What does “Crucial Moments” mean? Some thoughts.

Everyone tells us that childhood is crucial. Health experts let us know that the first years are crucial to the physical development of a child. These are crucial moments.

Psychologists affirm that childhood is decisive for our emotional development. Crucial moments.

Sociologists have discovered that by the time we finish primary education, we have already developed our set of values, and only major events or crisis will make us change our world view. Crucial moments.

But most important of all: What does the Bible tell us about childhood?
Proverbs 22:6 says: "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.”
Luke 18:16 says: “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” Crucial moments.

Crucial means “extremely significant or important, decisive”. This is why we call SIM’s network of children’s ministries “CrucialMoments”. It is extremely significant, important and decisive that we reach the children of this world for Christ. The crucial moments are during childhood when people are most receptive to the Gospel, when we can help them form biblically based values and make them disciples of Christ for the rest of their lives.

Crucial comes from the Latin word “crux” which can be used in a sense of “guidepost that gives directions at a place where one road becomes two”. This is what we do in children’s ministry: Giving direction at a time in life when fundamental decisions are made.

“Crux” also means “cross”. This is why we do children’s ministry: We want children to understand that God loved them so much that he died for them on the cross.

Children’s Ministry is about CrucialMoments. Let us face the challenge.

May God bless you as you take advantage of crucial moments in your ministry.