Child Missionaries Create Opportunities to Talk About Jesus

“Let the little ones come to me,” Jesus said in Matthew 19:14. Pedro Henrique Ladeira dos Santos, age 9, got the message and is taking other little ones with him. Since he started participating in the Super Missionaries project, in Tocantins, he has been helping others to get to know the Bible. 

The first study Pedro Henrique shared was with Gustavo, in 2021. He spent months praying for his friend until it was time to talk to him. Pedro Henrique’s mother, Luene, to motivate her son's missionary desire, also had to overcome the barrier of shyness to get close to Gustavo's mother.

The result was an entire family that decided to be baptized. Since then, two more families have been baptized under the influence of Pedro Henrique. Furthermore, he is also part of a small group. "There, we tell stories, talk about Jesus with our little friends," he explains. 

Glaucia Korkischko, Children's Ministry director for eight countries in South America, recalls that children were not used to being involved in evangelism projects. "They were just spectators," she points out. For her, "the child does not need to know all the doctrines or have a deep knowledge of the Bible. If he loves Jesus, inspired by the example of his parents and the church, he will talk about it to his little friend. He will live this model for his little friend, and that's enough." 

Talent Development 

At nine years old, Pedro Henrique is a member of the Adventurers Club, which allows him to develop other skills, such as preaching. Last year, on Children's Sabbath and World Adventurer's Day, special events aimed at little ones, he took the pulpit and preached for the first time. "I was a little nervous," he recalls. However, that didn't stop him from continuing. This year, a new invitation has been extended, and Pedro Henrique will be there again. 

"Within the Adventurers Club, it is very easy for the children to do the mission," points out Udolcy Zukowski, South American director of this ministry. According to him, the activities proposed at the club are attractive to other children, and this facilitates involvement of the whole family. 

Today, according to the South American Adventist Headquarters secretariat, there are 123,811 children, ages 0–12, who attend Adventist churches in South America. And they take an active part in evangelism projects. 

Rebeca Soares Ruela, age 5, is part of this group of child missionaries. She doesn't leave the house without a book to give as a gift to anyone who passes her way, whether doorpeople, bikers, or delivery people. Nobody comes back empty-handed. And she says she's happy when she does that! “I like to show people that Jesus loves them,” says the little one.

For Glaucia, when she thinks about projects for this audience, the objective is clear. "When I look at the involvement of children, much more than the methodology we created, I keep thinking about each little life of these children in heaven. It is what I want for my children and for these children," she emphasizes. "Each one of them is a potential citizen of the kingdom of heaven, and we can't miss this opportunity." 

This article was originally published on the South American Division’s news site