As a Children’s Evangelist, one of the things I wrestle with the most is the desire to give kids the Holy Ghost. I wish that every child, in every service, would receive the baptism of God’s Spirit.
I would often take this request to God, and before each service I would pray for God to fill kids with the Holy Ghost during the altar call. While I don’t believe there is anything inherently wrong with such a request, I realized one day that I was working to convince God to fill a child with his Spirit.
That is ridiculous!
God – in his own gentle way – reminded me one day in prayer that it was HE who had died for those children, NOT me. I realized at that moment what I was doing in prayer, and that I didn’t have to try and convince God to give someone the Holy Ghost…
He wants them to receive it more than I do!
HE died to give it to them!
When this simple revelation hit me, it created a paradigm shift in my thinking. I now understood that my purpose as a Children’s Minister was to get kids into the presence of God so that HE could do what he has purposed to do.
That is the goal of an altar service, to bring the children to a place where they can have an encounter with God and he is able to do in their hearts what he has purposed to do during that service.
Now, I said all that to say this – the steps that I am laying out in this post are those that my wife and I use when praying with a child to receive the Holy Ghost. Do they always receive the Holy Ghost? No. Not always.
There is no sure fire formula for getting kids to speak in tongues. There is no process, no procedure except to lead them through the Biblical plan of repentance and help them get to a place where God can do his thing.
That is your main goal as an altar worker. Lead them the Biblical way, and get them to God – he’ll do the rest.
So, how do you pray with a child at the altar?
If they want Jesus to give them the Holy Ghost
Ask them if they know what the Holy Ghost is: This may seem like a simple question, but the truth of the matter is that a lot of kids – even those raised in church - do not know exactly what the Holy Ghost is. When they hear Ghost, they think of Halloween or Casper, or the standard image that is associated with “Ghost.”
Explain to the child that the Holy Ghost is God coming to live in their hearts and that it is nothing to be afraid of. God loves them so much that he wants to live inside their hearts and he does that through the Holy Ghost.
Ask them if they know how to get the Holy Ghost: By the time a child gets to the altar, all they may know is that they need the Holy Ghost – after all, they have heard about it all service long.
But, they may not know how to receive it. Take the time to explain it to them. It is ok to stop a kid who is praying in order to make sure they have understanding. This will not quench the Spirit; instead it will focus the prayer.
Have the child raise their hands: Again, this step isn’t a necessity, but it teaches the child to be comfortable praying with raised hands, and encourages them to open up in prayer.
Ask if you can lay your hands on their head: Remember. It is very important that we mind where we touch a child during an altar service. Unless you are the parent of the child praying, I would recommend reserving your touching to their elbows – in order to support their arms – and their foreheads.
Always ask them if they mind you laying your hand on their forehead. We are not always privy to the history of each child and can inadvertently create uncomfortable feelings, even when our intentions are pure.
Lead them in repentance: Tell them that the Bible says that in order to receive the Holy Ghost we must first repent which means to ask God to forgive us for all the bad things we have done. Ask them if they have ever done things they knew they weren’t supposed to do; then tell them that is what sin is and we need to ask God to forgive us.
At this point I usually encourage the child to starting telling God about the things they have done wrong. If the child is praying, then I usually pray for them and ask God to give them a heart of repentance and Godly sorrow; if they are not praying, I usually lead them and give them direction on what to say.
Bro. Lloyd Squires, the Don of Children’s Ministry in our movement, suggests that we wait for tears. I agree. Tears are a good indicator that the child is getting in touch with God and is truly repenting. In all my experience I have only known one girl to receive the Holy Ghost without tears, and she was a unique case. Children are tender, and when we see the tears we know they are connecting.
Lead them in prayer: With kids it is often a necessity that those who are praying with them at the altar lead them in prayer. Many adults who come to the altar to pray do not have a clue on what to say or how to pray successfully. This is much more the case with kids.
It is ok to tell a child what to say during prayer. This shouldn’t be confused with teaching someone how to speak in tongues. The Holy Ghost can’t be taught – it is spirit directed, not man directed. However, we can give the child direction and give them words to speak. For example, I will often tell a child “talk to Jesus just like he is your best friend, because that is what he is. Tell him, ‘I love you Jesus,’ ‘I worship you,’ etc.” I’ve found that many times a child will take the direction and before long get into the groove of prayer and start praying themselves. Don’t be afraid to lead a kid in prayer, if they are left to try and figure it out on their own they won’t get it.
