Bringing the Bible to Life for Kids

Okay, so technically we can’t bring the Bible to life.  It’s already alive.  As Hebrews 4:12 tells us, it’s “living and active and sharper than a double-edged sword.”  So, bringing the Bible to life?  Done.  God handled that part.  Presenting it in a way that unleashes its living, active, blow-your-mind-and-turn-your-life-upside-down power?  That’s a different story.  That’s where you come in. 

When we use the phrase “bringing the Bible to life,” what we really mean is communicating the Bible in such a dynamic way that our audience can experience the life it already contains.  As a storyteller this means getting out the Bible’s way and letting it do its thing. 

This is where you start earning your ninja skills.   

It all starts with you reading the text.  If you truly want to become a Jedi master storyteller, put down your curriculum and pick up your Bible.

So, Jason, you’re telling me the number one place to start when you want to present the Bible in an engaging way is to actually read the Bible? 

Um, yeah.  Look, I know it’s not rocket science, but I had to say it.  I’m ashamed to tell you the number of times in the past I’ve taught a curriculum without actually cracking open my Bible.  But that’s in the past.  That’s before I set out to become a Bible Story Ninja.  Now that the spiritual nunchucks are out, it’s game on!

Kids need for us, deserve for us, to take time to live in the passage we’re teaching.  We can’t deliver a powerful, life-changing lesson without going back to the source.  All of the technique and presentation skills we’ll talk about over the coming weeks won’t do you much good without reading the passage for yourself.

 I don’t care how well you know it.  Read it again.  Read it with fresh eyes.  Invite God into the process.  Trust me, He has something to say to both you and the kids. 

So, make a commitment each time you teach that you’ll start the process by experiencing what you’re going to be communicating first hand.  Read the Bible. 

In my next post we’ll look at the process I use for how to really dig into Scripture to present it to kids in a way that will rock their world . . . and yours.