I love to preach the Word of God, but I make no claims to be good at it. I know I have much room for improvement, no matter how many decades I’ve been doing it. At the same time, though, I’m excited about what I’ve preached when a little one in my congregation draws a picture of what I’ve been preaching—like the picture above of Nehemiah and his colleagues rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem. Here’s why that excites me:
- I pray the little ones listen to me and draw pictures for me because they love me as their pastor. They probably don’t understand all that role entails, but they know me as the man who teaches them the Bible every week. On any given day, the title “Pastor Chuck” from a child means more to me than “Dr. Lawless” from an adult.
- If the kids hear and understand enough to draw me a picture, they’re listening at some level. Even when they’re duplicating pictures they’ve seen in their children’s Bible, they’re still hanging with me to some extent. Drawing the pictures then helps reinforce what they’re learning.
- If the children understand what I’m saying, I’ve done my job as a preacher. I’ve said it before: our job as preachers is to communicate the Word, not impress with our knowledge. We accomplish little when we speak at such a high level that our listeners understand nothing we say.
- When the kids listen and understand, the adults are more likely to do the same. They, too, appreciate clear points and simple illustrations. And, parents who are grateful because their kids are listening usually pay more attention themselves.
- When I remember kids are listening, I try harder to shorten my sermons. I realize their attention spans (actually, the attention spans of most of us . . . ) are not long. My responsibility is to use wisely the time I have to help them understand the stories of the Bible.
- Sermon drawings pasted on my refrigerator remind me to think about kids in my congregation every time I prepare a sermon. I don’t naturally think in that direction—for one reason, Pam and I don’t have children—so the pictures are needed reminders. They push me to think about the vocabulary and the illustrations I use in a sermon.
- The drawings remind me to paint the picture of the Word well through my words. Even if my listeners for some reason cannot read the Word themselves, I want them to hear and see the Word. I have comparatively little time to accomplish this task, so I need to do it well.
