Some big things! Photo by Creatas/Thinkstock.com

Ken Sapp, over at CreativeYouthIdeas.com today recounted a story of the great Abraham Lincoln.

Abraham Lincoln was riding home from church in his carriage one Sunday when his secretary asked how he liked the sermon. “Not very much,” said the president. His response surprised the secretary because the preacher was popular and most people considered him a very gifted speaker. When asked what the problem was, Lincoln replied, “He did not ask me to do anything great.”

Applying Bible truth

When we are communicating Bible truth, whether to kids, teens or adults, do we apply to their lives the truth we are teaching ?
Do we make sure that they know the “great thing” God wanted them to do as a result of what they had heard from us? Do they understand that, though they are young, they can do great things for God?

Asking the right questions

We often ask the children, “What have you learned today from this Bible lesson?” It’s good to do that. It helps us assess the effectiveness of our communication.
But let’s not forget to also ask the children to consider this , “What are you going to do about it?” (They don’t need to answer aloud, but they will benefit from considering it.)
Knowing something and doing something about it are two different things.

A “call to action”

Secular marketers and advertisers call it a “call to action”.

• Sign up here!
• Buy Brekky Crunch today!
• Order your copy now!

We don’t need to be so “in-your-face”! But we can point children in the right direction, and encourage them to consider what action they could take to follow up on what they have learned.

For example, wouldn’t it be great if our kids were able to say something like this?

Today I learned:
… that Moses worshipped God in the desert and up a mountain as well as in the Tent of Meeting. I can worship God anywhere.
Now I will:
… come to God at any time when I want to pray or worship him; in any place, not just church – Even silently in school or out in the back yard.

Today I learned:
…that God wants me to honour and respect my parents
Now I will:
… come in from playing outside, or clean my room, when they ask me.

Today I learned:
…Barnabas was kind to Saul when he was just converted. He introduced him to the disciples and stood up for him.
Now I will:
…be a friend to the new kids in my class and try to encourage and help them

Abraham Lincoln wanted to be asked to do “something big”. Any of the three outcomes above, and plenty more besides, are BIG things! We’d be stunting our children, rather than stretching them and encouraging them grow, if we fail to help them see the big things God is calling them to do.

Oh, and by the way, will you ask yourself, as I do, “What big thing did God speak to me about today? How can I make a start?”

Then pretty soon we’ll have some practical examples to share with our children of how God helps when you tackle the big things!

Do you think this principle has any relevance to children’s ministry?
Feel free to comment below!

Amplify your message with story-telling

We have blogged here before about the value of story-telling. And today I saw a recent post from Steve Fogg on the same topic.

His post tells of a stunning presentation given by his Pastor, which began with the story of a young man sharing his faith with a friend and ended with…

Well, I’ll let you find that out by hopping over to Steve’s post. I know your heart will be stirred.

He writes on the topic 4 Ways To Use Storytelling To Amplify Your Message.

We have all felt fear at some time or another.
Some fears are good. They keep us safe. For example, fear of being hit by a car will help us watch out when crossing a street. Fear of being burned will help us to be careful when we are near camp fires or barbecues.
But sometimes there are fears which are harmful to us. They can take over and spoil our lives and even control what we do, so that we are held back form doing good things we would enjoy and are compelled to wear ourselves out doing other things which are not helpful.
But fears can be zapped, so that will no longer upset us or spoil our lives.

Using scenarios that children can identify with, (including “spooky stuff”, creepy-crawlies, the dark, bullying and others sources of fear)  this presentation gives you visuals and full presenter’s notes. It suggests how you might lead the children in discussion, as well as give the biblical answer to the question “What can I do when I am afraid?”

It focuses on the mighty power of God and shows in very practical steps how we can use the Bible effectively, and how to rely on Christ at all times.

By the end of this session, the children will have learned how to zap some fears by themselves, how to ask for help when they need it and how to trust God to zap the fears that only he can deal with.

Right-click on the links below and save the files to your own computer.

Download the presenter’s notes for When I am Afraid (PDF)

Download the free PowerPoint presentation for When I am Afraid. (8MB)

Over at the WhyMissionaries blog, Wanda has put a lot of thought into answering this. Looking at the whole child in every aspect - spiritual, emotional, social, mental and physical – she has begun a list of goals.

Wanda says:

As we pray, plan, develop and implement ministry for children do we ever stop and ask who we want that child to be when he is an adult? I believe asking this question will make a big difference in how we do ministry to children.

Below is my beginning list. I’m sure it will grow and change – if I’ve missed something let me know…

When you see her list, add no doubt add your own items, perhaps you will respond as I did:

What a great personal checklist for me as a teacher! Does my life model these attributes? Phew! Food for thought !

So, in the midst of the nitty-gritty, week-by-week planning  and preparation for your children’s ministry, why not consider Wanda’s challenge and build your own list of long-term goals for your young people. Allow God to mould you, so that you model these qualities. Then he  might use you in some measure to mould the young lives in your care into great men and women of God.

Originally, we had only three presentations. But  from those to whom we were teaching  Parts 1-3 came questions about the Apocrypha. So we began to create some teaching to place into context these books, which appear in some versions of the Bible and not others.

Then, with the rising popularity of The Da Vinci Code book and film, came questions about what Dan Brown and others believed regarding the life of Jesus and the people surrounding him. So Gnosticism became another topic, and it sat very well with the teaching we were preparing on the Biblical Apocrypha.

This PowerPoint presentation and leaders’ notes is now available for you here. As you will see from another post, the materials found on this site need not be confined to children’s ministry.  Youth and adults will benefit from this, too.

