Relationships….relationships…relationships. That’s one of the three big things today’s kids are looking for.
2. Relevance
Kids are looking for teaching that is relevant to their world. This is 2024…not 1975. Yet many ministries are trying to use materials and lessons that were written for kids many years ago.
The message doesn’t change, but the methods of sharing the message must change and adjust to be relevant for today’s kids.
Here’s a classic example of this. Bill Maher, a celebrity atheist, produced a movie entitled “Religulous.” The movie theme is basically Bill talking to Christians and making fun of them for their beliefs. But guess what? In the movie, Bill reveals that he did go to church as a child. He also shares why he quit going. Watch this to see what he said.
Notice what he says. He says the teaching and experience wasn’t relevant to his life. Superman was relevant. Baseball was relevant to his life. His church experience growing up was not relevant to his life.
Perhaps if he would have had a teacher or leader that used relevant object lessons from the world of kids, then Bill would have connected with it and his life would have been shaped by relevant Bible teaching.
Is your teaching relevant for today’s kids? Is your teaching modeled after how Jesus taught? Think about it. He constantly used illustrations from the every day life of the people he was teaching.
Birds of the air. Gates. Sheep. Coins. Fish. Houses. Farmers. On and on we could go.
Relevant teaching. Teach from the world of 2024 kids…not 1975 kids.
3. Recognition
The last thing we will talk about is recognition.
Today’s kids want to be recognized.
They want to know that they matter. They want to know that someone truly cares about them. They want to know that someone knows their name. They want to know that they are missed when they are absent. They want to hear their name called in prayer. They want to be part of a group that knows about them and walks with them through the ups and downs of life. They want a high-five when they walk in the door.
For a child to grow up and follow Jesus for a lifetime, they will need caring leaders who guide them down the pathway.
By the way, recognition happens one child at a time. One leader at a time who recognizes that child and calls out the greatness that lays buried within him or her.
As I sit here typing this, I am reminded of the leaders who recognized me and called out the potential that was inside me. Without that recognition, I would never have been here typing and sharing with you.
God uses willing leaders to recognize the potential He has placed inside of children.
Relationships. Relevance. Recognition.
Help kids find these three things they are looking for and only heaven knows the impact it will make in their life.
This article originally appeared here and is used by permission.
