It has always been a mysterious to me how the other parents take care of their toddlers and babies while listening to sermon or worship God during service.
Back in TMC there's a cry room in the sanctuary for the parents and their children. Very often the parents will leave their children with the maids in the cry room while they sit with the others in the sanctuary. Of course they enjoy peace and quiet while listening to the sermon. There are others who stay with their children together, both husband and wife. My heart goes out to those parents who stay in the cry room alone with their children. I can fully understand how difficult it is for them to attend service that way.
My in laws attend the same service together with me most of the time. They try their best helping me to take care of Elyse. Most of the time my father in law would be with her during the Praise & Worship. I'll take over after that so that they may listen to the sermon. Only at rare occasions I get to listen to the entire sermon. And yes, those moments are very precious to me.
Where is my husband, Andrew? Well, he is the pastor of the church. Thus, he's never able to be there with us during service.
I read Andrew's sermon almost every week before he preaches. The shorter version because I'm preparing his power point slides. However, it is different when we listen to it. The delivery plays a big part, and of course the anointing that comes along with it.
I have learned not to depend on pastor to feed my spirit man on Sunday. Reading spiritual books help me to stay connected to God all these while. However, I'm still longing for the day where I can be totally free to worship and listen to the sermon again. When will that be? I guess it's a long long way to go....
Some churches conduct Sunday School or Children Church simultaneously with the service. Though their main purpose is not baby sitting, in a way it does help the parents to concentrate during service. In Teluk Intan, the church has their Sunday School after the service. I can't stop wondering how am I going to take care of an active toddler while carrying a newborn in my arms when the time comes.
The good news is there's a creche right at the back of the hall. However, in many churches people pay very little attention to it.
Andrew and I have the privilege to visit some churches in Klang Valley when we stayed there. It has always been my desire to see how other churches conducted their worship service. I do not intend to be a church hopper, but to broaden my knowledge and to gain some experience worshipping in other churches.
However, I notice that a lot of churches do not pay much attention to the baby room. Since I have a toddler with me, I do pay attention to such details and I am grateful to those churches that are baby friendly.
Some baby rooms are at one corner of the church, that immediately makes you feel that you are an outcast. Perhaps the church identifies babies and toddlers as noisy creatures, but I believe it can be overcome by having a sound proof room. This is rather important because having a baby has already taken much attention away from the parent, if the baby room is not located at strategic places, the parents may lose interest in paying extra attention on the worship and sermon.
Baby and toddlers are in a different stage of life. By combining the two of them, the results are disastrous. Baby sleeps most of the time. They only require your attention when it’s time to feed them milk or to cuddle them to sleep or to change their nappies. On the other hand, toddlers are attention seeker. You need to occupy them with activities, if not they will be running around, screaming or shouting or crying. Therefore, it’s advisable to have 2 separate rooms for these two categories. Of all the churches I’ve been to, only one church does it this way.
The baby room should have curtain that enable the mothers to milk their babies. The sound amplifier does not need to be tuned up to maximum. It helps when the mothers are trying to cuddle their babies to sleep. One or two changing tables will be good for parents to change their babies’ diapers. Sink, a flask with hot water, tissues are essential items for babies.
Whereas the toddler room needs to have toys that can keep the young ones occupied while parents try to listen to sermon. The volume of the speaker needs to be tuned up a little higher compare to baby room. Space is needed for toddlers to move around.
Children are important in the kingdom of God. We should not neglect them. It is very crucial especially for young parents who are trying to juggle between their little ones and stay connected in their spiritual walk with God.
As a pastor's wife, I hope I will be able to set a good example and not bringing shame and disgrace to my husband. However, I do wish that church members will be more gracious and compassionate rather than judgemental as I try my best to worship God and take care of my young one during the service.
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