Additional Tips
Tell the kids what to expect: Kids don’t always know what to expect when the Holy Ghost begins to move on them. I often let them know that it is ok to say words that do not seem to make sense. I often see kids who will stop praying because they are trying to articulate their prayers when the Holy Ghost is taking control of their tongue and they feel like what they are about to say doesn’t make sense. Remind kids that when they start speaking in tongues, they won’t understand what they are saying and that they shouldn’t try to make their words sound like English.
Get them talking: Kids often have the tendency to come to the altar and just stand there with their head down and mouth closed. This is because they don’t know what they are supposed to do when at the altar. When praying for a child, make sure they are praying as well. God can’t cause them to speak in tongues if they aren’t talking. Admonish them not to just stand there, but to talk to God.
To illustrate this I often ask the kids if they have a best friend and what that best friend’s name is. I then ask if their friend has ever spent the night with them. When they say “yes,” I ask them if they just sit there and stare at their friend all night and never talk to them? This usually provokes a smile and a “no.” I inform them that praying is the same thing, Jesus wants to give them the Holy Ghost, but he can’t if they aren’t talking.
By leading a child in prayer we can help them learn what to say and how to pray. This is also true of kids who just cry when praying. I want these kids to feel the Spirit of God, so I try not to stop them from crying, but at the same time they can’t get the Holy Ghost without talking so I try to get them to talk and pray while they are feeling the moving of the Holy Ghost.
In conclusion
I would often take this request to God, and before each service I would pray for God to fill kids with the Holy Ghost during the altar call. While I don’t believe there is anything inherently wrong with such a request, I realized one day that I was working to convince God to fill a child with his Spirit.
That is ridiculous!
God – in his own gentle way – reminded me one day in prayer that it was HE who had died for those children, NOT me. I realized at that moment what I was doing in prayer, and that I didn’t have to try and convince God to give someone the Holy Ghost…
He wants them to receive it more than I do!
HE died to give it to them!
When this simple revelation hit me, it created a paradigm shift in my thinking. I now understood that my purpose as a Children’s Minister was to get kids into the presence of God so that HE could do what he has purposed to do.
That is the goal of an altar service, to bring the children to a place where they can have an encounter with God and he is able to do in their hearts what he has purposed to do during that service.
Now, I said all that to say this – the steps that I am laying out in this post are those that my wife and I use when praying with a child to receive the Holy Ghost. Do they always receive the Holy Ghost? No. Not always.
There is no sure fire formula for getting kids to speak in tongues. There is no process, no procedure except to lead them through the Biblical plan of repentance and help them get to a place where God can do his thing.
That is your main goal as an altar worker. Lead them the Biblical way, and get them to God – he’ll do the rest.
So, how do you pray with a child at the altar?
If they want Jesus to give them the Holy Ghost
Ask them if they know what the Holy Ghost is: This may seem like a simple question, but the truth of the matter is that a lot of kids – even those raised in church - do not know exactly what the Holy Ghost is. When they hear Ghost, they think of Halloween or Casper, or the standard image that is associated with “Ghost.”
Explain to the child that the Holy Ghost is God coming to live in their hearts and that it is nothing to be afraid of. God loves them so much that he wants to live inside their hearts and he does that through the Holy Ghost.
Ask them if they know how to get the Holy Ghost: By the time a child gets to the altar, all they may know is that they need the Holy Ghost – after all, they have heard about it all service long.
But, they may not know how to receive it. Take the time to explain it to them. It is ok to stop a kid who is praying in order to make sure they have understanding. This will not quench the Spirit; instead it will focus the prayer.
Have the child raise their hands: Again, this step isn’t a necessity, but it teaches the child to be comfortable praying with raised hands, and encourages them to open up in prayer.
Ask if you can lay your hands on their head: Remember. It is very important that we mind where we touch a child during an altar service. Unless you are the parent of the child praying, I would recommend reserving your touching to their elbows – in order to support their arms – and their foreheads.
Always ask them if they mind you laying your hand on their forehead. We are not always privy to the history of each child and can inadvertently create uncomfortable feelings, even when our intentions are pure.
Lead them in repentance: Tell them that the Bible says that in order to receive the Holy Ghost we must first repent which means to ask God to forgive us for all the bad things we have done. Ask them if they have ever done things they knew they weren’t supposed to do; then tell them that is what sin is and we need to ask God to forgive us.
At this point I usually encourage the child to starting telling God about the things they have done wrong. If the child is praying, then I usually pray for them and ask God to give them a heart of repentance and Godly sorrow; if they are not praying, I usually lead them and give them direction on what to say.
Bro. Lloyd Squires, the Don of Children’s Ministry in our movement, suggests that we wait for tears. I agree. Tears are a good indicator that the child is getting in touch with God and is truly repenting. In all my experience I have only known one girl to receive the Holy Ghost without tears, and she was a unique case. Children are tender, and when we see the tears we know they are connecting.
