Not very often, but every once in a while I question myself regarding children's church.  I teach every week a group of kids from ages 4 to 12;  it can be anywhere from 5 to 25 kids.  The past few months I began giving myself one week off/month to be in the "big" church worshipping with my family.  I figured that this would protect me from burn out-- and once a month the kids get a chance to worship with their own families, model the parents, attempt to sit still, help God teach the parents a lesson in patience...etc.
 
So now and then I ask myself, "Why am I doing this?"  Yes.  I know why... but usually it is 10:30 on a Saturday night when I have yet to figure out what I'll be teaching.  Who is my audience?  How many will there be?  Will I have more 5 year olds this time?  What if the pre-teens show up?  
 
...And wouldn't you know it?  This will generally be the Sunday that God blesses me with a whack to the side of the head or a GIANT, shining light bulb-over-the-head-AHA moment.  

 On Palm Sunday I got up early and headed out to church in the rain-- 26/27 days of straight rain?  I got the palms out of the refrigerator to prepare for the parade.  I put the sign up to collect coats to lay down and then later gather up and donate somewhere.  I found the construction paper and taped together six crosses-- for a worship project.  Church began.  I ran forward, gathered the kids, took them out the side door, handed out palms with about 17 brief explanations, ran around to the front of the church and helped the children parade throughout the coats up and down the aisles waving their palms-- and passing more out to the congregation, and all the while-- did I mention that the button had broken on my skirt and it was threatening to slip off through this whole ordeal?

 No problem.  If you've read this far, let me attempt to reward you.  Why do I do it?  I was reminded long after the children were home.  I stayed to finish gluing the crosses together and hang them in the "big" church.  We did a thing I found called the colors of the cross.  The children wrote out notes of worship about the different colored crosses:  the red cross for the blood of Jesus, the black for our sin, the white for redemption and heaven, the purple for royalty, the green for our growth in our Christian walk and the blue for baptism.
 
As I'm gluing the notes along with scripture verses on the various crosses, I notice one in the blue cross pile that says, "I'm not baptized yet, but I will be."  I have no idea which child wrote it.  It's California.  We get different kids coming quite often-- that maybe come once or twice --and then I don't see them again.  But oh my!  How pure and sweet and simple...what childlike faith.  ...I will be...  This is why I do it.  I get to be used by Our Father! What greater privilege is there?