My secret to teaching kids…

I find that most people that teach in children’s ministry will sell kids short.  What I mean is, they think kids are limited in their understanding of spiritual things.

Some people have accused me of “going over kid’s heads” when I preach to kids.

I don’t have any problem with criticism, as it comes with the territory and sometimes my critics are right, but not this time.

It’s not hard to teach the deep things of the Word to kids. In fact it’s remarkably simple. I will tell you my secret at the end of this post.

Here is why I am going to continue to teach deep things to kids and why you should too.

1.  Many times in the Bible kids were more spiritual than their leaders.

• Samuel was more sensitive to the Holy Spirit than Eli was.
• Josiah obeyed God even though his father rebelled.

2. Jesus rebuked the disciples for thinking kids were unspiritual.

• He essentially said to Peter, James and John, “It’s not that the kids need to grow up and become like you, but you guys need to grow down and become like them.”

3. I have seen it work so you can’t tell me that it doesn’t.

• Ok, you can tell me that I am going over their heads, but I won’t believe you. I’ve seen too many kids “get it” and many times they “get it” before their parents do.

The bottom line is this, if it’s in the New Testament you can preach it to kids.

If Jesus preached it, then He wants you to preach it to your kids. If it’s written in red, then don’t hold anything back.

Here is the secret for teaching kids the deep things of the Gospel.
It’s what I call the Sandwich Principle.

It works like this:

1. Be funny
2. Preach the Gospel
3. Be funny

Yep, it’s that simple.  Here’s why:

• When people laugh they engage emotionally.
• When they engage emotionally they open up their hearts.
• When their hearts are open you have a perfect opportunity to plant the words of Christ.

Your funny stuff can be a video or drama or an icebreaker game, but make sure it’s funny. The window is not open for a long time with kids. You have anywhere from five to ten minutes for your sermon.

This ten-minute window is my favorite part of the week. It’s what I live for. I use the screens in my classroom, but they are not the main feature of my KidMin program.

My sermon is the main feature.

• I am totally focused
• I preach it with passion.
• I always end with something I want the kids to do.

I always have something in my hand when I am preaching to kids. I want the kids looking at me. I love to see that look in their eyes when they “get it”.

That’s how the Sandwich Principle works. If you still don’t believe me, then I ask you to give it the old college try. See for yourself.

Test out the Sandwich Principle with your kids.