DiSCiPLESHiP for KiDS
Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:14 (NIV)
Family Growth Together.
We believe it is vital for kids to have a solid foundation of knowing God and His Word for themselves. If you’re a couple starting one of our Bible study series, why not have your kids learn too? Equip the Light has designed a plan where families can study the same Bible chapters each week. Kids can be a part of the discussion, and together, the family can apply the truths they are learning as life happens. You might even get schooled by your kid (ouch!), but you will certainly learn that lesson (lol!).
Know God & His Word.
Kids need God and are capable of having a personal relationship with Him and His Word. Equip the Light provides resources just for kids so that they can learn the same subject matter that you’re studying in the Bible, tracking along with the same Bible chapters each week. Just like the adults, the kids will learn how to read, interpret, and apply the truth of the Bible to their lives. This process will teach kids how to have an independent relationship with God.
Future Leaders.
God has dreams for each child—more than we could ever imagine—but more importantly, he wants them to know Him. As your kids learn how to read the Word and apply it to their life, they will develop a life-long foundation of trusting God and following Him no matter what the world throws at them. With a foundation of the truth of the Word, faith in God, and knowledge of Jesus, they will learn how to love God and others and to never compromise the truth for the lies of the enemy. May God’s Kingdom come to the hearts and minds of the next generation.
*So right now, we only have the adult worksheets for the Jesus to Me Bible Study in the Gospel of John, but Lord willing, we will have Bible study worksheets for kids available in the months to come.
Here’s what we’d like to see in the future:
How Discipleship for Kids Works:
Step 1: Get the Resources
Parents can obtain both Bible study resources (one for adults and one for kids) at our Store. We currently only have the John study available — Jesus to Me: Discovering Jesus in the Gospel of John. Through the Jesus to Me Bible study for kids, your kids will also learn how to read and interpret the Bible for themselves, who Jesus is to them personally, and who they are in Him, which is foundational to a relationship with God. Parents should check out our Discipleship page for adults and the information about how a Bible study group works, here.
What your kids will need:
A Bible (see video on types of Bibles), and something to write with.
The Bible Study Guide for Kids (Jesus to Me: Discovering Jesus in the Gospel of John—FOR KIDS). You have two options:
1) Download and print a FREE copy of the worksheets of Jesus to Me Bible Study for the Gospel of John for Kids, or
2) Buy the book in print. You can find both in our Store.
STEP 2: Do the Weekly Study.
Each Bible study series is designed so that you individually do the worksheet throughout the week, and then gather with your group of people to go over the answers. (Your “group” could very well be your family or your family + friends.) Kids will also do their own worksheet independently each day with little to no help from you (or help from you on an as-needed basis, depending on their age and ability). The weekly worksheet is broken into five sections, so ideally you (and the kids) will do one section per day, Monday through Friday.
Be sure to:
Pray before you start and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the Word’s truth to you.
Write down your answers. The very act of writing something down tells your brain to pay attention. It helps clarify and remember the information.
Stay humble and be teachable. God will be speaking to you and working on your character (ouch!) as you eat His spiritual bread and fellowship with Him. Learn from each other.
Stay positive and relax. Learn at your own pace and always come to the group meetings whether you were able to do the work or not. Give each other grace as life happens!
STEP 3: Watch the Videos/Meet with Your Group.
This step may vary depending on who is in your group. What is a “group”? Essentially your group consists of the people that you have put together to also go through the Bible study simultaneously, and meet once a week to watch the weekly video and go over the answers everyone found to the questions. See the Discipleship page for adults about how Bible study group works, here.
If you are a parent in a group only made up of adults, then follow the adult group format guide from the Discipleship page for adults, here.
In that case, you can set a separate time with your kid(s) to go through their worksheets and what they learned. Parents and kid(s) can also watch the weekly introductory video for the upcoming week and discuss it together. (Coming in the future (we hope): kids can also watch the Equip the Light for Kids videos that go along with the weekly worksheets.)
If you are a parent and your group is made up of your family, or a mixture of families with adults and kids, go through the same format as above, except have the kids stay and be a part of the meeting. Adults will proceed with the adult group format, except kids will also answer some of the questions during the breakout session. Kids will not have covered as many questions on their worksheets as the adults, but you will not need to go over the material separately with your kids at a later time, and some of the questions will be the same as the adult questions, as indicated in the kids’ book. Kids will love participating in the group meeting!