Drew Boswell

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Gold, Frankincense, and Carbonite; Creativity and Teaching

Screen Shot 2015-12-19 at 9.10.27 AM
For the Christmas season this year Liquid Church[1] are doing things a little different. They have coupled the expectation of the release of the new Star Wars movie “The Force Awakens” with the biblical story and expectation of the Christ child at Christmas. The preaching series is entitled “Cosmic Christmas” and is complete with Star Wars themed role out videos, graphics, and a Han Solo draped pastor. He reviews his love for the Star Wars movies and how it impacted him as a child.

Pastor Tim Lucas (no relation to George Lucas) began the non-denominational church plant in 1999 that now has six locations (counting one online “location”) throughout New Jersey. This sermon series caught the eye of several news affiliates and their story has been broadcasted nationally.

This is a great example of where a church has tapped into a popular trend among people and blended their message into it.

The following show why this kind of thinking is so important in church life:

  1. cosmic-christmas-droid-to-the-world“Cosmic Christmas” and sermon series like it show the world that church can be fun. The pastor was dressed like Han Solo. Their nativity scene had Han Solo and Princess Leia instead of the shepherd dressed Mary and Joseph. When the world sees these things they stop and take notice. Humor and one’s ability to not take yourself too serious tears down walls of assumptions and false understandings.
  2. It lends itself to continuing the message. You could have photo opportunities with Storm Troopers in the lobby or the fellowship hall after or before the service where people will post them to their social media accounts thereby reaching thousands with the message “Our church is fun.” The theme also is easy to carry throughout the church (the children’s area for example).

The pastor could take pictures with people and use that time to engage in intentional evangelistic conversations. God gave us our imaginations and creativity to be used to bring Him glory – and what better way than being creative in how we share His eternal message. Jesus was known for stepping out and doing the unexpected – but as His disciples why do we feel that we shouldn’t?

star_wars_christmas2

  1. If it is done well and with great care the message of the gospel becomes easier for the lost world to remember or even understand. You take that which is common and attach the message of Christ to it, so that when they see it they (consciously or subconsciously) begin to understand a biblical principle.
  1. Creativity and themes such as this forces the church to plan further in advance. If you watch the sermon on their website there are prerecorded videos that play at specific times during the message, you would have to order or make his costume, etc. And don’t forget those storm troopers in the lobby – they need to get leave from the Empire. Yoda’s schedule is crazy busy, especially with the release of the new film. All that takes time, galactic paperwork, and a great deal of planning by the church.

Truthfully, many churches just do what they have always done (candle light services, same old hymns, same rotating sermons, same ole decorations, etc.) and Christmas becomes a time to check out mentally instead of honestly engaging the culture.

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As you listen and go through the sermon it became obvious to me we would have a declination of biblical interpretation.[2] But don’t let the minutia of doctrine take away from the bigger overall principle that they are engaging the culture in a way that people “get it.” Don’t be too quick to dismiss what they are doing simply because they are denominationally different. Don’t be too quick to dismiss your idea because it is different than what your church culture is used to. It you are thinking, “they’ll never go for this,” you might just be on the right track.

.  .  .  and may the force be with you.

Star-Wars-the-Force-Awakens-Poster-Cropped

____________________________

[1] http://www.Liquidchurch.com

[2] he uses the phrase “binding Satan” for example.

Creativity and the Gospel; sharing a never changing message in a new way

Foam and Paint. 

103048691_304556543080616_7496349836531834343_nThis past Sunday First Baptist Church Valdosta held it’s annual Fall Festival. Every year we try to share the gospel in a creative way. We have tried carving a pumpkin and sharing as we carve referencing parts of the pumpkin as we went. We have read a story from a book and several other methods. This year we wanted to come up with a unique and new way to share a timeless message.

This past year Valdosta Kids began going through Lifeway’s the Gospel Project. It has five symbols that it uses to share the gospel (a crown, “x,” the cross, gift, and hands).

We put these symbols on our t-shirts for VBS. We would have the kids point to the symbols as we went through the presentation. I wanted to refresh the minds of our kids who attend the gospel project, attended Vacation Bible School, and to introduce the gospel to those children who may be hearing it for the first time at the Fall Festival.

So how do you take these symbols and present them to a large crowd of people who range in age from infants to senior adults and vary in their familiarity with the gospel? At, first I thought just print them out, really big. But this didn’t feel very creative and I doubted that it would hold the younger children’s attention, especially if they already knew what the symbols meant. So with a sketch pad, I started brainstorming. What, I came up with was a way for the pieces to fit together to form a man. It is a man who begins as being broken into pieces and through Christ becomes whole again. Eureka. After two full days of carving foam and painting, I was pleased with the result. I plan to use it many more times in the future.

