Matthew 28:19-20 we all know as the Great Commission. God’s command in this is for us to go and make disciples. Have you ever thought about the kids who sit in your Bible study group? Should they have the same command? The answer is absolutely. You can partner together with the kids you lead to reach out to those in your class and here are a few reasons why you might want to involve kids in outreach.
10. Personal Interaction – Did you know that peer-to-peer relationships are much stronger than your relationship with many kids. Kids who reach out to kids will be accepted more easily sometimes than adults who reach out. That doesn’t mean you don’t reach out, but engage those peer-to-peer relationships.
9. Compassion – Sometimes kids need to be made aware that the world has more people in it then just them. Well, that’s kind of funny, but seriously, when we can engage kids to have compassion for their friends they gain a new appreciation for God’s creation and how they can interact with other people.
8. Self-esteem – Self-esteem is an important factor for development in kids. When we can encourage kids to be involved in something as valuable as outreach it will build their self-esteem.
7. Team Building – When kids are involved in engaging other kids they are creating a team environment that might ultimately make your group much closer than you could have imagined.
6. Confidence – Kids will gain confidence in not only talking to their peers, but having knowledge of situations that might require them to pray for their friends further building that bond between peers.
5. Understanding – Kids better understand what each other are going through because, for the most part, they have similar life experiences and are dealing with similar life issues. When kids reach out to kids they have a better chance of connecting on a level you and I may not.
4. Everybody Can – Even kids that may not consider themselves outgoing can still be involved in outreach. Outreach doesn’t mean visiting in someone’s home, though that is an important aspect, but can also involve calls and letters. Everybody can be involved in that.
3. Communication Skills – The skill to communicate effectively with one another is something kids can learn by being involved with outreach. Once again, those who may not consider themselves strong communicators can still be involved in outreach.
2. Collaboration – When you work together on outreach, you are helping to foster collaborative skills that will help kids with more valuable life skills.
1. God’s Command – As already discussed, God’s command is not just for grown-ups. Kids need to be involved in outreach too!
Tim Pollard teaches 3rd-6th graders at Tulip Grove Baptist Church. He’s passionate about helping kids dig deep into Scripture, which he pursues through his daily work as leader of the Explore the Bible: Kids team. Tim lives with his wife and daughters in Mount Juliet, TN.
