Soaking Up Creativity

A little yellow sponge. A big yellow bird. A speedy Scandinavian superhero.

I’m talking about SpongeBob SquarePants of Nickelodeon fame; Big Bird, oversized denizen of Sesame Street; and newcomer Sportacus, from Nick Junior’s new show, Lazytown. Perhaps you, like many others, fancy these three to be no more than silly characters from popular children’s television. Child’s play. Right?

Wrong.

Dig beneath their respective spongy, feathery, and spandex-shrouded exteriors, and you’ll find the stuff of creative genius. Like them or not, they ride into town each day and enjoy success similar to that of an ice cream man on a hot July afternoon—because the kids come running.

What do they have that we, in children’s ministry, don’t? A better story? Nope. Those of us entrusted to teach the Bible to kids know that we have the market cornered on powerful stories. Bigger budgets? Well, yes. But that’s not the point, either. Do they just want it more? Wrong again. So what is it that makes kids line up around the block for them, while we bang our collective heads against our Bibles trying to make Sunday mornings anything but boring?

They (and their creators) are masters of their craft. They make it their business to know kids. And if we want our Bible teaching to change kids’ lives, we better know them as well. To help our education process, we can learn a few lessons from these three shows. So sit at your desk and pay attention. Creativity class is now in session.

1. Make Kid Stuff Serious Business Your first assignment: watch kids’ shows and study their media outlets. If you’re serious about reaching kids, immerse yourself in their world and their culture. Be the first one in line when the new Pixar movie comes out. TIVO SpongeBob or Lazytown every day. Subscribe to a kids’ magazine like Disney Adventure or Nickelodeon Magazine. Become fluent with how the high-paid professionals reach your target audience.

2. Change Seats While you’re watching all those great kids’ shows and learning from these creative giants, move out of a spectator seat and into a practitioner’s chair. As a creator of your own children’s ministry programming, watch the show critically—looking for what works and what doesn’t. Pick apart a program’s various elements. Pay close attention to kids’ reactions to these shows. Become a student, not just a viewer.

3. Figure Out the “Why?”—Not Just the “What?”SpongeBob is funny. Any 5-year old can tell you that. That’s the what. You’ll absorb more transferable value, though, when you determine why he’s funny. If you can figure that out, you’ve discovered something useful that you can bring to your Bible lessons or incorporate into your teaching style. In the case of SpongeBob, you’ll see that the show’s silly, quirky style of humor is masterful. It serves as an indicator of an approach kids consider funny.

Scrutinize an episode of Lazytown and you’ll be struck by the show’s energy. But why? One reason is their use of music and sound effects to energize the story. Similar elements can be introduced into your ministry setting.

Sesame Street demonstrates expertise at keeping the attention of very young kids. Why? One big reason is the show’s magazine format, which means they change elements every five to seven minutes. Now compare that approach with your program. After you understand the why, you’re on the road to determine what needs to happen in your ministry.

Serve up a dose of these hard-won lessons from the kid-creativity gurus, and you’ll find that your Bible lessons change—which sets an exciting stage for young lives to transform. Before long, everywhere you go you’ll soak up creative ideas like … well … like a sponge.

Aaron Reynolds is the author of several children’s books scheduled for release in July, 2005. A ten-year veteran of Promiseland, the children’s ministry at Willow Creek Community Church, he is available to consult and lead workshops for your ministry. Visit him at www.creativekidsministry.com for more information.