1. Mistaking the curriculum for the ten commandments.

                 It is important to remember that curriculum is not written in stone! Look at your lessons as a guideline and not as a mandatory to-do list. You’re the potter, mold the ideas you’ve been given into something of your own creation. Allow God to speak through you instead of just following the given outline. Let your personal teaching style and gifting shine through each Sunday.

2. Treating your lesson like a project due the next morning.

                     I’m sure we all have memories of tests or projects in high school. We know the project is due in 3 months, and somehow that time slips through our fingers and there we are Sunday night, trying to make a solar system out of hangers and styrofoam. I’m sure none of us children’s ministers do this (wink, wink), but it can be extremely tempting to treat our Sunday School class the same way. We finish one lesson and we know we have a whole seven days until the next one. So, what do we do? We wait the entire week thinking we have plenty of time and before you know it, we’re in the Wal-mart craft aisle at 10 pm on Saturday. But here’s the real problem: we get away with it. We teach the lesson the next day and it’s good enough, or so we think. What would happen if we put real effort and time into our lessons? How much more would our students remember?

                   Take 10 minutes on Sunday afternoon or Monday morning to look over your next lesson. You don’t have to start your preparation just yet, but this will allow your mind to think of ideas and solutions throughout the week. Then when you do sit down to prepare, you won’t feel like you’re back in 10th grade studying for your next biology test.

3. Choosing the wrong curriculum. 

                       There is no one curriculum that is better than all the others, but there are definitely ones that are worse than others. It can be very tempting to just get by with lesson plans that are cheap in price and therefore, cheap in quality. When it comes to choosing a curriculum for your children’s ministry, you really do get what you pay for. Of course, there are great ideas and free lessons available online, but full year quality material will cost something, but it is well worth it. When choosing a curriculum, remember you are looking for a plethora of ideas and resources. How many methods of teaching does each lesson offer? A well-rounded curriculum will offer object lessons, musical ideas, in-depth stories, and memory verse activities that all teach Biblically-supported messages. Look to see not only what messages are being represented but what various avenues of teaching the messages are also offered. Anyone involved in education is aware of the various learning styles (kinesthetic, linguistic, musical, etc.). How many of these styles does the curriculum implement? Is there something that includes the visual kids in your class? How about those who learn through songs and rhythmical methods?

                 Curriculum is a great tool, but it is important to remember that’s all that it is, a tool. The real effectivness comes from the teacher. You make or break your lesson. No matter what curriculum you use, always have a sensitivity and desire for God’s Spirit to direct you. When you do this, you can’t go wrong.

                    This simple act of kindness began to open doors. Once we knew the kids, we were able to connect with parents. Sure, we were still passing out cards and water bottles, but this time it was different. The parents had seen that we were willing to put the time and effort into this forgotten neighborhood. After winning the parent’s trust, the rest was easy. We began to take the church van through the community. Needless to say, we had a total of 15 brand new kids from that neighborhood attend our VBS. Till this day, a majority of them attend our children’s ministry on a regular basis.

                     There are hundreds of children in our surrounding communities that lack consistent relationships. Relationships require one thing. Time. Pick a neighborhood. Do something once a week, whether it be kickball, passing out cards and water bottles, visiting with a gift or playing basketball. Whatever you do, be consistent and have one motivation: to connect and bless families. When you do this, you will be blown away by the results. It can all start with simple question, “Wanna play kickball?”

These are three basic guidlines to use when teaching a story:

1. Find your character

                    You can find several lessons from just one Bible story. Take the Prodigal Son in Luke 15 for example. The young son ran away from home and soon realized the only place he’d find love was in his father’s arms. He ran back home, and we see that his father was waiting the whole time his son was gone. He wasn’t critical or mad at his son, he was just simply waiting for him to return. You can then use this point of view and tell the children that no matter what’ve they done or said, Jesus isn’t mad. He’s not going to blame you or turn you away, all He is simply doing is waiting for you to come to Him.

                        I can then use this same story in another lesson and talk about the older brother. The young son came back and everybody had a party. The oldest son was so upset because he had been so faithful and obedient but yet there was never a party for him. The father took his oldest son to the side and reminded him that everything he ever needed was right there. All he had to do was ask. You can then take this message and show the children who have been in church that everything they ever need is right in the Father’s house. They don’t have to go outside of their Father’s arms to find love or joy. Living for Christ is the most rewarding thing they will ever do.

