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Monday, June 19, 2006
A Better Way?
I have struggled with the concept of "Accepting Jesus into my heart", almost from the time I first did it at 6 years old. When I began my seeking into the emergent ideas and "stepping out of my box" to look into other denominations, ways of Faith etc. It really stood out to me. I know that from the time I was 6, I said the "sinner's prayer" time and time again, for years. What occurred to me recently was, I was worried that I had not said it right, or I would lose it. I know I had been told you couldn't lose your Salvation (once the prayer was said), but just in case! I continued to live in the fear of the what if's. Obviously, I didn't "get it" (as I now feel many of those telling me didn't get it either). Well now I have 2 small children and I really want them to see following the way of Christ in such a different way. Not the scare tactics, not the "get you ticket punched to Heaven" approach (as our pastor has called it), but the sincere continuous longing for the RELATIONSHIP and power of Christ and all he is. I have been pondering different approaches to teaching children a different way. I don't want my kids experience to be one, where they are covered because they said their prayer, or that they have arrived so there is nothing else to learn. I realize that my background in the Baptist church, and the approach is not the same as everyone's. Just curious if anyone had any thoughts, or came from a less literal background? Would love to hear comments.
I too had the low church/ behaviorist/ "sinners prayer" model taught to me as the only option. I started becoming uncomfortable with it as the only way as I started encountering the emergent conversation. When I became a children's minister I really had to think through how I approached the issue. I never did fully figure things out, but I learned a lot and started to appreciate the models various denomiinations take. a few books that I found helpful were -
Postmodern Children's Ministry by Ivy Beckwith
Joining Children on the Spritual Journey by Catherine Stonehouse
Teaching Kids Authentic Worship by Kathleen Chapman
The Spiritual Life of Children by Robert Coles
Punished by Rewards by Alfie Kohn
and I haven't read these, but have heard good things about
Offering the Gospel to Children by Gretchen Wolfe Pritchard
Children Matter by Posterski, Cannell, Stonehouse, and May (Scottie May was the professor I studied children's ministry under and she really made me think about how we teach faith to kids. She did a study about how the way faith is introduced to kids influences the depth of their faith later in life, it was very interesting)
anyway - I hope these help