The KidsMinistry.Blog Podcast

Teaching Sin and Forgiveness to Children

Tried explaining sin to five year old once. Used word "transgression." They stared at me like was speaking different language. Because was. Sin. Transgression. Iniquity. Repentance. Redemption. Kids don't know what those mean. Using them doesn't make sound smart. Makes sound confusing. Say "wrong choices" instead sin. Say "saying sorry and changing" instead repentance. Say "being forgiven" instead redemption. Same concepts. Language they actually understand. Had kid ask what sin means. Told him when we do things that hurt others or make God sad. He got it immediately. Different kid asked what iniquity means. Had no idea how explain that one. Stuck with "sin" after that. Don't talk about abstract sin concepts. Talk about hitting siblings. Taking toys that aren't theirs. Lying to parents. Being mean to friends. Those are things kids actually do and feel bad about. "Ever take something that wasn't yours? That's sin. It hurts person you took from. Makes God sad." Kid nodded. He'd definitely taken things before. Connection made immediately. Abstract theological concepts? Lost them. Their own behavior? Get it. Spill something on purpose. Juice water glitter if feeling brave. Make mess then try clean up. Show how hard it is get everything completely clean. Some stain left behind. Some glitter never coming out. That's sin. Makes mess. We can try clean up ourselves but can't get it perfect. Need Jesus help make us completely clean. Kids watch you spill juice watch you try cleaning see stain left. Makes it visual. Concrete. Something can see and understand. Had kid volunteer make mess. Dumped entire bottle juice on floor. That was more mess than needed but proved point. Show broken toy. Ask if ever broke something on purpose or accident. Talk about how when break something need fix it. Say sorry make it right if can. Some things can't be fixed completely. That's where Jesus comes in. He fixes what we can't fix ourselves. Kids get broken things. They've broken stuff. Makes sense to them. Give kids red paper hearts. Represent hearts with sin. Talk about wrong choices make. Then talk about Jesus forgiveness. Trade red hearts for white hearts. White represents being clean and forgiven. Visual representation. Kids can hold in hands. See the change. Had kid ask why can't just wash red heart to make white. Good question. Explained can't clean our own hearts. Need Jesus do it. Some people teach about sin by making God sound angry scary. Waiting punish you for messing up. That's not gospel. That's fear. God is sad when we sin. Not because He's mean. Because loves us and sin hurts us and others. Frame as love not anger. Kids respond better. Also more accurate. Role play apologizing. One kid pretends do something wrong. Other kid responds. Practice what real apology sounds like. "I'm sorry I hit you. That was wrong. Will you forgive me?" Not "Sorry you got upset" or "Sorry but you made me do it." Kids need practice this. Doesn't come naturally. Had two kids role play. One kid apologized. Other kid said "I don't forgive you." Had explain forgiveness doesn't mean other person has forgive us. But we still need apologize and mean it. Complicated but important. Forgiveness doesn't always mean no consequences. Break someone's toy? Forgiven. Still might need replace it. Jesus forgives us. Doesn't mean everything goes back how was before. Sometimes have live with consequences of choices. Had kid ask if God forgives does mom still ground you. Yes. Forgiveness from God different than consequences from parents. Both can exist. Tell story Zacchaeus. Cheated people. Felt bad. Paid them back. Jesus forgave him. Kids get that. Did something wrong. Made it right. Was forgiven. That's how works. Teaching about sin isn't about making kids feel terrible about themselves. It's about helping understand everyone messes up. Everyone needs forgiveness. That's why Jesus came. Big difference between "you're bad" and "you did something bad." One attacks identity. Other addresses behavior. Let them ask hard questions. "Why Jesus have die? Couldn't God just forgive without that?" "If God forgives everything does mean can do whatever want?" Good questions. Hard questions. Let them ask without shutting down. Had kid ask if Hitler could be forgiven. Whoa. Deep for seven year old. Talked about how Jesus' forgiveness available everyone who asks. Even people did terrible things. That's how big God's love is. Kid seemed satisfied. Was exhausted. Some kids too young understand fully. That's okay. Plant seeds. They'll make more sense later. Kid might not grasp why Jesus had die at age five. But can understand Jesus loves them and wants help make good choices. That's enough for now. Kids need know mess up. Everyone does. That's not the end. Need know there's forgiveness. There's hope. There's fresh start. That's gospel. That's good news. If kids learn this young carry forever. Know they're loved despite mistakes. Know forgiveness available. Know how make things right. Simple message. Life changing impact. For teachers discovering big theological words confuse kids, leaders learning spilled juice teaches better than lectures, anyone trying explain forgiveness to kids who think washing red heart makes it white.

