Showing posts with label guaranteed. Show all posts
Showing posts with label guaranteed. Show all posts

The One Guaranteed Thing Kids Will Remember From Your Lesson

6:49 AM  Dale Hudson  

There is one thing, if you use it, that I guarantee the kids will remember from your lesson.

It's one simple word...STORIES.

Kids (and all of us) are wired to connect with stories.  Stories grab our attention.

Do this the next time you are teaching.  When you shift into a story, watch the kids' suddenly engage.  Then when the story is over, watch them disengage to some extent.

Jesus, knew this.  The master teacher used the master method.  He told stories.  They are called parables and they dominated his teaching style.

Here's some tips on telling stories...
  • Share stories from your personal life.  People connect with you and relate to you when you share stories from your journey.
  • Constantly be on the lookout for great stories.  Don't just watch the news, surf the internet, or read a book.  When you do these things, be on the lookout for great stories that you can use when you teach.  And if you really want to become a great storyteller, start filing the stories you come across by topic and then use them when you are teaching on that subject.
  • Tell the amazing stories of the Bible.  Nothing compares to them.  When you teach them, remind kids that these "stories" are all true.
Does your lesson this weekend include a story?  If not, there's still time to add one.  A year from now, it will probably be one of the few things the kids remember.

Your turn.  The floor is yours.  Share some storytelling tips you use when teaching kids.
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7 Guaranteed Steps to Improve Your Children's Ministry

9:18 AM  Dale Hudson  

Do you want to make some big improvements in your children's ministry?  Here's 7 steps that are guaranteed to bring improvement.

Identify a topic that is hindering your ministry.  Make sure it's something you don't currently have an answer for.  And make sure it's something that your team really cares about.

Get in a room....and start asking questions about the topic.  Only questions are allowed.  Set a time limit. (example: 30 minutes, 60 minutes, etc.)

Use a whiteboard and write down every question so everyone can see them.

Ask as many questions as you can in the time allotted.

Don't start trying to answer the questions yet. 

Decide which questions have the most potential to change what is hindering your ministry.  Narrow it down to 3-4 questions.

Go to work finding answers to the questions. 
  • Spend an allotted time right then working on answers.  
  • Then give everyone time to work on answers outside the initial meeting.  
    • They can work in smaller groups during this time.
    • I would suggest giving them 1-2 weeks.
  • After the 1-2 weeks are over, call another meeting with everyone.  
  • Bring together all the answers and work through them again.   
  • Finalize the best answers.  
  • Make plans and action steps based on the best answers.
You'll find that asking the right questions first and then finding the answers afterwards will be a catalyst for improving your children's ministry.
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