The Next Gen Department of The Wesleyan Church is thrilled to have been awarded, through Lilly Endowment Inc., a $1.25 million grant for the “Kids in Worship Initiative.” This project is aimed at transforming how we engage children in corporate worship and prayer. This five-year initiative will help churches throughout our denomination build more inclusive and intergenerational worship experiences.

The Kids in Worship Initiative will focus on:

• One church from each district participating in a 2.5-year journey of growth and exploration, holding six intergenerational worship services with financial and training support.
• Training pastors and ministry leaders through collaboration events, gathering for specialized training together.
• Equipping churches with resources and a 3-year curriculum for kids K-4^th grade, which teaches traditions of faith, provides a structured framework for their spiritual education, and increases belonging in intergenerational worship gatherings.
• Creation of 100 lyric videos to use in intergenerational worship.
• Connecting interns with participating churches.
• Sharing our learning with all Wesleyan Churches.

We cannot wait to connect with interested churches and to see how this initiative impacts our worshipping communities across our denomination!

As a part of the Kids in Worship Grant Initiative selected churches will hire ministerial interns. Interns can serve anywhere from one semester up to 2.5 years. To learn more about the internship, check out the Intern Criteria document. Intern applications open on September 8th.