to attend despite their friends no longer coming, and some kids choosing to get baptised.

We spent time thinking through Tony Collis’s advice from the One Million Children meeting in October. He recommended articulating our vision so that others are inspired to capture the vision, then inviting them to join us or provide prayer and financial support. We spent time imagining what we would like our groups to be like and think through what prayer, leaders and resources would be needed to work toward this.

We were reminded that Jesus said, “the fields are ripe for harvest” and we need to get out into our communities. Reaching children allows relationships with families to be built too. Another thing that stood out was the importance of continuing to equip new and existing leaders so we can help kids journey towards God and reach more kids in our communities.

Amy Marsden from Te Mapua shared how their team believes it is time to prune back for a season and focus on the ministries bearing fruit.  Te Mapua are making massive changes this year, dropping some of their very successful ministries that have been serving our city for years, including their school interventions and mentoring programme, breakfasts, and driving troubled children to school.  They are choosing to prioritise and focus on their weekly kids’ afterschool programme and caring for those kids and their families and replicating the programme in another suburb.  The great importance of listening to God's promptings resonated with everyone in the room and felt very real as Amy shared their significant changes.