Creating Inclusive Lessons for Kids with Special Needs

Had kid with autism join our class last month. Completely changed how I teach. In good way actually. Realized most my lessons only worked for kids who could sit still listen follow verbal instructions. That's like maybe half the kids on good day. Standing up front talking while kids sat in circle. Some kids can't do that. Just can't. Had boy with ADHD lasted maybe two minutes sitting before had to move. Kept getting in trouble for interrupting. For fidgeting. For not paying attention. Wasn't his fault. Was mine for expecting all kids learn same way. Girl with sensory issues couldn't handle loud music during worship. Would cover ears rock back and forth. Other kids stared. She felt different. Was excluding kids without meaning to. Just didn't know better. Mom pulled me aside after class. Said her son loved coming but struggled keeping up. Asked if could make some adjustments. Felt terrible. Hadn't even noticed he was struggling because never complained. Just quietly didn't participate in half the activities. Started researching. Talking to parents. Asking special ed teachers for advice. Realized inclusive teaching isn't about special accommodations for some kids. It's about teaching ways that work for all kids. Put up simple picture schedule showing what doing each week. Opening game. Story time. Craft. Snack. Closing. Kid with autism relaxed immediately. Knew what expect. Knew what coming next. But also helped other kids. Everyone likes knowing what's happening. Takes two minutes make schedule. Changes whole atmosphere. Used to just tell Bible story while kids sat listened. Now do story multiple ways same lesson. Tell it. Act it out. Show pictures. Let kids draw while listening. Have props they can touch. Kid with auditory processing issues couldn't follow story just from hearing. But give him pictures and props? Totally got it. Turns out lots of kids learn better with multiple approaches. Not just special needs kids. Every ten minutes or so we move. Stretch. Dance. Do actions. Something physical. Kid with ADHD doesn't get in trouble anymore because movement built into lesson. Expected and planned for. Bible story about David dancing? We all dance. Walls of Jericho falling? We march around room. Makes stories more memorable for everyone. Not just accommodation. Better teaching. Dimmed overhead lights. Too bright for some kids. Gave me headache too honestly. Keep volume reasonable during music. Offer noise canceling headphones for kids who need them. Have fidgets available. Squishy balls. Textured toys. Things kids can hold while listening. Thought fidgets would distract kids. Opposite happened. Kids who need them can focus better. Used to give long complicated explanations for activities. Lost half the class immediately. Now keep instructions simple. Three steps maximum. Show example. Repeat if needed. Kid with intellectual disability can follow three steps. Can't follow seven steps. But honestly most six year olds can't follow seven steps either. Simpler better for everyone. Got rid of everyone sitting in circle on floor rule. Some kids sit in chairs. Some stand. Some lie on stomachs. Some pace in back. Kid with autism stands in back every week. Can focus better when standing. Fine by me. Boy with ADHD paces along back wall during story. Listening whole time. Just needs move while listening. Some kids need more time complete activities. That's okay. Used to rush everyone finish at same time. Meant some kids never finished anything. Felt like failures. Now give time ranges. "We have about ten minutes for this. Some will finish faster. Some will need whole time. Both fine." Nobody stressed. Everyone completes work at own pace. I'm better teacher now. For all kids not just special needs kids. Lessons more engaging. More active. More varied. Less boring sitting and listening. Kids with special needs taught me be flexible. Creative. Patient. Those skills help with every kid. It's more work. Have to think through lessons differently. Prepare multiple options. Stay flexible when plans change. Some weeks nail it. Other weeks still figuring it out. Had kid with severe autism join recently. Completely nonverbal. Honestly don't know if reaching him. He sits in quiet corner most of time. But he keeps coming. Mom says he asks come to church. That's something. Maybe learning in ways can't see. Maybe just being in community is lesson right now. Don't have all answers. Still learning. Still making mistakes. But kids with special needs deserve be included. Deserve learn about Jesus too. Deserve feel like they belong. Worth extra effort figure out how make that happen. For teachers discovering inclusive teaching helps all kids not just some, leaders learning movement isn't disruption it's necessity, anyone realizing rigid lessons exclude more kids than thought.