In The Bible Part 4: Apocrypha and Gnosticism you will find material which answers the questions:

• What is the Apocrypha?
• Does it fit in with the rest of the Bible?
• Why are these books not accepted by main-stream evangelicals?
• What are the Gnostic Gospels?
• What do gnostics today believe?
• Are present day gnostics correct in their thinking?

To download the files for this presentation, right-click on the links below and save to your own computer.

The Bible Part 4 – The Biblical Apocrypha and Gnosticism – Powerpoint file

The Bible Part 4 – The Biblical Apocrypha and Gnosticism – Leaders’ notes PDF

Two museums

One was the site of the remains of a Roman fort in Northern England, near Hadrian’s Wall. Here, at Segedunum, North Shields, we saw outlines of the stony foundations of the soldier’ barracks, the stables, groom’ quarters, a granary and the central praetorium, or commander’s house.

We were guided round the ancient ruins by means of an audio explanation, which seemed to bring it all to life. We were also fortunate to see a reconstructed bath house and a mock up of a stable, so we got a glimpse of what life was like in the barracks for the weary soldiers returning from patrol.
Inside, the museum presented artefacts which the archaeologists had found on the site. Among them we saw pieces of cavalry tack and equipment, and religious items. One very interesting room was given over to medical instruments. We were told what operations they were used for and how various ailments were treated by the doctors. It all made us think of our lives today, and we compared our situation with the Romans of a thousand years ago. Somehow we felt connected with them.

In contrast, some months later we visited another eminent museum. It also housed Roman artefacts and some stunning medieval pieces, including jewellery. But this time, there was only a limited effort made to set the find in context. There was no audio guide and the labels on the cases were not sufficient to satisfy our curiosity about what we were seeing.

Wonderful as the displays were, that second museum seemed to miss what the first one had given us – a sense of connection, the ability to identify with some of the items and the people behind them. The Roman culture was very different from ours, yet we felt affection for these people.

Four questions:

1. How do we relate the gospel of Jesus Christ to the children we teach, and to their families?
2. How do we show that the message of the Bible is relevant for today, for their lives as well as for those of a people who lived over 2000 years ago?
3. Do we engender a sense of reality about the characters we talk about?
4. Do the children feel a connection, an affection even, for them?

We can make the connection between two cultures:

1. If we ensure that our teaching is not only “a Bible story” (good as it is to convey a true narrative) but something more.
2. If we explain the life-principles behind the narrative, not in a dry, legalistic way, but in a way that engages the children’s interest.
3. If we ask God to help us see situations and scenarios that the kids are familiar with, and use them to help the children connect the Bible principles with their own 21st century youth culture.

Apart from covering everything in prayer and trusting God to anoint our ministry with the power of the Holy Spirit, is there anything else you would suggest which would help us to put Scripture into today’s context for kids?

If you gave me six hours to cut down a tree I’d spend four hours sharpening the axe.

In other words, he planned to take twice as long preparing for a task than actually doing it. So, what constitutes preparation for a Bible lesson or task in a class or meeting? 

• Gathering together all equipment – visual aids, demonstration items, snacks, whatever you are going to need to fulfil your responsibility. If your memory is as bad as mine make a list and check it off physically as each item is bagged and taken to your transport.
• Becoming thoroughly familiar with what you will be doing – how you will teach the lesson, how the skit will run, or the sketch-board item, how the song visuals and actions will work, etc.
  I find it very helpful to “run a video” through my mind of how the meeting/class will progress. Ever seen the downhill ski competitions? The cameras often pick up an athlete waiting for his or her start, eyes closed, hand in front of them dipping and swooping, bending and stretching, as they replicate in their mind the run they are about to do, with all its turns, dips and leaps.
  By “running the video” of your club meeting ahead of time, you may realize that you have not planned for an important element. You might, for example, imagine yourselve organizing the pre-schoolers hand painting project. Then, as you “fast-forward” to the end of that session, you realize you have not planned a vital ingredient… and you would really regret it if you didn’t take the wet-wipes and paper towels for use after the hand-painting!
• Relying on Christ  – At the end of the day, all your planning, list-making and forward thinking will be of little value if God is not in what you do.
  I realized at one point in my ministry that I was, in reality, relying on my familiarity with the lessons and visuals, human personality and even past spiritual successes. But “without Christ we can do nothing”. Breakthrough in kids’ understanding of spiritual matters can come only as the Holy Spirit does his work. I need to always rely on Christ to anoint me, flow through me and open young eyes and hearts to Bible truth. And that is essential preparation.

Do you have a child in your family or group that has special needs? I have  been very impressed at the regularity and quality of posts on
Our Out of Sync Life.

The author, Momma C. sums up her site like this:

God has blessed us with three beautiful children – one with Sensory Processing Disorder, a very Strong Willed middle child, and a Spirited Little Man. Follow us as we learn to train up our children to love the Lord with all of their heart, soul, and mind.

Even if right now there are no children in your care with special needs, you will still find this blog very uplifting and illuminating. There are heaps of ideas for crafts, and other learning opportunities.

Momma C is a trained educator  and she also runs a companion site , ABC Jesus Loves Me.   This is a pre-school Bible curriculum, free for use in the home. It is especially helpful for children with developmental delays.

I’d encourage you to check out these wonderful sites.

Hop over to FreeCMStuff.com .

I defy you not to grin from ear to ear when you watch the girls and then try to remember the gestures so that you can teach your kids!