Easter will soon be here, and as you’re celebrating the life, death, and resurrection of our Savior, you’re probably also sharing the gospel story (or at least some element of it) with the kids and families who walk through your doors. Easter Sunday often brings new families and visitors who may have never heard the gospel before, so it’s vital we share it with intentionality and purpose. That’s why I’m excited to share this guest blog post from Jaden Howard, a DKM Vendor, on 5 tips for sharing the gospel with children! These tips come from and helped create her Magnetic Gospel Easter Object Lesson.
So as you’re thinking through your Easter morning lessons, keep these 5 tips in mind:
- Don’t Forget the Good Stuff: When I (Jaden) first started evangelizing to children, I would put so much emphasis on Jesus’ death on the cross, that I would forget to share that Jesus came back to life! There are many different and fun ways to share the Gospel, but there are some important truths you want to make sure you tell the children. Such as…
- Who is God? God is the creator of everything including us! God made us because He loves us! God is Holy and Perfect!
- What is Sin? Sin is the wrong things we do. Although we were made to be best friends with God, our sin separates us from God.
- Who is Jesus? Jesus is God’s Son and is perfect and loving, just like God. God sent Jesus to be the Savior of the whole World.
- What did Jesus do? Jesus lived a perfect life and never sinned. Although Jesus never sinned, He took the punishment for our sin by dying on the cross. He beat sin and death by coming back to life three days later!
- Why is this important for me? Because of what Jesus did, we can be friends with God when we choose to believe in Jesus! We can start a relationship with God that starts today and lasts forever!!!
- Keep it Kid-Friendly: In church, we can tend to use some big words that may be found in scripture, but aren’t usually on a child’s vocabulary list. It’s not wrong to use these words; we just want to make sure we can adequately explain what they mean. For example:
- Sin: Making wrong choices. Choosing our own way instead of God’s way. Sin isn’t a mistake, like spilling milk or forgetting our homework. Sin is when we choose to do the wrong thing, like telling a lie, taking something that doesn’t belong to us, or even thinking in our minds how much we hate someone. You can even ask children to name examples of what they believe is a sin.
- Holy: God is Holy, meaning He is perfect! He never has to say He’s sorry because He is always loving and always kind. God never sins, and He always does what is right.
- Salvation: We all needed rescue from our sin problem. Jesus is the only one who could rescue us. We are saved by believing in Jesus and choosing to follow him as the Lord and leader of our life.
- Asking Jesus into my Heart: This terminology can actually be pretty confusing for kids. How can a grown man live in an organ in my body? One thing children do understand is relationship dynamics. They know what it’s like to have a friend, be a part of family, or have someone who is in charge. All of these can be accurate descriptions of following Jesus. When we step into a relationship with God by believing in Jesus, we become forever friends with God, we are welcomed into God’s family, and Jesus is the leader of our life.
- Follow Up, Follow Up, Follow Up: Following up with children after a Gospel presentation is so important! This may look like a one-on-one conversation with children who expressed interest through a card, raising their hand, or walking to a certain part of the room. This may look like giving children space to ask questions about the Gospel story. This may look like a general follow-up to parents to continue the conversation at home. I would encourage you to try a mix of these and find what works best for your ministry.
- Celebrate: Sometimes we allow the fear of getting it right to keep us from experiencing and expressing the joy of our Salvation! Remember that this is GOOD News to share! So, get loud, be excited, and make a big deal about sharing the gospel!
- Pray!!!: Salvation is an act of God. We “work like it depends on us and pray like it depends on God” (Mark Batterson). Ask your volunteers, staff, pastoral leadership, and families to pray alongside you for the souls of these children. Pray for children by name and keep praying for them!
Author Bio: Jaden lives in North Carolina with her husband and quickly growing family. She has been in full time children’s ministry within the local church for the last six years, but has spent over thirteen years leading, serving, and caring for children and youth across a variety of ministries. Her biggest passion is making the Good News of the Gospel accessible to children and families! Find all of Jaden’s resources on Deeper KidMin here.
Leave a comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.