Jesus Centered Teaching

My friend and I attended Group's Children's Ministry Local Training this weekend and it was all about Jesus centered teaching. It sounds obvious doesn't it? I mean, isn't that what children's teachers and leaders are supposed to be doing? Yes, yes they are. But many times things get in the way. We may end up putting emphasis on behavior, contests and memorization. Those aren't bad things but they are not necessarily relationship building. Children need to know Jesus is REAL. They need to know that He really is there no matter what.

Here are a some of the ideas we learned about:

There is a difference in knowing who Jesus is and knowing Him
Families are not committed to attending church like they were even 10 years ago
Jesus wants to reveal His heart to us
We have to show that heart of Jesus to kids
We have to be willing to be vulnerable with kids. We do not need to put on a show or an act.
There are other fruits besides spiritual fruits. We need to know the signs and so do kids!
Don't be afraid to engage in hard conversations. Kids need to know we also doubt or wonder sometimes and don't have all the answers.
Let kids ask questions and ask kids open ended questions and give them time to THINK and don't give judgmental responses. If you ask a kid what he/she "thinks" there is no wrong answer. Use this for a springboard to discussion.
Ask Jesus what He desires to change in your ministry.

These are just some of the ideas explored during the training. If you have a Group training coming near you I highly recommend it. Group always does an excellent job of making training fun and interactive.

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