It’s almost impossible to capture and hold the attention of a room full of children whose ages span the grades and whose energy levels and behaviors are as unpredictable as cats!
But every weekend that is exactly what YOU are asked to do.
In fact, it’s what you feel called to do because you believe in the truth of God’s Word, the power of His Holy Spirit and the breadth of His amazing love for children and youth.
You do it because… what you make of the weekend experience is what they will remember about God.
Don’t ask me why, but it works!
When selecting worship songs…think oldest boy.
When planning activities and crafts…think oldest boy.
When preparing to tell a Bible story…think oldest boy.
When setting up the structure, furniture and groupings in the room…oldest boy.
In preschool, he may be 5.
In elementary, he may be 10.
In middle school, he is 13.
And in high school, he is 18 or 19.
Teach God’s Word in the moment as it was lived. Move beyond fact-telling and help listeners see, feel and hear experiences as they actually happened. Then apply God’s truth to the moment and teach them how to live.
God is Almighty. His Word is exciting and filled with the most powerful, truth-telling, awe-inspiring stories of bravery, fear, failure, success and love. Our weekend experiences should reflect as much.
If you need help spicing up your current program this month, consider going out on a limb and get help from a few people who have packaged the icky, weird, strange and unique stories of the Bible. Their topics are sure to help you get on track capturing minds and holding attention spans.
Then zing them with God’s truth and love.
First, there’s Jonathan Schkade (author) and Tuesday Mourning (illustrator) who have put together a book of Icky Sticky Hairy Scary Bible Stories. It’s a collection of 60 short poems that reference the messy, ugly and icky stories found in the Bible.
For teenagers, Group Publishing has assembled Scary, Gross and Weird Stories from the Bible, a 13-week curriculum series, complete with fear-factor style activities. These lessons can support your weekend experience, generate a midweek series or offer the bones of a unique Halloween/Harvest event!
Also from Group, there’s the Buzz Mini-Kit called Gross Me Out for grades 3 & 4. This kit offers just 3 weeks of strange stories that will get you thinking anew, show you how to package a complete lesson and move kids toward anticipating something exciting every time they come to church!
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