This Kid is Getting on My Last Nerve

Yes as much as we love kids, most of us at some point or another have had this thought go through our head…“This kid is getting on my last nerve.”

If not, I will be happy to nominate you for Children’s Leader of the year. But if you have had this thought, let me just say you are normal. I love kids and I have given my life to kid’s ministry, but there have been those moments where certain kids drove me nuts. You know the ones, you would never admit it, but remember the Sunday you were setting up and you thought, “I sure hope Billy is sick today and stays home.”

Ok, don’t judge me because I just said it out loud. Of course, this is not a consistent feeling. If it is, you may be in the wrong ministry. But in a moment of honesty, I think most of us have felt this at some point. In the last MTP show, we talked about the fact that kids have bad days too. As adults, I think we forget this from time to time. Just as you have bad days, so do your kids. And when kids have bad days they probably don’t need another lecture or punishment. Most of the time they just need some extra grace and understanding.

That is why it is so important that you and I are mentally and spiritually prepared when the kids come to church. If you are on the edge, some kid is going to push you right over it. When kids act poorly, it is an opportunity for you and I to jump in as shepherds and minister to these kids.

There have been times when the opportunity to minister was overshadowed by the feeling of irritation I was experiencing at the moment. I look back on those moments and think “wow, I blew that.”

This weekend when that kid is starting to get on your last nerve, reframe the situation like this…Billy just gave me a perfect opportunity to demonstrate God’s love and remind him that I love him too, even if he is getting on my last nerve.