THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX...Spiritual Formation through story

[Kami Tuenning]

I love to experiment with education theories. I am convinced that real spiritual formation takes place within families and church families where consistent and sincere adults take the time to build relationships with children and share life together.

I was tired of using "canned" curriculum and stories that the children couldn't relate to. In education, we know we must discover the learners prior knowledge and then build from there. I decided to begin sharing faith stories with my VBS kids. Real life, personal stories of how God intervened in my life or my friends and family's.

The children were mesmerized by these true stories. They became eager to share their own faith stories, so much so that we ran out of time for everyone to share!

I decided to give the kids plain white paper bags (lunch sized). They were instructed to draw a picture of a time they felt particularly close to God or a time God had answered a prayer on these sacks. The following week, they would have an opportunity to show the sack art to us as they described the incident. Then the sacks would be filled with personal care items to be donated to a woman's shelter.

This produced a great response, but most importantly, many families worked together to draw their stories. This handing down the faith at home process would leave a much greater impact and legacy with these children than a canned curriculum using "vegetables" to teach Bible truths.

What are some times when you got outside the box of traditional curriculum and experienced the power of God?

[Susan Unger]

The children were mesmerized by these true stories. They became eager to share their own faith stories, so much so that we ran out of time for everyone to share!

That sounds exciting. What ages were these kids? I ask cuz I know many adults think young children can't really know God or have a saving faith. But, I think that is putting God in a box.

I am not a children's teacher [prefer the senior adults] but I can appreciate out of the box thinking in regards to spiritual formation in general.

[Kami Tuenning]

That sounds exciting. What ages were these kids? I ask cuz I know many adults think young children can't really know God or have a saving faith. But, I think that is putting God in a box.

I am not a children's teacher [prefer the senior adults] but I can appreciate out of the box thinking in regards to spiritual formation in general.

The ages of the children spanned from 4-11! When I realized the age span I knew I would really have to tweak the curriculum that was already purchased. I kept the group together for the opening, basically laying out the "BIG IDEA" for the night. My husband has a true gift for helping children worship through music so it was a blessing that he could come down and lead them in singing praises and prayers. It was amazing to see the adult helpers entering into deep worship along with the children...very precious.

I had been handed the program after it had already started into its first week. Therefore, I had no input into the planning. A great deal of money had gone into transforming 2 rooms into a "set", so I felt obligated to try and make the curriculum "work" as best I could.

On another night, I was frustrated that the adult "helpers" who had been recruited to assist by grade level seemed to only sit on chairs and watch the kids. I knew these folks were great spiritual role models, they simply had never been given a clear description of how they could most effectively "help". Being a spontaneous person, I simply asked the adults to come down with the children and pray a blessing over them. This simple act of engagement was a real turning point in the 2 month long VBS! The adults bonded with the children and the children came to see that the adults were more than just "policing" them, but really cared for them! One helper was a gentleman in his 80's with a heart of a child. Being given this role really brought out something special in him. He told stories to the kids and really bonded. All of my helpers were 50 and older! It was probably one of my fondest memories of the Nazarene Church.

[Susan Unger]

The adults bonded with the children and the children came to see that the adults were more than just "policing" them, but really cared for them!

This was one of my issues with myself when I would help out with VBS in my teens and 20s. I felt more like a policewoman or an enforcer than a something positive. I bonded better with the teens. But this time with your group sounds like a blessing for everyone. Nowadays I just do the computer input during VBS and leave the interaction to others.