Lesson From a Rock

A few days ago, I was visiting family. We went on a family walk in the neighborhood. I was walking with my nephew, who is 4 years old.

Suddenly, he stopped, leaned over and picked up a rock that was on the side of the road.

And then he proceeded to hold up the rock and utter this to my amazement.

"See this rock, Uncle Dale. I learned at church that Jesus is the rock."

He then proceeded to start singing, "Jesus is the rock of my salvation. His banner over me is love."

I was blown away that he remembered the lesson that well. I knew his teacher at church had used a key method for helping the lesson stick long-term. He or she had tied in something my nephew saw on a regular basis outside of church and connected it to the lesson.

Here's how that works. The prayer is that every time my little nephew sees a rock, he will be reminded internally that Jesus is the rock.

Our goal as teachers of the next generation is to help them get the great truths of the Bible stuck in their long-term memory. You can do this by bringing something the children see on a regular basis into the lesson and linking it to the key truth.

Here's another example. One weekend, I was teaching the pre-teens that Jesus is the one way to heaven. I used a one way sign that I borrowed from a street sign (just kidding - we made a sign) as a visual reminder while we were teaching the lesson.

One year later...one year later...one year later we were coming back from camp on the bus and one of the pre-teen boys jumped up and said "Pastor Dale...look...a one way sign...remember...Jesus is the one and only way to heaven." Needless to say I was blown away that he remembered that a year later. And it was simply because I tied the main point of the lesson to something he saw outside of church on a regular basis.

BTW, Jesus, the master teacher, did this as well. He used items that were common to the people. He used these to connect them to the spiritual truth He was communicating. Here are a few examples.

Birds

Fish

Gate

Door

Coins

Plants

For your next lesson, take some time to think about some common items that kids see on a regular basis to tie into the truth you are trying to get into their long-term memory. Here are a few examples.

Video game system - spend time with Jesus and you can go to the next level in your relationship with Him.

Lunch box - Jesus used the small lunch a boy gave to do a miracle. When you place what you have in Jesus' hands, He will do great things through your life.

Cell phone - the Bible is a text message from God to you.

Flowers - God has promised to take care of you.

Car GPS - God says if you trust Him, He will guide you and show you the way.

Bicycle or skateboard - when you repent, you do a 180 and go the other way.

Do this and you will see kids get the truth embedded in their long-term memory. And it will continue to be with them as they navigate college and adult life in a post-Christian culture.

Don't miss the Live Webinar that's coming next Wednesday, Feb 3rd. Jim Wideman and Kim Botto will be joining me to talk about how we can see kids love and serve Jesus for a lifetime. It's going to be a game changer - get more info. and register at this link.