Tell Me the Story

Welcome to the Adventure

Why doesn’t God just take us to heaven after we get saved? Because he wants us to grow spiritually and also because he chooses to use people to share his “Good News” with others. God knows that the best way for someone to understand him is to hear and see the message from another person. Ultimately, that’s why he sent Jesus Christ to become a man, so that we might be able to understand God’s love and we could relate.

After Jesus went to Heaven, he left a commission with people. That commission was to help people grow spiritually. For some that means evangelism, getting to know Christ for the first time, and for others, it means discipleship, growing in the faith in their personal lives.

Most of us find sharing our faith a bit challenging. Actually, if you get started, then you likely have some valuable things to say about Jesus, and those words would likely help others. It’s the getting started part that can be difficult at times. This adventure helps you with ideas about how to initiate conversations. Hopefully, by the time you’re done, you’ll have some greater confidence to continue sharing your faith.

We must always be ready to pass the faith on to someone else. You never know what’s really going on in the lives of those people around you. Some find it easier to share their faith with people they know such as family or coworkers, while others find it easier to share their faith with people they first meet.

The Holy Spirit is working in people’s hearts. It’s our job to follow his lead and initiate. In Acts 8, God had Philip leave one situation and go to another. Although Philip didn’t quite understand the situation, God used Philip to reach a man who was just traveling through. We don’t even know that man’s name, but we call him the Ethiopian Eunuch. Today, African countries credit this man for the spread of Christianity to a whole continent.

The process started when Philip was willing to be used by God to share the faith with a stranger. Everyone needs the gospel, even those people who live in your home. If you have a family, then your mate can be a disciple- ship partner and you can help your children understand the faith in real and practical terms.

That’s what the 40-Day Family Adventure is all about. Each week you’ll receive encouragement. Use the ideas to spark new thoughts in you about sharing Jesus with others. Allow God to grow you in your ability to share Jesus with others on several levels.

WEEK 1 Young Person

Going deeper in Your Own Personal Faith

Your involvement in this adventure is a good way for you to explore some issues of faith in meaningful dialogue with your parents. Sometimes all the work that happens in a family puts a strain on relationships. Parents correct, give instructions, and say no and that often adds tension to the home. This exercise will help you do your part to build strands of relationship with your parents to keep your family healthy and help you to grow yourself. If you have any mentor/coaches in your life, you may want to take initiative with them as well.

So, thank you for taking part in this 40-Day Family Adventure. This will be interesting for you. Please share your thoughts and ideas, good or bad, about the experience. In fact, if you’d like to share actual things you’re learning, it would be an honor to hear back from you.

You might want to start the dialogue by saying something like this: “I am working on my assignment for church and I wondered if you might answer this question for me?” Or, “I’m curious about your spiritual history.”

Here’s question #1 for this week to ask your parents:

What were the events leading up to your decision to accept Jesus Christ as your Savior and to choose to live for God?

You’ll receive one question a week for the next six weeks. The parent interviews are often helpful and encouraging. You might want to consider the timing of your question in order to get the most out of the dialogue with your parents.

Be sure to keep a journal and write down meaningful conversations you had, resistance you experienced, and any answers to prayer.

Have a great week and enjoy the adventure.

WEEK 1 Parent

Welcome to the Adventure

Passing the faith on to others is part of what we do as Christians, but there’s no more important place than to do this in our own homes. Children need to see the power and grace of God and embrace that for themselves. I know you want your child to embrace the faith. That means that kids become inspired to take on the faith for themselves, building a personal relationship with God. Even if your child hasn’t made a profession of faith yet, you can start building the awareness that God speaks directly to your child. In fact, one of the strategic things you can do is to take an interest in your child’s faith because it’s of value to you.

Preparing for Family Time

Here’s what you’ll need for your family activity this week.

  • The Week 1 Handout (at the end of this lesson)
  • Pen or pencil

Family Time

Gather your family together in a comfortable place where you won’t be distracted. You want to be present with each other during these 20-30 minutes. No electronic devices allowed!

Open with prayer. The prayer leader can change from week to week.

Start the process of sharing Scripture this week by talking about Joshua chapter 4 and the stones that they piled up. Those stones provided a monument to God’s power and grace and functioned as a God-ordained discussion point for families. Read Joshua 4: 1-24. (You could also tell this story instead of reading it.)

Activity: Use the handout (at the end of this lesson) 
Every member of the family should take a clean piece of paper and write a short description of a few spiritual monuments from your own life. Younger children may want to draw pictures instead of writing a description. (Some adults may also prefer this approach!) These are events where God demonstrated His power or grace and provided encouragement and hope for your spiritual life. After everyone has worked independently, then work on it together and make it a family monument. Use the handout and add several of the significant spiritual events from several members of your family. Post the monument somewhere prominently to be a reminder during the week and to add additional events as you remember them.

5. Tell one of the stories that you put on your “family monument.” Kids often enjoy hearing the stories of a parent’s history. You might start by saying, “Did I ever tell you the story about…”

6. Take time to pray together and thank God for his work in your lives

Throughout the Week

Remember to build relationships, share Scripture, and practice faith throughout the week. Ask each other to share more stories from the “family monument.” A parent may want to ask his son what God has said to him, or what he believes that God is saying to him about a given situation. This means acknowledging the fact that God may speak to you through your son. That respect often increases a child’s willingness to listen to the Lord and share spiritually with you.