Missionaries Steve and Tece Entsminger recently took a group of students to a children’s ministry conference. These students are training to be pastors and church leaders at Facultad de Teología, an Assemblies of God seminary in Córdoba, Spain. During the Bible lessons at the conference, one of the students was captivated by the way the content was being presented to the point of forgetting her responsibilities as a counselor. When Tece asked later why she was so intrigued, she replied, “I had no idea you could actually minister to children!” 

This perception is something Steve and Tece have tried to change throughout their ministry in Spain. They have been active in promoting awareness to the needs and opportunities, and in recent years they have seen large increases in the number of students involved in children’s ministry. They have helped dozens of churches improve the way they reach children with the message of the gospel and have recently taken their platform national.

The Entsmingers have been part of a children’s ministry conference in Madrid for the past seven years that has drawn people from every part of the country, and they’ve even seen incredible things happen while ministering to pastors’ kids. For the past few years a committee has coordinated children’s ministry at the Spanish General Council meetings, and according to Tece, “Several children have been saved, filled with the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and called into ministry in these meetings.” At the 2018 Spanish General Council a national children’s ministry department was formed, and of the five elected leaders, Steve was one.

The focus of their work in children’s ministry has been casting vision, training, and equipping workers and leaders. Now through their platform at Assemblies of God Theological University, Steve and Tece can encourage even more growth in this area. They believe their role transcends ministry techniques, and they really want people to catch the vision of how important children are. “Above all things,” explained Tece, “We desire that more people will see the need to minister to children and realize the potential children have to be used of God.”