Season of Grace Church in Christ by Carolina D. Miklos
1 Chapter 1: "What is Child Evangelism?" In most Protestant churches of today, we saw that the priority in relation to ev angelism and young adults is at the stage of adolescence. Few ministries engaged in preparing and training people for evangelism child. Whenever we come across churches in which the function of infant Reality is basically prevent children f rom disturbing the worship, but in fact the child day care is one of the best wa ys to educate children for the Christian life. Child Evangelism is the way God g ave us to take the word of the Lord until the children do not attend church or w ho are unable to go, as children who are ill or hospitalized, or even the parent s who have no interest in seeking God. Child Evangelism aims to show children th e path of salvation and help them in this way. When we do not give importance to evangelize children, we are ignoring part of the order of Jesus in Mark 16:15 t hat says, "And said unto them, Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." The child certainly is also a creature of God and must be evan gelized as anyone else. We read in Matthew 18:14 the following sentence: "So he is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should pe rish." That is, all children must be reached. Psalm 78:1 says that the eight new generation to hear and learn God's word not to become a rebellious generation. The child, unlike what most people think, not only because it saves innocent and young age and even knowing God, it can get lost and wander from the ways of the Lord. Psalm 51:5 says: "I was born in iniquity and in sin my mother conceived m e." And in Romans 5:12 also shows that all have sinned, including children, that is, they also need Jesus and they need to accept it in their hearts like you an d I have done some day. And children who were born in Christian home also depend to accept Christ to be saved, for no good just teach what God likes or not befo re taking it to the new birth in Jesus. The duty of every teacher and evangelist is to take the word of God to children, because unlike adults, children can not discern them alone, they depend on us. Therefore God empowers us to this great work, to be His instruments for the little ones. There are no limits for child e vangelism, it should not centralize it is only in churches. Schools, hospitals, kindergartens, parks, streets and even houses are places where the gospel can be proclaimed. Where there is a child, there should be ministering the Gospel of S alvation. 2 Chapter 2: "How should a child evangelist?" Child Evangelism is not as easy as it sounds, so you must pray to God and to mak e sure that this is the call Him into your life. Will only have to do is not eno ugh, you need Sun When we started work for the Lord, whatever we have to strive for excellence overall. We have to be like Jesus, give good evidence and have a Christocentric life, always seeking the good will of God. To make this work you must have a life of intimacy with the Lord, have experiences with D selves, alwa ys read and study our main manual, the BIBLE, we should be loving, responsible, cheerful, ready to hear suggestions, ideas and even criticism of others, we must , insatiably, pray and seek the Spirit of God always. The result of our work dep ends on how our life with God. We know that children are great "copiers" of adul ts, so everything we do, all our gestures and words can be copied, so we should be vigilant about our way of being, talk, act and dress. In the 13 Timothy 3:1, the Apostle Paul clearly states how we should be to make a work for God. In our life we must bear in mind that the work requires time and total dedication. At c ertain times we have to sacrifice some things we deem important to serve God and do his work. We should never think that this child is hopeless or not worth ins isting on it. We have to get clear results of change in the life of every child, but we must also learn to expect the different work and act of God in each one. 3 Chapter 3: "How to evangelize?" There are several methods you can use to evangelize children of different age gr oups, these methods must be attractive to all children. But before choosing any of them, we have to analyze which one is best suited to spacetime and place in which we evangelize. Here are a few methods: Lectures: This method is suitable f or churches (Bible kindergarten) or weekly meetings where these children attend constantly. Below is an itinerary of classes where the teacher / evangelist teac hes biblical material passes tasks in the classroom and home and evaluates stude nts. In this method the teacher / evangelist finds it easier to work in children 's lives (by knowing them better) and can have contact with parents. Telling sto ries: This method can be easily used in nurseries, schools, hospitals, orphanage s and at meetings of irregular period. It is based on a story or biblical parabl e, explaining it and applying the message of salvation (see Chapter 4) giving th e child an opportunity to accept Christ does not save (in some cases it is not n ecessary to implement the plan of salvation if this has already been presented a ll