Sunday School Answers

I spent the weekend with 7 enthusiastic twelve year-olds who will be confirmed in a couple of weeks. I hope I didn't break 'em or screw 'em up. I will use ANY means necessary to make an argument for Christ. Any prop, any song, any joke, anything I can think of that will help them get it. This weekend was no exception. I packed my bag of tricks and pulled out everything I had to make my case for following Jesus and being little Christs. They were a good group and they seemed to be connecting the dots during our sessions. We had lots of good discussions and they did an amazing job asking questions and offering examples.
But I have found that no matter how articulate and gifted a group like this may be (and I mean across the board from Sunday school, to youth group, to confirmation retreats) you CANNOT avoid the dreaded "Sunday School answers." They are my teaching nemesis and I am determined, God as my witness, to squash them. Let me explain my frustration.
When I teach (and I use that term loosely) - I will ask follow-up questions and try to pull thoughtful answers from these bright, young minds. I'll ask a question like, "What kinds of things did Jesus do to humble himself?" The kicker is we just finished an entire HOUR talking about servanthood, humility, being last to be great and we've backed it up with scripture and stories and modern-day examples. Not to mention a candy incentive program that has me hurling Dum Dums and Smarties like a busted pinata for every right answer. And now we re-cap and for some reason it's fallen out of their brains like a Jell-O casserole. I pose the same question, "What kinds of things did Jesus do to humble himself?" - The answers digress to 2nd grade Sunday School chock full o' patent leather Mary Janes and clip-on ties. "Jesus loves me!" "Jesus died on the cross!" And they're right. Of course they're right. But those answers will ALWAYS be right. We gotta start expecting more in-depth answers, folks. And not because we need the "correct" answers to questions, but because we need to be in tune with God's word and how it effects us every day. I'm not trying to dog out my confirmands. They were truly inspired and they really blew me away with the way they responded to questions. But across the board, we need to pose these questions as a means to think and pray and respond to God. "Jesus loves me" will ALWAYS be the right answer. Maybe the better question would be "How can I love Jesus back?"

Successful teachers are effective
in spite of the psychologoical theories
they suffer under.
- Anonymous