Lead them in prayer: With kids it is often a necessity that those who are praying with them at the altar lead them in prayer. Many adults who come to the altar to pray do not have a clue on what to say or how to pray successfully. This is much more the case with kids.
It is ok to tell a child what to say during prayer. This shouldn’t be confused with teaching someone how to speak in tongues. The Holy Ghost can’t be taught – it is spirit directed, not man directed. However, we can give the child direction and give them words to speak. For example, I will often tell a child “talk to Jesus just like he is your best friend, because that is what he is. Tell him, ‘I love you Jesus,’ ‘I worship you,’ etc.” I’ve found that many times a child will take the direction and before long get into the groove of prayer and start praying themselves. Don’t be afraid to lead a kid in prayer, if they are left to try and figure it out on their own they won’t get it.
Additional Tips
Tell the kids what to expect: Kids don’t always know what to expect when the Holy Ghost begins to move on them. I often let them know that it is ok to say words that do not seem to make sense. I often see kids who will stop praying because they are trying to articulate their prayers when the Holy Ghost is taking control of their tongue and they feel like what they are about to say doesn’t make sense. Remind kids that when they start speaking in tongues, they won’t understand what they are saying and that they shouldn’t try to make their words sound like English.
Get them talking: Kids often have the tendency to come to the altar and just stand there with their head down and mouth closed. This is because they don’t know what they are supposed to do when at the altar. When praying for a child, make sure they are praying as well. God can’t cause them to speak in tongues if they aren’t talking. Admonish them not to just stand there, but to talk to God.
To illustrate this I often ask the kids if they have a best friend and what that best friend’s name is. I then ask if their friend has ever spent the night with them. When they say “yes,” I ask them if they just sit there and stare at their friend all night and never talk to them? This usually provokes a smile and a “no.” I inform them that praying is the same thing, Jesus wants to give them the Holy Ghost, but he can’t if they aren’t talking.
By leading a child in prayer we can help them learn what to say and how to pray. This is also true of kids who just cry when praying. I want these kids to feel the Spirit of God, so I try not to stop them from crying, but at the same time they can’t get the Holy Ghost without talking so I try to get them to talk and pray while they are feeling the moving of the Holy Ghost.
In conclusion
I want to remind you that a children’s altar call can vary drastically from an adult altar call. A lot of times, during an adult crusade, the altar call is given with high energy, emotionalism, and is filled with adults whose heart strings were pulled and conviction had set in during the preaching. While this is the case, at times, with kids as well, a lot of times it is not.
Kids have the unique ability to go from 0 to 60 in about 5 seconds when it comes to praying at the altar; they are sensitive and pure enough to do that. Often times when a child’s altar call is given, it may start off by looking like nothing is going to happen. I’ve felt this way before and God reminded me that he still has the power to create something, when nothing seems to exist. He reminded me that my job was to get the kids into his presence and that HE would do the rest.
If the altar call starts off and doesn’t look powerful, don’t let that fool or discourage you. Get in front of the kids and aggressively work the altar knowing that God WILL move. Once you get the kids to start responding to the Spirit of God, you will discover that what seemed to be a dry and powerless altar call is in actuality a powerful demonstration of God’s Spirit.
It may start off slow, but if you have faith and don’t give up then I guarantee that 45 minutes later, when the altar call winds to a close, you will have kids all across the altar weeping, praying, and full of the Holy Ghost.
I’ve seen it many, many times.
Now go pray those kids through, and may the Lord’s anointing be on you in Jesus’ Name! :)
Kids have the unique ability to go from 0 to 60 in about 5 seconds when it comes to praying at the altar; they are sensitive and pure enough to do that. Often times when a child’s altar call is given, it may start off by looking like nothing is going to happen. I’ve felt this way before and God reminded me that he still has the power to create something, when nothing seems to exist. He reminded me that my job was to get the kids into his presence and that HE would do the rest.
If the altar call starts off and doesn’t look powerful, don’t let that fool or discourage you. Get in front of the kids and aggressively work the altar knowing that God WILL move. Once you get the kids to start responding to the Spirit of God, you will discover that what seemed to be a dry and powerless altar call is in actuality a powerful demonstration of God’s Spirit.
It may start off slow, but if you have faith and don’t give up then I guarantee that 45 minutes later, when the altar call winds to a close, you will have kids all across the altar weeping, praying, and full of the Holy Ghost.
I’ve seen it many, many times.
Now go pray those kids through, and may the Lord’s anointing be on you in Jesus’ Name! :)
If you have any questions, comments, or topics you would like to see discussed on Culture Watch please post a comment or send me an email at jcastorina@castorinaministries.com
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