This month’s Teach the Word article is by Pastor Kurt Wetzel. Pastor Wetzel is a 2016 Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary graduate. He serves at Cross of Christ Lutheran Church in Nampa, ID, and as the coordinator for the Commission on Worship in the Pacific Northwest District.
Part 1: Philosophy
Generational differences are steadily increasing, leading to less interaction between different age groups. These growing generational gaps make it harder for those of different ages to understand one another and often lead to less time listening to one another.
These generational gaps are evident in the Christian church. There’s been an increasing shift in churches to separate by age and demographics for almost every congregational activity. But that shift is now beginning to reverse with a renewed emphasis on intergenerational ministry in some of mainstream Christianity.
I serve at a mission church where, early on, we needed to grapple with the intergenerational dynamic in Christian education. We began worshiping in a rented space with no ability to divide into different rooms for youth and adult instruction. Once we moved into our first church building and started youth Sunday school, we didn’t have the volunteers as a small congregation to teach Sunday school through the summer. So we experimented with different ways to still offer Bible instruction hour by including kids and adults in the same class.
I am by no means an expert, but I’m learning a lot. Below are some of the things I’ve learned about the overall philosophy of intergenerational education in ministry.
Adults appreciate simple too
In bringing out treasures old and new, Bible teachers look for ways to cover deep concepts as well as simple, beautiful scriptural truths. Sometimes the adults learn more from simple instruction. (Like when they let it slip that they got more out of the children’s message that Sunday than the sermon. Or does that only happen to me? 😊) We strive for depth in teaching, but I’m learning that adults appreciate balance. When I’ve prepared a lesson for an intergenerational setting, seeking to make sure it doesn’t go over the kids’ heads, the adults were the ones with positive feedback afterward. Sometimes striving for simple drives the main point home most clearly.
This is a challenge, however, because simple here doesn’t mean simplistic. The goal is not to prepare a lesson so predictable that the listeners could finish our sentences for us. Instead, the goal is to lead the group of young and old alike to engage with biblical truth in a way that they each grow and build upon the foundation they already have. When we were going through the Lord’s Prayer at my church together as a family Bible study, I was worried the adults would be yawning through the lesson on the Fifth Petition as I tried to tailor it for the little ones too. The Holy Spirit showed me that day, however, that he works powerfully through simple presentations of the Word. After the illustration for the kids about electric fences and forgiveness, the adults were the ones who started talking about their own struggles with forgiveness and the necessity to constantly see their forgiveness before God first. As one of my pastor colleagues says, “Don’t overcomplicate it for me. Just give me a main point that I can pick up and carry with me like a briefcase after the study.”
The young ones can also go deeper
Just as we don’t need to avoid presenting simple truths to adults, we can also lead children to think deeply about their faith. Kids are smarter than we often give them credit for, and they want to discuss spiritual matters. We can discuss deep concepts without using cumbersome jargon. Once, when covering the Eighth Commandment in class, a sixth grader was brave enough to share with the group a recent hurtful experience at school where careless gossip had strained friendships and destroyed trust. I remember thinking: She just taught the lesson for me! In her own winsome, real, and simple way, she spoke to the commandment and James’ warning about the power of the tongue better than I could have.
For years, churches have been lamenting the loss of youth attendees, especially as they start to reach adulthood. One reason churches consistently identify is that kids feel like they grew out of church. It was fun in Sunday school, but they’re not kids anymore. And “adult church” or “adult Sunday school” felt old, and they seemed out of place. Intergenerational options for Bible instruction are opportunities to allow our youth members to go deeper and give them a space to discuss biblical truths at higher levels as they grow into adulthood. Before reaching adulthood, young Christians desire spaces that demonstrate that their faith and their questions are important, and they are invited to discuss them with Christian adults.
Intergenerational shared experiences can be beautiful
We adults may sometimes struggle with having lots of kids in the room. There are plenty of distractions. But as Jesus welcomed the little children, blessed them, and taught them, we too have the privilege of welcoming the young as well as the old to Jesus’ feet when we gather for Bible instruction. Sometimes the distractions are totally overshadowed by the beauty of what just took place as believers of all ages learned and grew alongside one another at Jesus’ feet. Our Savior commended the faith of children and said that we adults must emulate such faith. I love hearing a child speak up and answer questions. It’s not just cute and makes the adults chuckle. Sometimes the adults pick up their pens and write down what the child just said, because it was profound! Other times, the kids’ ears perk up when a grandma or grandpa opens up about his or her faith in class. (And parents appreciate their kids hearing these things from other adults too.)
There’s an illustration I learned when I was at the seminary that I tried one Sunday for family Bible study. Everyone wrote down on a piece of paper a sin that was a personal source of guilt or shame. I collected the papers (without reading them), and we all went outside to light them on fire and watch them burn. Then we read the Lord’s promise: “I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more” (Jeremiah 31:34). Afterward, a grandma came up to me with her 11-year-old grandson and said, “Tell Pastor what you told me.” He said, “I just feel clean after that. Like a shower, but for my soul. I feel so good knowing God forgives me.” His grandma was smiling, with tears in her eyes. As generational gaps continue to widen, meaningful intergenerational experiences are less frequent today. But the church can be a place where these interactions are fostered and nurtured around the Word of God.
This isn’t for every educational setting but is worth considering
Clearly, there are significant benefits to offering Bible instruction tailored to different ages. In general, it will usually make the most sense for things like Sunday school to be divided up by age groups. But there are also benefits to intentionally bringing the groups together at times. Intergenerational Bible instruction is no silver bulletin that will automatically fix every issue like youth leaving the church. Nor is it something to force as often as possible.
But it is a useful option. In the right setting, it can be quite effective. Worth considering.