                           If you notice, I just taught two different lessons from the same story. The difference is I chose two different characters. When teaching a bible story, find your message and use the character to base that lesson around. What character are you focusing on? If there is only main character in the story, then ask yourself, “What point of view or theme do I want to get across?”

2. Focus on your message

                         Remember, you do not have to teach the whole story! Yes, there will be times when you will want your students to learn the entire story, but most of the time you will want to focus on a simple thought rather than the surrounding facts. In the first lesson on the prodigal son, I didn’t even mention the older son. It wasn’t my focus. I was then able to focus on the older son in my next lesson, and was able to teach a completely different side of the story. Once you know your main thought, use the story to build around your message.

3. Be sensitive

                       The Word of God is the most powerful thing you will ever teach your students. Everytime you prepare a lesson, ask God to direct your words. Ask God to use your message to speak where your students are right now. You are going to have children that can relate to the prodigal son and you’re going to have those that can relate to both characters. Spend time in prayer and be sensitive to what God would have you say. Don’t just go through the motions, but allow the Holy Ghost to guide your every step. When you do this, the story becomes more than a story. It becomes alive and it can change your students forever.

                From a glance, it seems as though the disciples were doing the right thing. Jesus was probably teaching the crowd a life altering sermon or perhaps He was about to rebuke an all-knowing Pharisee. Whatever the case was, he disciples didn’t believe that a group of children took priority over whatever Jesus was occupied with. But Jesus sets the record straight. He says, “for such is the Kingdom of God.” He doesn’t stop there, but He then establishes the importance of being child-like, “whosoever shall not receive the Kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.” Not only are children of the Kingdom of God, but so is their child-like faith. When a child approaches the Kingdom, he isn’t looking through the same lens as you or I. A child’s faith hasn’t been attacked by the doubt or deceit that adults face on a daily basis. A child sees the kingdom of God as it is. There is a reason why Jesus commands us to return to a child-like faith. The way a child perceives the Kingdom is the way God intended for us as well. Whenever a child is praying for the gift of the Holy Ghost, it is important to realize that what they are doing is receiving the Kingdom of God. When you pray with a child, you are not just getting him to say a few words about Jesus, but in all reality you are guiding Him into the Kingdom! This concept should not intimidate us, but rather it should excite us! The key word is receive. We should never view praying with children as working towards a goal but instead it is them receiving a gift that is available for them to have.

                 In order for us to effectively reach a child we must be on their level. This does not mean we are to become “childish” but instead we are to be child-like. Just as a child approaches the Kingdom of God with a pure faith, we must approach the child in the same way. Since it is the child that is praying for the Holy Ghost, God does not necessarily respond to our faith as much as He responds to the child’s. It is our job to simply build and impart faith into their lives. Building one another’s faith is something we see throughout the Bible on many occasions. Before Peter walked on the water, Jesus compelled Him to take a step of faith. I Thessalonians 5:11 says to encourage one another and build one another. As prayer workers, it is our place to build up a child’s faith and to encourage them. When you approach a child, believe that he will receive the Holy Ghost. Believe that God will meet the child’s needs. Another word for “impart” is to “bestow.” Bestow means to “confer as a gift or to deposit.”  When you impart faith to a person, you are making a “faith deposit” into their lives. We are not giving them the Holy Ghost but we are building faith that they can receive it. If you receive a check, and the depositor does not have enough funds to support the check, you have received a powerless piece of paper. We cannot make empty deposits into a child’s life and expect their faith to grow. If there’s nothing in the bank, there’s nothing to receive. Just as a child is sensitive to the Spirit of God, they are also sensitive to doubt. A child can tell when we are faking it. If we approach the child with doubt, we are making a deposit of doubt. Before we ever begin to pray with a child, we must first examine ourselves. One question I always ask myself is, “Have I reached the place that the child is seeking after?” In other words, I can’t help a person reach a destination that I haven’t been myself. If we are trying to lead a child to receive the Holy Ghost, we ourselves should be Spirit-filled. Before we can lead someone to a place of repentance, we ourselves must repent. If we are encouraging a child to make a renewed commitment to God, it is important that we have reached a place of commitment ourselves. The key is to get out of the way of that God can have His way. Any doubt or hindrance in our spirit must be submitted to God. When we rid ourselves of anything that could hinder God’s Spirit, that is when God can work in us and through us.