Adventures in Parenting

Several weeks ago, I led a children's worship session at our church. The Scripture for the session was God's call of Samuel in 1 Samuel 3. I read the story aloud to them, and then asked several questions:

• Who was the boy in the story?
• Who was the man?
• Who called to the boy?
• What did he say to the boy?

After reading the story through twice, the four- to nine-year-olds had answered the first three, but couldn't answer the fourth question.

To make it a bit easier for them, I re-read the second half of the chapter, in which God speaks to Samuel. Then I asked them again, "What did God say to Samuel?" Blank faces. "Samuel"? several kids offered. I explained that we knew that it was God calling, that He had called to Samuel three times, and that Samuel had said, "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening."

So I read the part of the chapter in which God gave his message to Samuel again (time #4). And again I asked the question. Again I didn't get an answer.

I opened up the Bible again and read that portion another time (#5 now). Again I probed, "What was the message? What did God tell Samuel?" Finally I started to get some answers! The message was about Eli, and it wasn't good. Eli had allowed his sons to be wicked.

Numerous times (five times, actually) I was tempted to tell them the answer. But my experience as a teacher restrained me, and reminded me: to teach children, to listen, to think and to learn, sometimes one must go very slowly.