Kids

In our children's work we use the Bible as our ultimate source of revelation about God. We seek to be faithful in presenting the gospel to our children, praying that God will open their hearts to receive his truth. We also proclaim God's truth to help our children to live a life that pleases God, that they might know Jesus every day, have a strong foundation as Christians, and be built up and encouraged in their relationship with God.

We love to welcome children to be part of our church family at Ballymena Baptist, and consider it an honour and privilege to open God's Word and share it with them.

Sunday Mornings

Pre-School

Tiny Acorns is for our very youngest children. They meet from the very start of our 11am service, upstairs in our youth lounge. Parents can stay with their child/children, or leave them in the care of the Tiny Acorn team. There are changing facilities etc.

Little Oaks is is our supervised crèche where children can enjoy free play for the duration of the 11am service. Little Oaks is held in the crèche room just beside the main entrance doors.

The Treehouse is for children from their 3rd birthday onwards. Here we have a time of reading and learning God's Word, singing songs, and doing a craft before a time of free play. Treehouse begins halfway through the 11am service, and parents will be notified by an announcement in the service.

Primary School

We have two sections to our Sunday School :
Senior Sunday school meets at 10am before our morning service for P5 - P7 children.
Junior Sunday school meets around halfway through our 11am service for P1 - P4 children.

In Junior SS, we start off with an altogether-time singing, watching our Bible story and praying. We then break off into our Sunday school classes (P1+2, P3, P4) for in-depth teaching and craft. We then regather downstairs for juice, biscuits and worksheets. We're currently using The Biggest Story curriculum from Crossway, and you can keep update with our teaching programme on our instagram account.

Sunday Evenings

Night Owls

Night Owls is for all Primary 1-4 children and runs during the evening service. Children sit in for the first half of the evening service, and then leave just before the sermon, heading up the main stairs to the 'Treehouse' room.

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Got Questions?

If you'd like some more information on any of our kids work, drop Josh an email:

josh@ballymenabaptist.org

Planning your Visit

A Warm Hello

The following information is specifically for those planning a visit, so that you know, beforehand, what to expect on a Sunday morning.

Where and When

We meet at the Church Building (details here) for our Sunday Service starting at 10am. For your first visit, we recommend arriving 10-15 minutes early to ensure you get a parking space and find somewhere to sit before the service begins. When you arrive, you should be greeted by someone on our Welcome Team who will be wearing a Welcome lanyard.

We serve tea, coffee and biscuits from 10am, before the service begins. It is a great way to meet people, or simply take time to find your bearings. All refreshments are free.

Accessibility: There is wheelchair access, and a sound loop for anyone who needs it. Please let one of the Welcome Team know on your arrival and they will help you to get set up. There are disabled toilets in the main foyer.

Our Service

The main service begins at 10am with a warm welcome from one of our team members. Then follows a time of sung worship, led by our band. We typically have 2 or 3 songs lasting approximately 20 minutes. Sometimes a person might pray out loud or read a small passage from the bible. Sometimes people share things that they believe God is saying to the whole church family. This might seem strange the first time you hear it but it’s all part of our connecting with God. We then share news and notices, usually about what’s going on in the life of the church. One of our leaders will then give a sermon that is bible based and that we can apply to our everyday life. We then finish with a final worship song. Sometimes there is an opportunity to receive prayer at the end of the service.

images: Services

What about my kids?

We have a great programme lined up for kids of all ages:

Creche (0 months to 3 years). Children under 6 months are welcome but must be accompanied by their parent/grown-up at all times.
Livewires (3-7 years)
Encounter (7-11 years)
Katalyst (11-15 years)
Young people (15+ years) Stay in service.

Children stay with their parent or grown-up at the start of the service for the welcome, songs and notices. We really value worshipping God all together as a family. At the end of the notices someone will announce that it’s time for the younger members to go to their various groups. You will need to go with your children to their groups and register them as part of our child safety policy. Whilst you are dropping your kids off at their groups, we pause to take time to chat to someone sitting near or next to us, giving folk a chance to come back before the sermon begins.

The kids group activities vary depending on the age but usually there is a friendly welcome, bible stories, testimonies, praying, music, craft, drama, fun games and free play. Please pick your children up as soon as the service finishes.

Getting Connected

Small Groups

While Sundays are a great way to meet new people, it is often in smaller gatherings that you can really get to know someone. Being part of one of our small groups allows you to make new friends, share together and support each other. We have a variety of groups that meet throughout the week, some afternoons and some evenings. Check out Small Groups and see if there’s one that you could join, or we can put you in touch with a small group leader who will be more than happy to invite you along to their group.

Serving and Volunteering

If you want to get involved in the life of the church and help us make Sundays run smoothly, you can sign up to serve on a team.

Other Ministries

We also run the following ministries:

Men's Ministries
Women's Ministries
Night Shelter
Foodbank

Get in touch with us to plan your visit

If you would like to come and visit the church beforehand you are more than welcome! Get in touch and we can arrange a time that suits you.

Name:

Telephone:

Email Address:
Comments / Questions or anything you would like to say?

Next, we will contact you by email to say hello and help arrange anything necessary for your visit.

Leadership


Leader 1		Leader 2
Leader Intro		Leader Intro

We hope that whoever you are, you will feel at home at our church.

Best Wishes

(Handwritten Signature)