We’ve all seen examples of Sunday school done badly. Even with the best intentions and lots of love, sometimes we cringe and wonder what is actually being conveyed and whether or not it has been a positive experience.
I really believe that children are naturally inquisitive and all kids would love to know more about God and who God is. I think kids want to know the stories of people that have had encounters with God and how God responds to people. I believe children, whether or not they believe in God, want to hear about our experiences and why on earth we follow Jesus.
So why is it so hard to engage children in Sunday school? Does it need to be fancy with lights, animations, props, puppets, game consoles and bouncy castles? Does a fancy program with all the latest bells and whistles actually engage or teach better than those small groups in a back room with minimal resources?
That depends on what your ultimate goals and what you are trying to teach. Are you trying to show kids a set of rules, values or good moral teaching? Have them memorise it and try their best to uphold those practices in their own lives? Or are we trying to show them how amazing the Bible is? I think what is important is helping them to read and understand the stories it holds so they can get to know the God we follow. So they can discover for themselves how amazing God is and how he interacts with people. We need to stop telling kids God loves them and let kids see for themselves how God loves and cares for us, so that they come to their own realisation that God really does love and care about them.
We need to stop telling kids stuff, and start helping them find and explore it for themselves. That’s what I think good Sunday school is, and that’s what I truly believe best practice in Sunday school is. No program is perfect, there will never be enough money, and no set of volunteers will ever have enough time to spending preparation, but I still think that we can all have good Sunday school. In which children encounter the living God and respond to Him. In which lives are changed and transformed and set free from bondage. In which children are discipled and encouraged and grow in their knowledge and love for Jesus.
So how do we do that?
Well I have some ideas, but I think it is something we need to work out together!
I want to create a community that can reflect on what they are currently doing and make small changes to improve what they have. Working in Children’s ministry we become so isolated and there is very little professional development or ways to connect with others pursuing excellence in children ministry. Ways to talk with like minded people and bounce ideas or thoughts off each other. Ways to share our successes and our failures.
I have wanted to help develop this sort of community for a while now so I am finally taking the plunge. I want this site to be full of resources and thoughts, Book reviews, curriculum reviews, and the like as a way of helping us all discover new and useful material. I want many people to share, not just me. So hopefully I will be able to find others to help share their experiences, thoughts and ideas.
Little Theologians 