Let’s pretend for a moment, we aren’t talking about the Word of God (the Bible). Let’s say we are working in a secular workplace and our task is to develop a marketing strategy for a new product on the market. This product is state of the art, for all ages, and guaranteed to make life easier on everyone…all we have to do is present that case in how we ‘market’ this product. What would we do?
Well, chances are, we would put our heads together to figure out HOW to present this product to the world. Our goal would be to find a way to present the benefits & truth of this product, as it applies to each audience, in an unforgettable way that leaves them KNOWING they need it.
Now, just because we would do that, doesn’t mean we believe the product isn’t ‘the best out there’ or that it can’t ’stand on it’s own.’ We KNOW it can, but we also know everyone else…doesn’t know that yet and it’s our job to spread the word in a sticky manner.
So, if that’s how we would market a secular product…why not the Bible? I believe that when we teach the Powerful, Creative, Amazing, Holy, Infallible Word of God it is our job to do so in a way that…
Is age-appropriate…
In scripture, Jesus ‘blessed’ the children in a different way than he ‘blessed’ the adults. I believe Jesus knew there was a difference in where an adult and child ‘were at’ in life & that each should hear what He was saying differently. He took the time to reach each…on their level!
Engages hearts…
Growing up I remember flipping through the channels & seeing TV preachers yell AT their congregation. Looking back I think, ‘Did that really engage their hearts?’ Yes, the Word can pierce our hearts…the truth of sin hurts (that’s not what I mean). I mean, when Jesus taught he did so in a way that drew people in to the love of God…do we?
Is Creative…
The Bible is the most creative book on the planet, but over the years humans have done a great job of presenting it as the most sinfully boring book imaginable! If the Bible itself is creative and God is creative (created us, the world & everything in it)…wouldn’t it lead us to believe that it is our job to teach it creatively?
Gives Application…
If I knew the Bible back to front, could quote scripture on a whim, and memorized all four gospels but gave no application of it to my life…I would be nothing but a Pharisee. People need to see HOW the Word applies to their lives and how they can apply it!
In the end, the biggest thing that convinces me of all this is how Jesus taught most of the time…in parables. Parables are short stories, but for Jesus they were more than just that. These parables put the Word of God on the people’s level, they were creative & engaging (as most great stories are) and it showed & taught them the application of God’s Word! It’s how Jesus did it…
January 15th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
I’d love to get your plans for Easter with your kids…
January 21st, 2008 at 10:38 am
Hey Pudge, just wanted to give you a “hallelujah” on this post. As a CM Director for a growing church, we have discovered that “one size doesn’t fit all” when it comes to curriculum. Through trial-and-error we have seen that curriculum that works for the bigger churches in different parts of the U.S. don’t necessarily reach the kids of our CM population here in our rural community the way we thought it would. We have also seen that the different age groups within our CM respond better to different types of curriculum. In essence, we are now at the point where each age group of our CM department is using different curriculum…for now! I know this sounds crazy, but it’s working for now - and we’re still at a size where we can choose what works for the different ministry groups (we only have 5 right now!) and implement it. I can’t wait (and am dreaming of it now!) for the day where we will have a creative team that can write our own curriculum that will hit a home run with each ministry team every time we meet! For now, I also am working with each team to ramp up the creative storytelling - for I feel this is VITAL to reaching our kids as Christ reached people through his parables & is an ESSENTIAL element no matter what curriculum you are using. I feel that the kids should see the Bible come alive right in front of them, in ways they can relate culturally and understand how it applies to their own lives…even at a young age. I recently picked up a book of “Interactive Stories for Young Children” by Steven James in an attempt to train the CM volunteers on how to creatively teach the Bible stories & was wondering if you or anyone else out there has used books or other resources to help volunteers with Bible teaching and creatively presenting stories in a way that they will have a major impact on today’s kids. Thanks for your posts, they really help those of us who are learning from your experiences.
God Bless! -Candy Worley, CM Director for Madison Community Church in Richmond, KY
January 21st, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Thanks Candy!
Having a creative team can help out a lot with planning your own stuff, but its a lot of work too!
Stay warm up there in Kentucky!