 

Why Use Creativity to Share the Gospel?

cerealHoly Lucy Charms? No. 

I know there are those out there that feel simply reading the Bible and sharing “the Roman Road” is enough. The Word of God is “sharper than any two edged sword” and is what God has given us to save the soul.

We do not need to add anything to the gospel. This is true, but as soon as I would have launched into the first verse I would have lost the young children. So, the foam shapes and symbols are not an attempt to add to the gospel or change the gospel only to explain it from a different angle.

Consider the following when you are planning your next event:

1. People Learn Differently. 

Everyone has a way that they learn best and it not always the same. Educators call these different ways of learning “learning styles.” Some are kinesthetic learners — these learners do best when they are moving (games, acting out the story, moving around etc.).

Some learn best when they hear the information, these are called auditory learners. And some learn best when they see the information — visionary learners. This is a simplistic way of dividing students into groups but educators have shown that we all have a preferred way of receiving information, so presentations should try to include all three. Ask yourself, “how am I engaging the kinesthetic, auditory, and visionary learners?”

Most ways of teaching focus on the auditory learner — “come sit down and listen to what I say.”

  • All children are tactile-kinesthetic. They learn best by touching and doing.
  • In the first few grades of school, some children begin to show a strength in the visual area. They learn best by watching and seeing.
  • At around ten to twelve years of age, some children will begin to show a strength in the auditory area. They learn best by listening.
  • Among all people over ten years old, 20 percent learn best by hearing, 40 percent learn best by seeing, and 40 percent learn best by moving and doing.

When a child says he wants to “see” an object he really means he desires to hold it and touch it.

Think About It . . .

  • How has most of our teaching traditionally been done?
  • Do we need to change the way we teach? If so, why?
  • How can we more effectively teach children who learn differently than we do?[1]

2. “The More Hooks in the Water the More Chances there are of Catching Fish”

If you say the same thing in your gospel presentation and the person has heard the exact same thing before, then they anticipate what you are going to say and then tune you out. They think to themselves, “I have heard this (exactly word for word) before. Change up the illustration, the graphic, the method). As long as what you are doing is theologically solid then use your God given creativity to share His Word (in new and different ways).

If there brain thinks it is receiving new information it has to work and figure out where to put this new information. The more paths in the brain that lead to the ultimate conclusion (I need Jesus to save me because I am lost), then the brain is able to make deductions and understand information at a deeper level. The more angles you are able to explain something, the better and deeper the student will understand the topic.

Four Angles

 Each person looks at things from his own angle.

Some people are why people.          “Why should I learn this?”

Some people are what people.         “What are the facts about this?”

Some people are what if people.     “What would happen if you did this with it?”

Some people are how people.          “How does it work?”

When a person learns something, he will usually approach it from one of these four angles.

The point is:

  • God made each of us different from others.
  • God made each of us unique.
  • How does realizing this help us to be more effective communicators?
  • What changes can you make in your classroom, your material, your class routine, and your teaching style to help you communicate more effectively to the unique children in your class?  [2]

I believe that this a main reason we have so many stories of people and examples of God’s grace. Each point us to Jesus (creation, Cain and Abel, Sampson, David and Goliath, the early church, Paul and church planting, etc.)  — why so many stories to explain the gospel? Each one shows us God in a different way, and each explains the gospel at a different angle. God is the best teacher.

3. People Appreciate Creativity and Original Thought. 

I know we don’t ways have time to “whiteboard” ideas and brainstorm specific topics of events. Many times we fall into a default mode where we just don’t have time to be creative; we say, “let’s just do it the way we did it last year.” But people appreciate and recognize the little details that are given attention.

I had three different kids say, “Pastor Drew, the clown costume again . . .really?” Ouch, but it helped me to realize that next year I need to up the game on my costume. You can bet I won’t be a clown next year. Go big or go home baby! Think about your last trip to Disney. What made the trip really special” What makes Disney special? There are tons of (small and big) details that make it awesome. There is no trash anywhere, everything is clean and freshly painted, no one ever breaks character (ever!), the fireworks show is awesome, and on and on I could go. If you want people to hear you when you share the gospel, then be creative — do something that they don’t expect. What’s your hook? How will you engage them with creativity?

I know the Holy Spirit is the one who is guiding the moment — but God chooses to use us in the presentation. He chooses to use all of us (your head knowledge and your heart), and we are each unique. He has made you with a brain, a personality, and life experiences (use them). Before you buy more wordless books, or chik tracts, sit down with some pen and paper, pray, and say “God use me to reach the masses.” Be like Samuel and say, “Here I am Lord, your servant, I am listening.”

You may get really excited to see what He does.

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[1] See Learning Styles by Marlene D. LeFever (David C. Cook).