children in previous situations). We can also include songs and visual (see C hapter 5) to be used for the message to be told. The teacher / evangelist who is telling the story should prepare their own material. To prepare the material is , above all, pray and ask God's direction on the subject that he wants to deal w ith those children, surely the Lord will open their spiritual eyes and give you the perfect message. Upon receiving the theme of heaven, you must read it in the Bible, study it and understand it well. Then, separate topics and write each on e on a sheet that will serve as the "glue" but it is important to know that you can not read all the time, because children are dispersed easily with it. Prepar e activity sheets (drawing, word searches, seven mistakes, connect the dots, etc .) to give all children at the end of the message, for they recalled the story l ater. And also a separate verse base for kids to memorize (see Chapter 5). Start introducing the story with personal questions or illustrations and the story so on begins. Tell it like it was a "fairy tale". Use gestures and facial expressio ns. Work your voice to create climates of expectations and imitate characters. D evelop the most exciting and interesting point of history, this should be the cl imactic moment in which children can "hold" over the message. Once this moment p ass, finish the story so that it does not become tiresome for children. Finish w ith a final conclusion. Do not forget that during the story, apply the message o f salvation to children, it is very important. Say goodbye to everyone with joy and promise never come back if you are not sure of that. Ø 4 Ø Ø Ø Live theater or puppet: To use this method may be necessary space, materials, ti me and people to help you, so you should consider carefully before proceeding wi th this idea. You can even create the piece by telling the Bible by some narrato r or the character himself. One should be enough movement and dialogue between t he characters. Be creative. We can not forget to introduce the message of salvat ion during a scene. You'll also find plays and puppets ready in evangelical book stores and shops. Games and competitions: This is a fairly fun to teach children the ways of the Lord, but one should be cautious when choosing the place and ti me for this method. There are several competitions for children that can be adap ted to pass biblical message as: hot potato Bible (the child with whom the objec t should stop talking about a verse memorized); Christian Dance Chair (who stand sings a new song to the next round); Hangman Bible (with names or themes of the Bible), etc.. Try to have new ideas and create new games, kids will love. Chat: It's quiet and perfect for places like hospitals that require silence. Talk to children about the life of Jesus and God's love for them. Let them talk about th eir daily lives and tell stories of what went well, teach them to act as God's w ill and direct them to the Way of Salvation. This is u ma so tasty and also quit e effective to take children to Christ. Pray to God and choose the best methods for you to evangelize. Analysis which be st fits your profile and invent new strategies to not miss any opportunity. 5 Chapter 4 "How to take the child to accept Christ?" Pointing the way of salvation to a child is the main part and most delicate of E vangelism. When the call to accept Christ is made, we must be sure that everyone understood the importance of that act that are about to do, so they can actuall y be born in the true God and receive salvation from that point.The duty of a t eacher / evangelist is to show the child the need to save, use the word in Roman s 3:23: "For all have sinned and lack the glory of God." Show the way, Jesus, as he says in I Corinthians 15:3 and 4. Take it to receive the gift God gave us sa lvation, quoted in John 1:12: "Yet to all who received Him, to them gave He powe r to become children of God, even to those who believe in Your name. " Finally, print it out in John 3:36, which to receive Christ, she can be sure of your salv ation. Always be in prayer for God to prepare the perfect situation. Make the ca ll trusting that the Holy Spirit is operating in the hearts of children at the t ime. Let the Holy Spirit guide you through. Give your child the opportunity to m ake its decision or ask silently praying that she raise your hand or stand. Alwa ys ask for the children who made the prayer (repeating the teacher / evangelist) talk to you or any other evangelist at the end of the meeting, it is very impor tant to let you know if your child got the same attitude he took, knowing exactl y meaning of salvation, if she is not imitating another child or wants to please you, then pray for her. Make it clear that this prayer is only needed to be don e once. The prayer of acceptance in Christ should be brief, clear and personal, that is, use phrases emphasizing the word "you" to the child know that it is esp ecially for her and not all together o. See this example of prayer: "Dear Lord J esus, I know I am a sinner and am sorry for my sins. I believe you died on a cro ss to save me and I now receive you as my savior. Enter my heart, wash me of my