Preparing from the Overflow of Our Walk with God | Raising the Young for Christ Ent. 4

Artwork Credit: John Wesley Teaching His Sunday School (1897) by Alice Barber Stephens (1858–1932). Public domain image accessed via Artvee.com.

    Knowing the children God entrusts to us is only part of the work. If we want to teach them well, we must also come with hearts and minds already filled with His Word. What we bring into the classroom will usually be what overflows from our own walk with God.

    It is possible to prepare for Sunday School by going straight to the materials, arranging activities, and setting up visuals. But when preparation begins with our own time in the passage, reading it, praying over it, and letting it work in us, we come ready to give something living. Paul wrote, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom” (Col. 3:16, NKJV). The Word must dwell in us before it can be passed on faithfully.

    In our small church, when we teach stories from the Old Testament, we often come across scenes where God required the offering of a spotless lamb. Those moments lead us to reflect on how each one points to Jesus Christ—the Lamb without blemish, whose blood alone could take away sin. We sometimes tell the children how great a sacrifice it is for anyone to lay down his life for another, yet Christ did this for our sins when we should have been the ones under judgment. Even if we gave our own lives, it would not remove our guilt because we are not pure. Only the spotless Lamb could pay that price. Over time, the children have been able to explain that sin must be paid for, that the payment must be perfect, and that only Christ could give it.

    Preparation like this does not require long hours, though more time is always a blessing. Even a short but focused reading of the passage during the week, noting what it reveals about God, praying for understanding, and seeing how it connects to the gospel may guide the way we teach.

    When we come having been with the Lord, we teach with a steady confidence that the lesson is His truth, not merely our own effort. We may not see instant results, yet His Word will accomplish His purpose (Isa. 55:11). The classroom may be where the lesson is spoken, but it begins in our own walk with Him. When we teach from what He has already impressed on our hearts, we are giving the children more than information; we are pointing them to the only Savior.