Reminder for Children's Ministry

Yesterday I was able to attend a Children's Ministry Network meeting called Shepherds of the Sheep.  We invited John Walton,  Author of the Bible Story Handbook which is an amazing resource for any teacher of the Bible and Professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College who on occasion enjoys living out the Old Testament, a lifestyle that helped him lead a team of 30 international scholars to write the Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary on the Old Testament (November 2009).



John Walton gave us some really great reminders so I thought I would pass them along.

• Don't just settle for Truth. Shoot for Authority!
• Teaching Truth is a non-negotiable, but when teaching God's Word you must make sure that the truth you are teaching is founded in the Authority of the text.

• Be God Focused.  It's all about God and His Story.  Focus on what He's like, what He's done and is doing, and what He expects of His People and how we can respond appropriately.
• Our lessons need to move away from Values, Heroes, Ethics and Behavior Modification focused.

• When teaching the Narratives, Investigate.
• Why is this a part of Scripture?
• How does this narrative operate within the context of Scripture?

Thank you, John Walton, for this Great Reminder!