There was a time when a Sunday
school teacher could sit in a church classroom surrounded by a small group
of children and teach a lesson with only a Bible in his/her hand.
Then it happened.
Television.
As a result, the mindset
of children has changed radically. Attention spans are shorter when
not focused on visual images. The eye gate is now equal to the ear
gate when it comes to assimilating information. If ever there was
a generation which personifies the old saying, "a picture is worth a thousand
words," this is it. There can be no denying that visualization is
now essential if we are to train up our children in the way that they must
go.
The middle of the twentieth
century witnessed the birth of such visual aids as the overhead projector,
flip chart songs, and felt visuals. Of course, the typical Sunday
school quarterly packet contained a few posters that could be unfolded
to illustrate the lesson of the hour. Other than that, visualization
was rather primitive until the church began to realize that this new generation
was not responding to classes that did not include any kind of visualization,
or very little of it.
However, the inroads of television
soon made it obvious that children were become much more visually sensitive
than ever before. The latter part of the twentieth century brought
about a major change in how we present Biblical truth to a brand new generation
that had become used to seeing space ships shoot across the galaxy, lifesize
muppets, superheros with amazing powers, etc. Then, with the intrdoction
of the computer and ever advancing Windows technology, an even more visually
sensitive era of children is coming up behind the television generation.
Wise is the church which
recognizes this major shift in our lifetimes and determines to address
it by coming to grips with the this truth. Those who do the necessary
research to stay on top of all that it takes to catch the attention of
children and hold it for Jesus will see those ministries grow both numerically
and spiritually.
Here are some Internet resources
to provide you with further insights, ideas, and materials to reach this
generation of children for Christ..... |
