Your
Bible story is like an orange. You can hand it off to a kid and expect him
to tear into it and eat it. Or you can peel it yourself and hand the
slices to the kid. It is easier for the kid to eat if you hand it to him
in bite-sized, pieces that are already peeled. Bible stories are easier
for kids to understand and apply if you break them down and serve them in
small parts.
“How do I peel apart
a Bible story to get out of it something I can teach kids.” This is not
the same as explaining how I teach a lesson. This is not about skits,
object lessons, games, or other teaching methods. This is about digging
into the Bible story for the points that make the story important and
applicable.
What’s cool
about this story?
As you prepare for
your lesson, read the story pretending that it just occurred. See it
through a fresh perspective. Imagine that it just happened yesterday.
Jericho’s walls fell down yesterday. Moses divided the Red Sea
this morning. David killed Goliath last night. That will help you FEEL the
story. Then it will be easier to see what’s cool about the story that
makes it alive. I want to see the story in a way that makes the characters
real, displays the conflict in the story, and makes the story compelling
to hear.
What did the
people in the story feel?
Put yourself in the
story. What do you think you would have felt? Or done? Make it real. Keep
it honest. Don’t get religious? How would you have felt if Moses made a
highway through the sea and it was your turn to march between the walls of
water? I, for one, am not sure I would have done it. If I did I would have
run with everything I had before those walls of water collapsed. I feel
creepy when I walk through the glass tunnel at one of those aquarium theme
parks and watch the fish swim over my head. Take the glass away and I’ll
just wait in the parking lot.
What is in the
story I can relate to today?
What is in the story
I can relate to today? I seldom see a giant standing in my neighborhood
shouting insults at God. It has been a while since a snake offered me
anything to eat. But, I can relate to problems that seem bigger than life
and I know what it is to be tempted to do something wrong. Make a list.
What threatening problems do kids face today? What are they tempted to do?
What is the
transferable action?
What did someone in
the story do that we can do today? Can we follow an example in the story?
What is it?
Be careful with this
one. Make sure the action is consistent with the Gospel of God’s grace.
There is a difference between the Old Testament and the New Testament. In
the Old Testament the emphasis is God’s law, what we do for God. In the
New Testament the emphasis is God’s grace, what God did for us through
Jesus. Both were about faith so we can draw from the whole Bible but do
not leave the impression that our daily actions determine our acceptance
by God. Make sure the Gospel is clear. Jesus died for our sins and rose
again to give us His perfect life so that we could have assurance of our
destiny with Him in Heaven. Prayer, worship, Bible reading, loving one
another, giving, etc. are relevant truths that impact our lives. Look for
them in the story but do not confuse kids by making it seem like the
actions earn our salvation.
David had the
courage to take on Goliath because he believed God would be faithful to
His covenant, the deal He made with His people to protect them. We can
trust God to be true to His promises today. Joshua and the people had to
be quiet as they marched around Jericho.
We would often be better off if we kept our mouths shut instead of
complaining all the time. Look for the relevant action and milk it. Make
it relevant and easy. If it is irrelevant to life today then you missed
the point of the story. If it is too hard to live up to then you are
making it harder than God intended.
What does the
story tell us about God?
This is the most
important step. Ask what the story reveals about God that we might not
know otherwise. How does the story tell us what God is like? Nothing is
more important in the spiritual development of kids than for them to have
a basic understanding of what God is like.
Grace and peace be
multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as
His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and
godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and
virtue,
2 Peter 1:2-3 NKJV
I have a simple
interpretation of this verse. To me it means that God’s grace, peace and
power for living flow from our knowledge of what God is like. If we have a
distorted view of what God is like then we can expect a lack of grace,
peace and power. If we have a correct view of what God is like we can
expect grace, peace and power in our lives.
What do some of the
familiar Bible stories tell us about God? The story of David and Goliath
tell me that God enjoys seeing the weak win in life. Remember David could
hardly stand up under Saul’s armor. The story of Jericho tells me that God
likes doing great things against big odds. That is a reoccurring theme in
the Bible. The story of Paul on the road to Jericho tells me that God
sometimes chooses mean people so He can turn them around and do cool
things through them. That is the kind of God we have. That’s what He is
like.
Most of us agree we
want to promote kids having a personal relationship with the Lord. If so
then there is no better place to start than painting an accurate picture
of God, showing what He is like. Far from the distant, mean, uninvolved
God conveyed in today’s world, the real God has a magnetic personality.
With His unconditional love, limitless knowledge and observable power He
becomes irresistible to people who learn what He is like. And kids can
grow up being attracted to a God like that.
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