It's really not the kid's fault.

Okay, so first off let me say that this will, to most, be very offensive. And no matter HOW MUCH I ask people not to be rude back or get offended they will anyway. But if you're typically thin skinned or are easily offended, stop reading now.

If, on the other hand, you are open to change and are going to read this, then please read all of it!

As a follower of Christ and someone who loves God with all of my heart I’m not immune the disrespect of distraction during a service.

This happens in so many churches, every service. I can't say this in my church because my father is the pastor and I know the congregation would only be offended because they are a bit too stuck in their ways.

This is something that has and will always bother me. It's rude and inconsiderate to the others in the room and that is: keeping crying babies, toddlers or just noisy kids in a church service when there is a perfectly suitable nursery, just outside the room. It won't kill you, or your kid or anyone to take them out, BUT by keeping noisy children in the service the parents could be and ARE hindering the Holy Spirit from moving in the hearts of others.

Crying kids are a huge distraction, no matter how you slice it. They are. It's distracting. Rude of the parents and disrespectful to the pastor who either continually has to raise his voice to be heard or gets totally drowned out by the kid's unnecessary screaming, babbling or the parent talking to them as if they're just hanging out at home. Church services are NOT the time to hold a conversation with your child, they are NOT a place to read a book out loud while the preacher is preaching. It’s not preschool. It’s not a place for your kid to be playing games on your phone with silly sound effects going off. It’s a place of worship that should be reverenced and respected.

The hard, cold truth is this, your sweet, spoiled, precious, princess or prince, miracle baby CAN AND WILL BE USED BY SATAN TO DISTRACT SOMEONE WHO GOD MIGHT BE TRYING TO WORK ON.

That's hard to hear. It might sound rude. But it's the truth. Your child is NOT above being a tool that the devil will use to distract someone from getting saved or hearing something they need to hear. Yes, it's the person's choice to or not to accept God BUT Satan can use a crying, babling kid to distract them just that one time that they finally decided not to accept.

Then there are those of us like me, the ADHD, ADD people, teens, and adults who just simply CANNOT FOCUS. We can't help it, it's all we can do to focus when there aren't any kids making noise. And when they do start babbling, crying or screaming, that is ALL we can hear. We can't, like the parents obviously can, block out the noise and listen to the drowned out pastor.

So PLEASE next time your baby starts screaming, your toddler won't stop talking, your kid is just babbling, or you feel the need to give them a school lesson in the middle of ansermon, take them to the nursery, someone could possibly not accept God because they were too distracted by extra noise in the room.

Pastors study and prepare for these sermons they’re giving and if innevery service they just get drowned out then what’s the point?!

I would never want to discourage anyone with young kids to not come because of the kids. Just for those churches who offer nursery services and have workers in them, they're a good thing to use! Forcing kids to sit with the parents in a service they can't even understand isn't going to make them all learn to listen and sit quietly.

Kids are critical to the world, I get that but in a place of worship there is a place for kids to be kids and it’s not the sanctuary.

*Again this is not to be offensive.*
It's just food for thought.

Sincerely,
Sarah