An essay on Worship That Is Friendly to Children refers to a book edited by John Witvliet called A Child Shall Lead: Children in Worship. Witvliet makes a case for the full, conscious, and active participation of children in worship. Here are his five guidelines:
1. Children should participate fully, not only in special moments designed for them like a children's sermon, but in all the prayers and songs and actions that make up the worship service.
2. Children should participate consciously. They must know and understand what each action of worship means and why it is done.
3. Children should participate actively. They must not sit in passive silence; rather, children should stand, kneel, process, move, listen, speak, and—of course—sing!
4. Children should be viewed as full participants not only for their sake, but for ours. Children have gifts to give from which we need to learn: a gift of faith, a gift of questioning, a gift of wonder, as well as loyalty, honesty, and trust. Of these virtues, our children may be among the best teachers we have.
5. Children's programs should be childlike, not childish. In programming for children, we must do nothing to "dumb down" what we are doing. When we choose music and dramatic scripts that are thoughtful and well-crafted, we take our children seriously.
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