CHILDREN OF HOPE

OUR VISION

Children of Hope exists to support the flourishing of families by the power of the gospel.

We are a ministry to parents as much as to children!

It is our prayer that every child in the city of Annapolis and beyond would be filled with the hope of Jesus, having a chance to receive and respond to the gospel of grace. 

Our Sunday program is focused on growing young hearts and developing minds in the grace and knowledge of God. We desire to be a catalyst for continued home discipleship throughout the week by equipping and supporting parents for the spiritual leadership of their families. 

We pray that Children of Hope is a place for kids that stirs a passion for knowing God, encourages a hunger for His Word, and ignites a love for His local church.

CORE VALUES

  • We believe that the gospel is the lens that brings all biblical truths into focus from Genesis to Revelation. While teaching a chronological overview of the Bible, we link to God’s Kingdom of redemption through Jesus in every lesson. We believe that true heart transformation can only happen through the gospel -- the truth that while we were all broken and dead in our sin, Christ died for us (Ephesians 2:1). We do not teach moralistic and self-empowered christianity. Rather, we are centered on the truth that the good news of Jesus and the help of the Holy Spirit is what changes lives and helps believers to live in obedience to God.

  • At Children of Hope, we elevate the Word of God as the ultimate truth and walk children through the stories of the Bible to see God’s character and His involvement in the world he created. We believe that the Bible is a storyline of God redeeming His people, and that the whole of scripture is applicable to daily life. We want to give little kids a big view of God, and believe that this can happen by teaching all parts of the Bible, even the ones that seem confusing or strange at first.

  • At Downtown Hope, we see child dedication as a way to show before the Lord and the church family our commitment as parents to raising children in the knowledge and grace of God. We pray that one day our children might profess faith in Christ and glorify God with their future choices, work, and relationships in the world. Dedications are also a time for the body of believers at Downtown Hope to commit to live as a supporting, Biblical community to each family and their child in the gospel of grace.

  • In our Sunday classrooms, we pray regularly and specifically in a way that meets kids at their developmental level. This might be a 20 second prayer with our preschoolers while our elementary kids can practice praying about specific requests for each other. Our leaders pray aloud for their classrooms every week -- yes, even for the infants in our nursery! -- which makes the simplicity and humble posture of prayer more familiar to children. Hearing adults pray models for kids how our Heavenly Father delights in His children talking to and asking Him about everything across any stage of life.

  • Our weekly lessons have an intentional focus on the work and empowerment of the Holy Spirit in the lives of believers. Our leaders are carefully selected individuals who have a growing and committed relationship with God. We believe that the ministry of Children of Hope does not belong to anyone on our team, but is God’s work for the city of Annapolis that we join into. As a ministry team, we regularly spend time in prayer asking that God would guide our leaders, transform families by the gospel, and make the young hearts we are entrusted with into good soil for the seeds of His truth. Apart from Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5).

SUNDAY EXPERIENCE

At Children of Hope, we are focused on the gospel of Jesus and how a relationship with Him transforms lives. We believe the best way for kids to experience this at church is to make it positive, safe, and fun.

We hope this overview of our program is helpful if you are planning to visit us for the first time. We would love to meet you and answer any questions you may have!

OUR CLASSROOMS

  • Coming to our nursery room may be your baby’s first time away from Mom or Dad. We want to make this experience as calm and loving as possible to support your child’s development in this skill. Our nursery volunteers are caring individuals who are ready to hold, play with, and pray over your child as you sit in the Gathering. We will come get you right away if your baby becomes unhappy or we can let them try adjusting on their own for the amount of time you determine. We want church to become a positive place for you and your baby where you feel comfortable to get a break for an hour and your little one enjoys seeing their teachers every week.

    If your baby’s diaper needs to be changed during the service, we can come get you from the Gathering and offer a place for you to change it yourself in one of our restrooms. Or if you prefer, our female volunteers are willing to do this for you at our in-room changing table.

    NURSING MOTHERS: Please ask about our feeding room when you arrive. You are welcome to keep and feed your baby with you in the Gathering, but we do have a room with two armchairs if you prefer a quiet space.

  • Our preschool children are full of life, and this is possibly one of the most energizing classrooms we have. Seriously, it’s a blast! We curate an environment that allows preschoolers to practice social, fine motor, and gross motor skills through freeplay time and fun Bible lesson activities. Children will watch a short Gospel Project for Kids lesson video made for their age, have the opportunity to worship God through song and dance, and engage in a fun activity about the lesson to “make it stick.”

  • Our younger elementary kids watch a Gospel Project for Kids lesson video, the same as our TREES classroom. They also have the opportunity to worship God through song and dance and participate in an activity or object lesson to make the Bible passage come to life. Our leaders in this age group will pray with children each class and help kids practice praying for each other as they explore their growing relationship with God.

  • Our older elementary kids watch the same Gospel Project for Kids lesson video as our SAPLINGS classroom. Leaders take time to help children connect with each other as a community through discussions about the lesson and in prayer. Our leaders are prepared to help children really engage with the Biblical text by helping them form questions and look for answers in what they read.

  • Do you have a 4th or 5th grader who you are looking to get connected into the church? Here at Downtown Hope we have a 4th and 5th grade ministry! Please join the ministry group here to see upcoming events and to get connected.

CHECK-IN

  • Check-in begins 15 minutes prior to the start of each service.

  • Our children’s check-in area is in the back hallway. When you enter through the front West Street doors, there will be signs in the space directing you to the Children of Hope check-in table.

  • We use a secure system to check in each child to ensure their safety.

  • The parent/guardian checking in children will receive one name tag for each child and one parent claim sticker. The parent sticker has a code that matches all children in the family. This is a unique sticker code each week — be sure to stick it to your purse or your shirt!

  • Classroom volunteers must match the parent claim sticker to each of their children at pick-up time.

OUR CURRICULUM

We use The Gospel Project for Kids curriculum for all of our Children of Hope classrooms. 

 
 

Our teaching is centered on scripture and follows a chronological overview of the whole Bible in a 3 year cycle. This approach distributes equal time in the Old and New Testaments to show how every part of scripture is useful (2 Timothy 3:16) and fits together to make one big story of God’s faithfulness and his plan of redemption through Jesus. This means that our 5th graders who graduate into our Middle School Student Ministry will have traced the story of God across scripture and the unfolding of the gospel, three times over! 

We believe that Bible truths become tangible and really “stick” when kids are given the opportunity to explore with their senses and experience a Bible lesson among peers. At Children of Hope, we think very highly of the power of play and hands-on experience for the process of learning. Every week, our leaders facilitate activities that reinforce Biblical truths and help children make connections with theological concepts. 

CONNECT WITH CHILDREN OF HOPE

We are happy to answer any questions you might have about life at Downtown Hope! For more information about Children of Hope classes or getting your child registered, please reach out to our Children of Hope Director, Eileen Dowd