[2] Based on the research of David Kolb, Experimental Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development (Prenice Hall) and Bernice McCarthy, The 4Mat System: Teaching to Learning Styles with Right/Left Mode Techniques (Excel, Inc.).

The Grouch That Taught My Class; Lesson Preparation That Keeps You Friendly

Most teachers would say that their teaching ministry is very important and that they have a desire to impact the lives of their students. However, 80% of all Children’s Ministry teachers prepare their lessons after 10pm on Saturday night.  Why is that such an important task get pushed to the very last minute? People work a forty-hour week (plus), they have families, etc… so everything gets pushed back.

Let’s face it, we are all very busy, and everything competes for our time. In addition to the time crunch issue, many curriculums are so teacher friendly that the lessons are basically self-taught. So the tendency is to simply skim the material and “shoot from the hip.” But, the church of today needs teachers (and parents) who are spiritually deep, doctrinally accurate, and well prepared for class. To do any less is not giving our best to the Lord, and the task that He has given our hands to do.

So how can we deal with our busy schedules, and prepare for our class? First consider the following questions, “How much time can you give?” and “How can you save time in lesson preparation?” A teacher’s study time usually takes place on two levels:

(1) Their daily study and quiet time.  Most teachers understand their need to personally commune with God, and make sure their hearts are right before seeking to minister to others. Lifeguards need to know how to swim!

(2) The time they spend preparing for their lessons. Why not combine the two? You can save time and add power to your teaching by leveraging these times together.  Make your personal daily Bible study time your lesson study time.

Also, managing your time and thinking through your week enables you to break the over all material down into bite size pieces and make it more meaningful to you personally. This will also give you time to think through the Scripture and how it applies to the life of your students (their learning styles, personalities, what they would enjoy, what worked in the past, etc…)

So let’s break down the week:
A. Monday

Students need teachers who pray and ask God for direction.  So on Monday pray and ask God for direction. Open the curriculum and read it quickly.  Then close it. Discover where your lesson is in the Bible, read it quickly just to get the over all perspective.

Why?  God knows your children and what they need.

We need to go to Him first and let Him speak to us. Ask God to show you the most important truth; this will become your main theme.  Have one theme and only one.  Ask yourself, “Why is this story in the Bible?”  Don’t ramble.

B. Tuesday

As you go through the day think about the lesson.  No Bible, No curriculum. Use other resources such as Haley’s Bible Handbook or a Bible Dictionary. This will be time when you reference other background resources.

C. Wednesday

Pray and ask God to give you the same feelings everyone in the story had. Pause on each person.  Develop three adjectives (words that describe a noun) to describe their: (a) physical appearance and (b) character.

For example: I Sam. 17:ff

Physical appearance  David; small, armor, etc.   Goliath; Tall, Strong, etc.

Character David; Loved God, etc.           Goliath;   Arrogant, Bully, Armor

Then make a brief outline; for our example in 1 Samuel 17ff, it potentially would look like this:

A)   David talks to his father

B)   David goes to the battlefield

C)   David challenges

D)   David wins

D. Thursday
Don’t study at all, just meditate.  Ask God to show you creative ways to teach the main theme.  Pray and then listen.  Keep your mind in neutral.  Everything (kids, work, tasks to be done) must be temporarily put aside. Children will go home and tell their parents about the “cool” things they learned at Children’s Church, if the lessons are remembered.

Therefore, we must be creative in our lesson planning time.
For example:  “The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the Word of the Lord lasts forever.”   A simple but very effective way to teach this would be to hold up a faded and fresh flower, fresh and faded grass, and hold up the Bible.  But it had to be prepared ahead. It is very difficult to find fresh and faded flowers after 10pm on Saturday night!

E. Friday
Open the curriculum, and read through the support material.  This is the time to get practical. Go ahead and assemble visual aids, object lessons, etc.  Practice telling the story thinking through everything that you will need. Pray and thank God for the creative ideas.

F. Saturday
Pray and spend time with the family.  Nothing to do here, the work is done.

Not only are there the time crunch and creativity issues that are involved when we wait until the last minute, there are also the physical and emotional issues as well. If we are up late the night before, we are tired and aren’t able to give our students our all. By breaking the material down, and studying it over the week, then you are able to have an awesome lesson, but you will also be able to deliver it when you are at your best. If you are grouchy, and short tempered because you are tired, then it is not the students’ fault when they act like “students.” It’s your fault for not being prepared for them.

Colossians 3:23-24 “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”

May God bless your ministry as you seek to give Him your best!

*This article was adapted from a lecture given by Sandy Sprott at the Children’s Pastor’s Conference in 2002.

"Your greatest life messages and your most effective ministry will come out of your deepest hurts." Rick Warren

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