Your child may face rejection and teasing for sharing the gospel. Make sure children understand that their role is to share, and the Holy Spirit takes it from there. God is pleased when we share our faith, no matter the outcome.
By Dandi Daley Mackall, author of WOW! The Good News Tract
Sharing my faith in children’s books is easy compared to sharing my faith face-to-face. “How’d you like to read my book?” comes more naturally than “How’d you like to confess your sins and accept Christ’s death and resurrection?” So I understand a child’s reticence, resistance, and fear of sharing the Good News. Children are unique, and we can help them share their faith in many ways. I’ll pass along five discoveries I’ve made over a lifetime of working with children.
- Share your relationship with Christ.
For young children, God is as natural as Saturdays and ice cream. That’s partly why we’re told to become like children.
Take advantage of God’s presence everywhere. Pray with your children when an emergency vehicle races by. Take your kids with you when carrying out acts of kindness, when your joy overflows as Christ’s ambassador. Our lives are witnesses for Christ, so treat neighbors and waitresses and the mailman as you would like to be treated.
Be on the lookout for God’s amazing everyday blessings:
The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
The skies display his craftsmanship.
Day after day they continue to speak;
night after night they make him known.
They speak without a sound or word;
their voice is never heard.
Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,
and their words to all the world.
David in Psalm 19:1-4
The heavens declare God’s glory, and so should we. Strike up on-the-spot praise with your children: “How many shades of green do you see?” “Why do you think God gives us so many colors?” Point out shadows and the way light plays on leaves. Delight in the songs of birds, the smell of fresh-cut grass, the touch of pets. Talk about God’s creativity displayed in roly-polies, puppies, horses, dolphins, and giraffes, and ask for their favorite animals.
If our hearts overflow with praise, wonder, and gratitude, we’ll be more willing to talk about God with others.
- Tell your children your faith story.
Be honest. Explain what you were thinking at the time and what you think about that moment now, in retrospect. Give them your testimony, and allow them to ask questions.
Encourage your children to give you a detailed account of their own faith stories. What were they thinking before, during, and after accepting Christ? Be ready with Scripture to confirm their commitment.
If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. . . . God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
1 John 1:8-9, 4:9-10
- Discuss the “Good News” with your child.
When have you or your child received good news? What made it “good”? If you found someone handing out a million dollars to everyone, would you tell your friends? We have even better “Good News”:
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people.”
Luke 2:10, NASBHow then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!”
Romans 10:14-15, NASB
- Clearly explain God’s plan of salvation.
I became a Christian while attending the University of Missouri. I was living with about 100 sorority sisters, and I noticed a group of girls who seemed different, in a good way. They handled stress better than I did, treated everyone with kindness, and had a joy I couldn’t explain. I observed them from a distance and once saw them disappear into a walk-in closet, where the rumor was . . . they prayed.
I wanted what they had, but I had no idea how to get it.
When I finally sneaked into a “College Life” meeting, I heard the how. I knew the facts—Christ’s death paid for my sin, and the Resurrection proved I could have eternal life. But I’d never understood grace, and my heart responded. When I left that meeting, I was overwhelmed with thankfulness for Jesus. I couldn’t wait to thank the closet pray-ers for drawing me to God by the witness of their lives. But I wondered why they had kept the how-to-be-a-Christian message to themselves.
People need to know how. Those who would share their faith need to be equipped to tell them.
For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
Ephesians 2:10
WOW! The Good News is one way to explain God’s plan of salvation. Tyndale and I have made a tract that condenses the WOW! picture book into a clear how-to. The message is based on four words kids say all the time. Here’s how it goes (but with rhyme, Scripture, and fun illustrations):
WOW—(Creation)
How does God love us? He made day and night.
People and animals, nature and light.
All God created was perfect and right. (Genesis 1:31)
UH-OH—(Sin)
Everyone sins, which is not very smart.
Sin against God leaves us too far apart.
What we need now is a true change of heart. (Romans 3:23)
YES—(Jesus)
God gave his Son. There was no other way.
He died on a cross for the debt we can’t pay.
He came back to life! So receive him today.
Say YES to the Savior named Jesus. (Romans 6:23)
AHH—(Peace and Love)
Thanks to Lord Jesus, now God is our Friend!
And we have the Spirit God promised to send.
We’ll go live in heaven with God in the end. (1 John 5:11-12)
WOW—(We can share Jesus!)
Filled with God’s Spirit, our love overflows.
Now we tell others till everyone knows.
We have God’s peace as our faith grows and grows. (Matthew 28:18-20)
- Remind your child that God is the One who saves.
Your child may face rejection and teasing for sharing the gospel. Make sure children understand that their role is to share, and the Holy Spirit takes it from there. God is pleased when we share our faith, no matter the outcome.
As the rain and snow come down from heaven and stay upon the ground to water the earth, and cause the grain to grow and to produce seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry, so also is my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It shall accomplish all I want it to and prosper everywhere I send it. You will live in joy and peace. The mountains and hills, the trees of the field—all the world around you—will rejoice.
Isaiah 55:10-12, TLB
Wow! The Good News Tract by Dandi Daley Mackall
The gospel is often called “the Good News,” and that’s because it’s the best news ever! Wow! tells the Good News using four words: Wow! Uh-Oh. Yes! and Ahh. Incorporating words that kids use every day, the gospel will take on a more personal meaning as kids learn the good news of God’s love for them. Now this message is even easier to share with Wow! The Good News Tract. These pamphlets are perfect for sharing with a classroom, neighbors, or at a church outreach.
Additional online resources for parents and teachers include finger puppets, Bible verse memory cards, teacher helps, and more.
*All Scripture is taken from the New Living Translation, unless otherwise stated.
