Youth & Kids
At Gateway Community Church, we know our kids and youth are precious members of God's covenant family! The aim of our kids and youth ministries is to partner with Christian parents in the task of building young disciples.
We confidently believe that the responsibility for a child's discipleship lies firstly with their own Christian family. It’s our hope that faithful Dads and Mums and Carers will model the Christian life for these children by building Christian rhythms into daily life. Rhythms like speaking openly about faith; reading the Bible or a bible devotional around the dinner table; praying together as family; and dealing with the joys and struggles of this life in ways that demonstrates genuine trust in God and love for His people. That is, it is a Christ-centred home life that positively shape the lives of children more than any well-polished church program or faithful Christian school could ever do (Deuteronomy 6:4–9).
All that being said, "it takes a village to raise a child!" God has assembled this body (the local church) to work together in proclaiming the gospel and building disciples. You're not in it alone! We’re here to help! God has given us each other to each other! Every part of the church body is cherished by Christ, and each part must be cared for by the rest of the body.
This is why we have specifically targeted ministries for our young people. Our programs aim to help parents help their kids meet Jesus and know what it means to love and follow Him! We want them to know they belong here, and that they are valued children of Jesus. We also want to obey Jesus by letting the little children come to him.
All our Youth & Kids volunteers undergo vetting (Working with Children Check and Character references) and training (ChildSafe Training Modules) according to our denomination's ChildSafe Policy.
There are two main categories of Youth and Children's ministry at Gateway: those that happen on a Sunday during the church service, and those that happen during the week at other times.
Sunday Ministries
Weekday Ministries
Little Kids
Who: For Toddlers - Pre-Kindy
When: All children remain in the service until just prior to the Scripture reading (we want the parents back for that!) and runs for the remainder of the church service, most weeks during the school term.
What: A volunteer-run space to provide toddlers and pre kindy children with an environment to hear about the God who loves them, engage in play and sing songs with the opportunity for parents of not -too- sure children to accompany their child and be involved in helping their children to engage with the activities.
Where: The Little Kids room is located through the door on the left side of the foyer as you enter the Gateway building.
Kids Church
Who: For children in Kindy – Year 3
When: every Sunday morning throughout the school term.
What: Children will participate in a lesson based on part of the bible, work on learning or memorising bible verses, and participate in various crafts and activities to reinforce a biblical topic.
Where: The Kids Church room is located at the back of the building near the undercover area. It is accessed by passing through the main hall’s double doors, and out through the roller door. You can expect our treasured volunteers to lead the way for parents and children to sign in when it is time.
Gaters Kids Club
Who: For children in Years 3 – Year 6 (upper primary school)
When: Currently, Gaters runs once every month on a Friday during the school term. This means we will usually only meet two or three times a term
What: At Gaters we play fun games together, sometimes we sing, we hear a story from the Bible, and a small talk is given before we break off into small groups. In our groups we will seek to understand the Bible and how it applies to our lives with questions and discussion. Children have an opportunity to share about their own lives, and to pray for each other too.
Where: Gaters meets at the main hall at Gateway Community Church, and sign-in and sign-out is located in the foyer as you enter the building.
For dates and more information, please contact Cameron Bargerbos (Youth Pastor) cam@gatewaycommunitychurch.com.au
Gateway Youth (year 7 – year 12)
Who: For high-school aged youth: Year 7 – Year 12
When: Currently, Gateway Youth is on from 6:30 – 8:30, every second Friday during the school term.
What: at Gateway Youth, we want youth to build meaningful relationships with their peers and leaders as they navigate the treacherous waters of adolescence, learning to trust Jesus and walk with Him as they mature into adulthood. We do this by building trust and community through games and fun activities together, Bible talks aimed to challenge them and impact their hearts with beauty of the gospel, Bible studies that teach them the tools to read and understand for themselves, and discussions that are designed to help us think critically about how God's word impacts our lives, and times of sharing about life in smaller groups where there is opportunity for prayer. This is a great place for youth to invite their friends to experience Christian community and learn about Jesus.
We have a large, combined camp with other CRCA youth groups once a year, and participate in other CRCA combined youth events, as well as
occasional events run by the Perth Youth Gospel Partnership.
Where: Unless otherwise stated, our regular Youth nights happen at the Church building in the main hall and Cafe.
For dates and more information contact Cameron Bargerbos (Youth Pastor)
cam@gatewaycommunitychurch.com.au