Halswell Community Church didn’t set out to become a church for young families. But over the past few years, God has brought a steady stream of them along to the church.
“They were either people who grew up in church and left, or had grown up in church and were having children or had just gotten married and were thinking of starting a family.” Says Pastor Mato Kariuki, “Somehow, they just found their way to us.”
Halswell is a rapidly growing part of Christchurch, with new subdivisions spreading across the area. The church was planted in 2019 just before COVID-19 and meets at Seven Oaks School in the newer part of Halswell.
For the church, the arrival of young families has meant thinking carefully about what discipleship looks like in a busy season of life.
Kathy MacAuley is a key leader of Halswell’s kids’ ministry, and says she has found that some of the most valuable ministry happens around the kitchen table.
“My kitchen’s usually pretty busy”.
When someone is sick or a new baby arrives, church members will often take a meal to the family. But the meal is also an opportunity to sit, listen and talk.
“A lot of them want to know about bringing up children because that’s where they are and it’s new for them,” Kathy says. “And then how do I bring the Christian walk into my family and into my children and what do I do?”
That practical, relational approach carries into the church’s children’s ministry.
Kathy took over leading the ministry this year and has been exploring the “I AM” statements with the children. Rather than relying on an external curriculum, she has focused on opening the Bible and shaping activities that help the children engage with what they are learning.
With a group of very active young boys, she says it has been about practical, hands on activities.
They made candles while learning about Jesus as the light of the world and went kite flying as they explored “I am the way, the truth and the life”.
“We’ve done a lot of very practical type things, but the kids remember them,” Kathy says. “They sit on their little bedside cabinets, and they are very proud of what they’ve made and what they’re learning”.
Mato sees children’s ministry as part of the whole church, rather than a separate programme.
“Children are not a programme for us. They are part of us,” he says. “We are an intergenerational church.”
That same philosophy shapes how the church is approaching discipleship for parents.
The church initially brought young families together for Bible study and a shared meal. But as the group grew, it became difficult for parents to actually engage with the Bible while also keeping an eye on their children.
“If you have children and they’re running around, there’s no way you’re doing Bible study,” Mato says. “You’re studying your children (not the Bible!) or looking out for them.”
So the church has begun creating dedicated space for parents to open the Bible, listen and grow in their own faith.
It is still developing. Mato is quick to acknowledge that it hasn’t been a simple case of starting something and seeing everyone immediately get on board.
But that’s part of the church’s journey as it responds to the people God has brought into its community.
“We are trying to define how we do discipleship for us,” Mato says. “Not the right way, just how we do it for us.”
They’ve also just started up a playgroup to add another point of connection with young families throughout the week. “It helps us to meet them where they’re at, and to increase the time we spend together—increasing the opportunities to talk about faith and share life”.
For Halswell Community Church, these efforts are less about adding programmes and more about learning how to disciple the people God has placed in front of them. In a growing community full of young families, that means making room for children, supporting parents in the everyday realities of family life, and finding simple, relational ways to help faith take root at home and across the generations.
