Lindsey Jones: For The Love Of God — And Children
By Ray Balogh
InkFreeNews
WARSAW — Lindsey Jones knows what gets her feet to hit the bedroom floor every morning.
“Waking up and spending time with the Lord,” said the Warsaw resident, “just surrendering my time and my selfish desires to him daily and just to be aware of those around me who need encouragement and the need to reach out to them.”
She also described what keeps her motivated in the children’s ministry she shares with Robert, her husband going on 16 years.
“Seeing the children get to know and get excited about Christ, when you see their faces light up when they understand what it is like to have a relationship with Jesus Christ.”
Jones doesn’t stop with her present ministry. “We would love to grow our children’s ministry as our church grows. We would love to see young families come visit. We would love to see our Wednesday evening program bursting at the seams with so many children we don’t know what to do with them.”
In the future, she said, she hopes her church, First Christian Church of Warsaw, where she and Robert have been members for nine years, will build a separate children’s ministry center or add on to the church building.
The church holds children’s programs Wednesday nights and during its two Sunday services at 9:15 and 11 a.m.
The ministry for children, birth through sixth grade, is “my part-time job,” she said. “Robert works full-time at Lifeline Youth & Family Services in Warsaw and we share this part-time position.”
But she and Robert ply their service with full-time hearts.
“We do a little bit of everything. We organize special events such as the fall festival, Christmas gingerbread house decorating, Easter event with a petting zoo and our virtual vacation Bible school from Aug. 3-7. Right now we are helping with reaching out to parents who lost their children to foster care.”
Jones said children can sign on to the vacation Bible school anytime during the week by contacting her at [email protected] or (574) 267-8952, ext. 231.
“I love to plan the activities,” she said. “I am the planner and my husband does the speaking and technology part of it. He also preaches at the church from time to time and does the children’s sermon in the sanctuary.”
Jones “grew up in the church” in Syracuse and was home-schooled from second grade on. “I always knew I wanted to work with children.”
She took classes in early childhood education at IPFW. Robert attend Bethel University to get a degree in youth ministry.
“I didn’t know him then, but I met him when he was coaching our home-school basketball team my two younger brothers were playing on. My brothers just really wanted me to meet him so they introduced us.”
The Joneses have four children: Lilian, 14; Ava, 12; Maya, 10; and Hudson, 7. They enjoy camping and have roughed it in campgrounds throughout the state. Since the pandemic, however, “we just camp around this area,” particularly Chain of Lakes near Albion.
The also like board games. “Our favorites are the strange ones made in Europe, but we also like Scrabble and Monopoly.”
Jones also likes to cook, read and sew, “but my biggest hobby is raising my children.”
She said she has a gift of encouragement, “especially to young moms.”
“I think through this whole COVID thing a lot of moms feel isolated, so having a support system through friends and family members and connecting with other moms is a big blessing and I would encourage that.
“If they are able to connect with a church family through this time of isolation, that would be a great encouragement and a great help.”