Teaching kids the Old Testament through emotion

Kid asked last week why learning about Jonah. "He's dead and that story's fake anyway." Cool. Great way start Sunday morning. Kids don't care about ancient Israel. They care if Maddie still their friend. If allowed on trampoline after church. If mom making good mac and cheese for lunch. Moses parting Red Sea three thousand years ago? Means nothing. Tried Abraham once. Kid asked if he had cell phone. Another asked how charged his car in desert. Can't picture life without WiFi. Old Testament might as well be about aliens. Reading straight from Bible doesn't work. Did Exodus. Read whole thing out loud. Three kids fell asleep. One asked if almost done. We were chapter two. Can't throw ancient language at second graders. Making it history lesson kills it. "In 1446 BC Israelites left Egypt..." Eyes glazed before finished sentence. They're six. Don't know what 1446 BC means. Half can't remember what year is now. Connected David Goliath to being smallest kid in class. "Ever have do something scary and you're only one who has do it?" Every hand shot up. Didn't plan that. Just said it. Suddenly listening. Because they've all been small kid facing something big scary. Different thing. Same feeling. Moses scared talk to Pharaoh. Kids get that. Scared talking principal. Answering questions front of everyone. Joseph's brothers jealous. Kids know jealous. Feel it when sibling gets better toy. Start with their feelings. Show them Bible people felt it too. "Why God tell Abraham kill Isaac?" No idea. Mean know Sunday school answer but honestly really hard story. Told them that. Said it's complicated. We don't understand everything about these stories. Kid seemed okay with that. "Why God kill everyone in flood?" Teaching Noah last month. Kid asked that. Everyone stared. Told them God sad about how mean violent people became. Hard story. Don't fully understand it. But know God loves people. Not great answer. Better than making something up. Let them ask hard questions. Don't pretend have all answers when don't. Acting it out works way better than talking about it. Did David Goliath. Kid playing David kept missing with pretend rock. Threw maybe ten times. Everyone cracking up. Finally "hit" Goliath who fell lay there like dead for full minute. They remembered that. Still bring up weeks later. Built Tower Babel with blocks once. Let them make really tall. Knocked it over. Understood without me explaining anything. Had them make sound effects during plagues. Frog croaking. Flies buzzing. Hail sounds. Was chaos. Also remember all ten plagues now so whatever. Teaching Elijah and fire from heaven. Kid raises hand. "Why doesn't God do that now? Like when we pray for stuff?" Told him don't know. Sometimes God does obvious miracles. Sometimes works quieter ways. But God's still God whether see fire or not. Teaching Joseph. Kid asked why brothers so terrible to him. She has brother annoys her but would never sell her. Told her jealousy makes people do awful things. Joseph's brothers let jealousy grow into hate. Why deal with jealous feelings when small. Their questions better than my lesson plans. Stories where they felt something. Fear. Excitement. Anger at unfairness. Something. When moved around did something active with bodies. When didn't act like their questions bad or wrong. When connected to actual life not just history facts. Forget dates. Names. Specific details. That's okay. Point isn't memorizing facts. Point knowing these people were real. Knew same God we know. Were scared brave made mistakes trusted God anyway. Old Testament feels irrelevant because teach it like it's irrelevant. Treat like old boring stories about people don't matter. Obviously kids tune out. Teach it like about real people with real feelings. People who knew God. Didn't always trust Him. Messed up tried again. Then not just about them. About us. Make it about knowing God not passing Bible quiz. That's how becomes relevant. To kids eating goldfish crackers Sunday morning who'd rather be literally anywhere else. For teachers discovering ancient stories need modern feelings, leaders learning acting out beats reading every time, anyone trying make three thousand year old events matter to kids who can't picture life without WiFi.