sins and save me. Thanks for listening and answering. Amen ". There are some eas y ways to present the Salvation clearly the child. Here are some suggestions: Ø Colors: Use colorful sheets of cardboard the size of a sheet of plain, to explai n each step of salvation. Use a sheet of yellow or gold depicting the love of Go d - precious as gold, wonderful and grand - then use a blue sheet to represent t he sky - a place that God has prepared for those who have a clean heart - After showing a black sheet symbolizing the state of the heart of someone who is not s aved - Dirty, unclean, with sins - Say that Jesus died on the cross and rose aga in for us to be saved with a red leaf - representing the blood that Jesus shed f or us - and finish showing a white sheet - pure heart, clean - explaining what h appens to those who accept Christ. 6 Ø Symbols: It is basically the same method of colors, but each one symbolizes you with: Circle or yellow gold - precious love of God, without end (showing the circumfer ence of the circle). Dark Heart - Impurity, Sin. When there is no salvation. God does not like. Open grave and Red Cross - Death and resurrection of Jesus. Jesus died to save u s. White heart - Clean, pure, free from sin. Heart ready to enter heaven. Ø Fingers: Make sure the child relate with each finger every step of the message: Thumb - Legal - God loves me (John 3:16). Indicator - Aim for me - I have sinned (Romans 3:23). Medium - Jesus is the greatest - Christ died for me (Romans 5:8) . Ring - Alliance with God. Forever - I receive (John 1:12). Minimum - Even thou gh I was tiny - I'm saved (John 6:47) It is important to read, in all methods, each Bible verse that refers to the ste ps of salvation. 7 Chapter 5: "Materials and methods ancillary" Today we see on TV, magazines and the Internet attractive to thousands of childr en, drawings, music, and images that remain etched in the minds of little ones. We know that children love things that hold your attention and help remind them of something. So why not use the same strategies to teach the Word of God? So wh enever you can, use visuals, music and verses to leave no record head and the he art of every child the message that the Lord wants to spend them. Ø Vision: They are used to illustrate stories, songs and verses. Help teach, clarify messages and hold the attention. The teacher / evangelist can prepare visuals according t o what is going to teach the children. Visuals can be posters, pictures, objects , pictures, etc.. As an example, the symbols and colors of the leaves mentioned in the previous chapter to illustrate the message of salvation. The visuals shou ld be simple and clear, easy to see, should be varied m order not to be tiring f or children. Pay attention to make sure that everyone is seeing the look shown, and not to hide them with his body and hands.Be creative and organized so that its visuals do not become a weapon against the message conveyed. Ø Songs: To che er and prepare the environment for the message being passed, nothing more fun an d tasty than choruses sung with all children. Often, the story and the verses ma y be forgotten but the songs are stored in the memory of children and are a grea t method of evangelization, because children always come out singing at home, at school, among their friends, etc.. Through them, children learn the importance of worship and praise God. The choruses must consist of words easy to understand , should be brief and chosen in advance by the teacher / evangelist to emphasize the message to be passed. Use visual aids to help children learn new songs and repeat several times. Create gestures and dances to help children is uninhibited . Certainly the songs will help you a lot. Ø Memorization of verses: They are ex tremely important in the teaching of biblical messages (read Deuteronomy 6:6 and 7) and strengthened the spiritual life of children converted. Childhood is the ideal time for memorization. To teach a verse to the children read them directly from the Bible explaining and quoting the reference, repeat it several times wi th children of different ways (joking or gesturing), do visual related to the ve rse with pictures or in a jigsaw head. Create interest in children to learn new verses and show the importance of reading the Bible. Distribute brand-texts or d rawings illustrating verse memorized or written for children to paint and to kee p them. Make a list of verses that you've taught and use them when necessary. 8 Ø Prayer: It is important that the teacher / evangelist teaches kids to pray, beca use with it they will learn to have more intimacy with God and seek Him as they please. Prayer should be brief and orderly, where there is disorder at the time of prayer can be taught what is sin and an affront to God, by which we should as k for forgiveness. Is solemn and quiet during prayer at the same time speak with expression and feeling. Prepare this moment with a gentle song without much mov ement or a conversation appropriately. ü This book was written based on the book, "Feed my lambs - Guidance, methods and suggestions for the teacher / evangelist for children" 9th edition of the APEC ( Alliance Child Evangelism Fellowship). 9