Thanks to a kindly cooperation with the folks in charge of this stuff at the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, my congregation, Our Savior Evangelical Lutheran Church and School in Hartland, Michigan, has special permission to produce this particular edition of “Kids in the Divine Service.”
No one else in the world has such permission.
I wrote this collection back in 2000, and it was, for a relatively reasonable cost, provided by way of the LC-MS Commission on Worship as a collection of reproducible bulletin inserts. In 2017, I spent time updating them—as well as adding new ones—to coincide with the newer Lutheran Service Book. Reverend Will Weedon, the International Center Chaplain at the time, orchestrated a process that would now provide all of them for free by download to anyone and everyone who’d like to use them. They are all available here:
Nevertheless, here at Our Savior, rather than printing a different page each week, we actually provide all of them together in a single volume right in our pews (alongside another volume we produced which teaches regarding the designs of our phenomenally beautiful stained glass windows located throughout the facility).
We’ve found that these booklets have become a wonderful resource to any and all who reach for them. Visitors are invited to take one home. They include a brief introduction about the nature of worship. There’s also a brief preface regarding the importance of keeping children in worship, as well as a portion that encourages members to support parents in such efforts.
Again, I’m glad the LC-MS has allowed us to do this. Well, I did write them…so…there’s that.
The cost to purchase them outright at Amazon is exactly the minimum sale price allowed by the printer when published for public access. We are not allowed to make a profit from these volumes. We are merely allowed to provide them to you in this format.
Click the button below if you’d like to purchase one or more for review from Amazon.
AND FINALLY…
(From the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod’s website:)
How does this work?
“Impress these words upon your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up” (Deut. 6:7).
The Word of God we receive in the Divine Service goes with us, out into the world and into our everyday callings as parents and children. Kids in the Divine Service is written for parents and children to read and talk about together.
Although some of the vocabulary and concepts may be best understood by children 10 years of age and older, there are many parts of Kids in the Divine Service which can be understood, experienced and appreciated by younger children.
Whether a child reads or is read to, parents and children are encouraged to work through the bulletin inserts together and answer questions as they arise. Parents will probably learn something, too.
Kids in the Divine Service is free to download; make as many copies as you need. The resources may be distributed for congregational use in a variety of ways, including:
- Sunday morning bulletins
- Sunday School resource
- School or church newsletters
We pray Kids in the Divine Service will be a blessing to you and your congregation.