Explaining death and heaven to children

Kid asked if his grandma watches him from heaven. Then goes "does she watch me pee though?" Six year old's man. You're middle something else and hand goes up. Doing Noah's ark last month. Sarah raises hand. "Is Noah dead?" Yeah died long time ago. "Where's his body?" Don't know Sarah. "Can we visit it?" We're building ark out graham crackers right now can we table this. Kids don't care about lesson plan. Think of something ask immediately. Had kid ask during snack. Just eating goldfish goes "what happens when you die?" Other kids stopped chewing. Stared waiting. Great timing. Said "went to sleep" once and kid refused go bed for week. His mom called mad. Honestly fair. That was stupid of me. Sleep happens every night. Don't make kids think sleeping equals dying. Terrible idea. "Lost someone" sounds like you're bad at keeping track people. Like left them at grocery store. Kids seen dead bugs. Dead birds. Start there. "That butterfly we found wasn't moving? Died. Body stopped working. Same thing happens people." Emma asked why can't fix people like when dad fixes car. Told her bodies different than cars. She said okay went back to coloring. That was it. Moved on. What's heaven look like. Is there pizza. Do you sleep there or awake all time. Can you fly. No idea. Just tell them don't know. "That's good question. Not sure. Here's what I think though." Jacob asked if dogs go heaven. Said hope so. He said okay. Done. Didn't need whole explanation about animal souls or whatever. Just hope dogs there. Good enough. Heaven where God is. People who love God go there. It's good and happy. Nothing hurts there. That's what tell little kids. Then ask if there's Legos in heaven. Or if have do chores. Or if babies stay babies forever. Usually just say heaven has good stuff so probably. Real death different than talking about it theoretical. Their grandma dies. Their dog. Someone real. Let them feel sad. "That's really sad. I'm sad too. Okay to cry." Adults try acting positive so kids think they should too. But they're not positive. They're sad. Let them be sad. Sarah asked me all morning if her grandma coming back. Over and over. "Is she really not coming back? She's not coming back? So she's never coming back?" Not because didn't get it. Because was trying make it real in her head. Drawing pictures memories works sometimes. "Draw something remember doing with grandpa." Shows them love doesn't stop just because someone's gone. Did weird thing once where kids made letters heaven. Can't actually send them but whatever. Helped them feel doing something. One kid drew map his house. Said so grandma could find him if forgot. Another kid wrote down all their jokes together so uncle wouldn't forget them. Were so serious about it. Took it way more serious than thought they would. Kids worry dead people sad in heaven. That miss us down here. Tell them heaven makes people so happy don't feel sad anymore. They're with God everything's good. But still remember us love us. Had kid cry because couldn't remember her grandma's voice. Told her happens everyone. Voice hard remember. But remembered other stuff like hugs and snickerdoodles her grandma always made. She stopped crying after that. Some kids ask questions nonstop. Others don't want talk at all. Both fine. Don't force kids share. Just tell them available if want to later. Obviously want them know about Jesus and hope and resurrection. But don't weaponize death scare kids into believing. That's messed up. Talk about God loving them. Heaven being real. Jesus making death not the end. Keep simple. They're five. Don't need Romans Road right now. Need know God's got it. Scary things don't win. Every kid teaches me something when ask about death. Their questions make me actually think about what believe. They're less scared than adults. Accept death faster as part life. But need know people won't just keep disappearing. That not dying anytime soon. That sad okay to feel. Mostly need know God's in control. Heaven's real. Love doesn't stop. That's enough right now. Be honest. Keep simple. Listen. Have snacks ready. This stuff exhausting. For teachers discovering kids ask death questions middle of everything, leaders learning "went to sleep" worst metaphor ever, anyone navigating heavy questions from tiny humans eating goldfish crackers.

