Produced for pastors, parents, and church members who consider service to families with young children a vital part of ministry, this manual presents information to stimulate enthusiasm about child day care as an important part of church mission. Its goal is to describe the church's unique opportunity to care for children and to offer guidance to those involved in caregiving efforts. Chapter I profiles the programs of nearly 9,000 churches participating in the 1982 National Council of Churches' (NCC) survey and introduces the reader to the child advocacy work undertaken in recent years by the NCC. Chapter II shows how ministry to families with young children has become important in the United States today and describes four steps a church task force takes in assessing or reassessing child day care programs. Chapter III includes suggestions for child day care board membership and orientation as well as a list of steps to follow in starting a program. Specifically described are such issues as governance and church support, contractual agreements and licensure, goals and objectives, and the ethics of financial and personnel policies. Chapter IV stresses active communication between church and child day care community, while chapter V describes selected resources for church-housed child day care programs. Appendices provide the proposed policy statement on child care of the National Council of the Churches of Christ, information on licensing, a sample lease agreement, and sample budgets. (RH)