Every church can develop a great children’s ministry, but George Barna says your efforts must be intentional.
From his book Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions Barna writes, “I found that most of these ministries share an unusual technique: They identify a number of core principles that they hope to convey to children and they return to those principles year after year.”1
Using this technique, Barna noted that many churches repeat the same lessons over and over with the typical church touching upon just 20-40 specific episodes each year.
The results of this repetitive technique according to Barna are that “teachers lose their freshness and send a message to students that the Bible has a limited array of lessons to convey.”2
The Impact?
Children may feel that they are not learning anything new, leading to the impression that they already know everything of value there is to know about the Christian faith. Barna writes, “…the young people are clueless regarding the fundamental principles and lessons to be drawn from those narratives.”3
What To Do? Go Deep & Wide
According to Barna, effective churches “…delve deeper each year with new insights and personal applications related to each principle, building upon the lessons offered in prior years rather than simply repeating those lessons in different words.”4
Rather than repeating the same stories, introduce your children to God’s greatness and plan using DiscipleLand – a comprehensive, precept-upon-precept Children’s Discipleship System (CDS). Using DiscipleLand’s Preschool curriculum, you will teach your children a new Bible story each week for four years – more than 200 stories in all!
Building Spiritual Champions
DiscipleLand’s Preschool Bible Curriculum is a complete, discipleship-centered Bible learning system for preschool children ages 3-5. With 8 Old Testament quarters and 8 New Testament quarters, your kids will embrace the Bible like never before. With 16 quarters of life-changing sequential learning, your kids will grow in Bible knowledge, Christ-like character, and faithful conduct.
Preschool Curriculum: Old Testament Series
During two years, your children will discover God—who He is, what He is like, and what He can do. In addition to becoming familiar with nearly 100 Bible stories, your kids will acquire an overview of the entire Old Testament. Every quarter includes 12 Bible lessons (plus one review lesson). The Old Testament Series uses sequential Bible stories to teach about God’s greatness and His plan.
Preschool Curriculum: New Testament Series
Over a two-year period, your kids will experience Jesus’ great love, His powerful messages, and His amazing abilities. Your children will be introduced to more than 100 Bible stories and gain a basic understanding of the New Testament. Every quarter includes 12 Bible lessons (plus one review lesson). The New Testament Series uses sequential Bible stories to teach about Jesus’ life, message, and purpose.
Mary Mcinteer, Director of Early Childhood Ministries, The Grove Community Church, writes, “I like DiscipleLand Preschool because it appeals to the ways children learn. A great variety of ideas are given in every lesson to reach children – no matter which learning style they favor. I love it and I get lots of positive comments from the parents.”
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Source: Barna, George. Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions. Regal Publishing, pp. 108-110.
This post is especially true with todays society. Children are faced with so many options and distractions. They need to feel like they are learning something new with the Lord, not just being fed the same story over and over. I will definitely check out your book
Thanks! God bless.
I love the idea of going deep and wide. I think that’s the right approach for today’s children. Repeating core principles in our church and our life is important. Thanks for the reminder.