Harnessing Holiday Chaos to Teach Kids Theology

Tried boring holiday lessons for years. Kids zoned out during Christmas story. Fell asleep during Easter message. Started adding games. Everything changed. Teams race carry ornament on spoon across room. Drop it start over. Plastic ornaments obviously. Learned that hard way when kid dropped glass one. Shattered everywhere. Parents not thrilled. Now use cheap plastic from dollar store. Kids still excited. Nobody bleeding. Teams yelling at each other. Ornaments rolling everywhere. Chaos. Also kids engaged having fun. Takes maybe ten minutes. Gets energy out. Then can actually sit for story. Hide plastic eggs with Bible verses inside. Kids find eggs look up verses. First team find all verses and read them wins. Sounds educational. Mostly just kids running around looking for eggs. But they do have look up verses. Accidentally learning where books Bible are while thinking just hunting eggs. Had kid couldn't find Philippians. Another kid helped him. Found it together. Teamwork plus Bible skills. I'll take it. Only problem they want hunt eggs every single week after. Sorry kids. Easter's once year. Write Christmas carol titles on cards. Kids act out. Team guesses. "Silent Night" kid just stands there quiet. Team yelling guesses. Finally someone gets it. "Jingle Bells" kid jumping around shaking imaginary bells. Easy one. Works better than thought. Kids know more carols than expected. Also hilarious watching them act songs out. Had kid try act out "Little Drummer Boy." Just banged on table two minutes. Team never guessed. He so frustrated. Musical chairs. When music stops and kid sits they say something thankful for before safe. Started simple. "I'm thankful for my mom." "I'm thankful for video games." By round five getting creative. "I'm thankful for oxygen." "I'm thankful my brother didn't punch me this week." Whatever. They're thinking about gratitude. That was point. Kid who lost early said thankful for chairs because at least got sit while others still playing. Not wrong. Hide paper hearts with acts kindness written on them. Kids find hearts have do action. "Give someone high five." "Tell someone you're glad they're here." Forces kids be kind each other. Which is goal Valentine's Day anyway. Had kid find heart said "hug someone." He looked terrified. Hugged me super quick ran away. Counts. Another kid got "share your snack." She was not happy. Did it anyway. Growth. Set up stations around room. Each station part of Easter story. Ride into Jerusalem on donkey. Kids pretend ride broomstick across room. Last Supper. Kids pretend eat bread drink juice. Cross. Kids carry something heavy across room. Empty tomb. Kids run fast to empty box. Teams race through stations. First finish wins. Kids remember story better because experienced it with bodies not just heard with ears. Had kid ask why Jesus had ride donkey instead car. Valid question. Cars didn't exist yet. She seemed disappointed for Jesus. Movement. Kids need move especially during exciting holiday seasons. Connection to holiday message. Not just random games. Games that teach something or reinforce meaning. Competition without cruelty. Everyone participating. Winners celebrated but losers not shamed. Laughter. If kids laughing they're engaged. If engaged they're learning. Games too complicated explaining rules fifteen minutes loses them. Same games every year. Need variety. Kids remember get bored with repeats. Kids remember holidays better when have fun during them. Associate Christmas with joy not boring lecture about Jesus' birth. Learn holiday meanings through experience not just hearing about them. Half my holiday games turn into chaos. Kids running around barely following rules. Yelling. Arguing about who won. But they're engaged. They're there. They're participating. And somewhere in chaos they're learning that Christmas matters. Easter matters. Because holidays should be fun. And fun doesn't have be separated from faith. Can have both. Should have both. For teachers discovering games beat lectures every time, leaders learning chaos means engagement, anyone ready make holidays fun again instead boring theological obligation kids sleep through.