The final essential element in a transformational children’s ministry is “response”.
We have talked about relationships, experiential teaching, Bible truth, discussion but without response children hold what they have been taught in the bank vault of their mind.
God’s desire is not only that they hear the Word of God, but that they practice what they have learned.
Transformational children’s ministry leads ultimately to changed behavior and a changed heart. As the chorus states “Change me from the inside out”.
Unfortunately, many children’s workers, teachers, parents, and grandparents focus extensively on getting the truth right and not enough on responding to that truth.
Both are important.
If children don’t know the truth, they cannot respond. However, in my experience the more significant problem is teaching children Bible truth and then not helping them integrate that truth into their everyday life.
Having worked with thousands of teachers around the world, one of the apparent problems is that children’s workers, teachers and even parents are often unaware of what is happening in the lives of the children. Therefore, it is difficult to help them respond in real life.
We dedicate time to planning the teaching, memorizing Bible verses, making sure children know the “right” answers and understand the Bible teaching “correctly”. We dedicate less time to understanding the issues, challenges, problems, and environment in which they live.
As a result, we find ourselves ill equipped to help children respond to God’s Word in their everyday living. If we do not understand their everyday life, we will struggle helping them respond to God and His Word.
If you are a children’s worker, you need to study the children in your ministry and find out what their life is like. Understanding their lives can help you gear your ministry towards real life response.
Many factors affect a child’s response to God’s truth. The following table summarizes some issues to keep in mind when you’re working with a large number of children.
Issue | Life Setting |
|---|---|
Parents | Christian Non-Christian Married Single Parent Orphaned Foster |
Economic Status | Lower Income Middle Class Affluent |
Siblings | Only Child Oldest Child Birth Order Blended Family |
Dwelling | Rural Farming Apartment Single-Family Home |
Schooling | Homeschooled Public Private (Christian) Private (Non-Christian) Charter Tutor |
Culture | Home Culture and Heart Language New Culture and Second Language |
Personality | Introvert Extrovert Hyperactive Well Adjusted Not Well Adjusted |
Hobbies | Music Sports Books/Reading Art Cooking Animal Husbandry Fishing Video Games Bicycle/Scooter Skateboard |
If you are working with a large group of children work through each of these issues and identify the “typical” life setting for your kids. It may vary widely or be somewhat homogenous.
The point is that, understanding the life situation of those children is absolutely crucial to helping them respond to God.
You can even make a kind of map for your group with particular issues that are relevant to them.
Having a clear grasp of the Bible teaching is the first step and this is the second in helping children respond to God and experience life transformation in Christian.
There will be more to come on this crucial element!