Telling biblical stories to children is one of my favorite things to do. I absolutely love it! I’ve been a professional speaker for many years and have had training from some of the best speakers and programs. However, none compare to the on the job training that I’ve received being a storyteller to a few wide-eyed, single-digit aged children. The questions these little brains ask are thought provoking, and the answers these minds give often leave me speechless.
On a recent Sunday at church we were focusing on the theme of loving one another. Praise team members led the kids in two interactive praise and worship songs. Some of the children danced, others danced and sang, and of course some were preoccupied playing with things like buttons and lint. After praise and worship, the children watched a short video about the day’s theme. Next up was story time!
About sixty second and third graders were seated on the carpet with neon orange and yellow pointy party hats atop their heads. We really get into character during story time! The room was dark just like a real theater. From the stage I could only see a few front row faces, some party hats, and the exit sign. The kids seemed to like the story of Jesus teaching about who should be invited to a party (banquet) (Luke 14:12-24). The room was almost silent. Just as I was about to hone in on the theme of loving one another, a blaring cry filled the entire room. Uh oh, who’s hurt and where’s the first aid kit? I thought. This just wasn’t the type of cry one could ignore. It sounded like this child was in pain.
As I scanned the room to find out what was going on, and I saw a girl whose face was wet with tears. “No don’t cry, it’s okay, it’s a paaarty,” I said. Now of course everyone knows the cardinal crying rule: if you tell someone not to cry, it makes the person cry even more. That’s exactly what happened. Her cry seemed to get louder and louder. Then in the midst of her tears, the young girl softly said a few words, but I couldn’t hear her. I leaned in and said “Huh?” Then the young girl yelled, “I missed praise and worship!” My heart broke. I thought, wow, this child looks forward to praising God and worshiping in song and dance. She loves praise and worship so much that the disappointment of missing that part of the service was too overwhelming.
Next, all of the kids joined me in having a one-minute dance party so the young girl could get her praise on. Everyone in the room participated in this act of loving one another. That’s what Christ was teaching us in the passage from Luke: to love people who may different than we are and to invite them to our party. We couldn’t have planned a better example if we’d tried. For those few seconds the young girl and the other children jumped and danced for joy. On that Sunday morning, I learned about compassion for others and the importance of praise and worship, from a child.