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Children's News
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Leading a Child to Christ
by Karl D. Bastian, the Kidologist
The ultimate thrill of children ministry is to have the opportunity to lead a child to Christ! Children are the ripest field for the harvest of the Gospel! Over 75% of Christians received Christ as a child. And yet, while many Christians work with children, teaching them about God and the Bible, many become hesitant or shy when it comes to leading them to Christ. There are a variety of reasons for this, but I believe the two primary reasons are first, influence from the enemy who wants desperately to keep children from coming to Christ, and secondly, a feeling of insecurity or lack of confidence in those who seek to reach out to children. Here are some tips that will help you as you seek to usher young children into the Kingdom of God:

#1        PRAY FOR THE CHILD
You cannot save a child, only God can. But God can use you in the life of a child to bring him or her to God. Pray for open doors to share the Gospel. (Col. 4:2-4) Realize Jesus is praying too and seek His power! (John 17:20-21)

#2        FIND OUT WHERE THEY ARE AT
BE A KIDOLOGIST! Ask questions. Get to know them so that you will be able to communicate effectively.

#3        PRESENT THE GOSPEL
            Tell them the Bad News vs. Good News. They can’t be found until they know they are lost! Use a WORDLESS BOOK or other kid-friendly Gospel presentation! (See “Using the Wordless Book” in Article Zone)

#4        HAVE THEM READ SCRIPTURE
            God’s Word will not return void! (Isaiah 55:10-11)      
            God’s Word is a hammer and fire! (Jeremiah 23:29)
            God’s Word is a sword! (Hebrews 4:12)

#5        ASK PROBING QUESTIONS
Find out if they understand the Gospel. “If you were to die tonight, do you know if you would go to heaven?” and then, “Why should God let you in?” Their answers to these questions will not only tell you if they are saved, but will also help guide you in how to present the Gospel, or what misunderstandings you need to clarify. Avoid confusing “religious” and “churchy” terms. Keep it simple!
 
#6        LEAD THEM IN A PRAYER OF SALVATION
They can simply repeat after you. There is no “perfect” prayer, but these are the key ingredients of a salvation Prayer: Admission of sin, belief in Jesus’ death and resurrection, a request for salvation, an offering of thanks for salvation, and a request for help from God to live a righteous life.

#7        REJOICE, REVIEW, REAFFIRM!
REJOICE! Luke 15:10 tells us that the angels in heaven celebrate when a lost sinner comes to the Shepherd! We should celebrate too! Let the child see by your facial expression, words, and attitude that you are rejoicing with them. If you act like it is no big deal, it won’t be a big deal to them! They have just crossed from death to LIFE! J
REVIEW with them what they have just done. Make sure they understand the importance of this decision. Only use the past tense! This is now a done deal!
REAFFIRM to them that not only are they now saved, but they can never lose this salvation! They are now a child of God! No one can snatch them out of the Father’s hand! And nothing, not even sin, can separate them from the love of God! Encourage them to get into the Word, and to pray, and to start attending church regularly if they don’t already.
ONE AT A TIME.
            
Once upon a time a wise old man and a young boy were walking along the beach. The old man was imparting wisdom to the boy as they enjoyed the morning breeze. As they walked along, the tide began to go out. As it did so, it left hundreds of thousands of starfish stranded in the sand. The old man pointed to the starfish and said, “Boy, do you see those starfish? Everyday when the tide goes out, hundreds of starfish get stranded on the sand only to bake in the afternoon sun and die.”

Immediately the young boy ran down to the shore and began to pick up starfish and throw them out into the water. He continued to do this as the old man came down to meet him. When the old man finally got down to the water, the boy had just picked up another starfish. He was about to throw it out into the water when the old man cried out, “STOP! My foolish boy,” he said, “do you honestly think you can save all these starfish? There are too many!” The boy completed his throw and sent the starfish flying out over the water. After the little splash, the boy answered. “No, I can’t save them all, but I just made a difference in that one’s life.”

The application to children’s ministry should be obvious: one at a time!