Bible Storytelling for the Win!

By Sarah Humphrey

Several days a week, I sit down with our kids to teach a devotion for our “family style” portion of school. We sit at the kitchen table while the kids are usually doodling, squishing slime, or forming Play Doh creations, and we dive into a verse or story from the Bible that will guide our day.

My kids ask a lot of questions during this time! They come up with things I would have never thought to ask, they always want to know more details, and they really enjoy a “real life” example. It’s times like these that my heart starts to smile, and I simply say to them: “If you want to love all of life, then learn to love your Bible. It’s in the Bible that God gives us directions, stories, encouragement, and correction for how to live the best way. It’s almost like getting the test before you have to take it!” 

They’ve looked at me wide-eyed and said, “Really?!”

Yes! Really!

We have the best book and the best Dad to learn from. He left us a manual, not only with instructions but also with endless stories of regular people who lived normal and yet extraordinary lives.  Every person that God mentions in His book is a person like you and me. No matter where we’ve messed up, been wronged, or done it right, we can relate to someone in Scripture.  God loves to take ordinary people and make their lives extraordinary.  It all comes down to knowing His stories in His Word, and then hiding the truth in our hearts.

Though it’s a process, the gift of storytelling the Bible is one of the most valuable tools we have with young kids today.  As humans, we are enamored by art, song, color, companionship, relational difficulties, and heroic tales– and the Bible is full of that! If we’re looking for strength and growth, we can look at the depth and honesty of Paul’s encouragement.  If we want to know more about leadership or history, we can study the Kings and Queens of Scripture.  If we want to be inspired by art and nature, we can dive into the wonder of the creation story and how God spoke with His voice to make our world. If we want to know how to be kind, loving, and truthful, we can find endless stories of Jesus healing his friends and taking them with Him to learn more. There is something in the Bible for everyone: hope, encouragement, discipline, joy, grace, mercy, and stories of people who started with nothing and then built a legacy of life.

So the next time your kids need to be reminded that their struggles or their day matters, help them find themselves in a person or story of the Bible!  See how God responds in their midst. See how Jesus brings resolution to a seemingly difficult problem.  Allow the Holy Spirit to speak to you all with His still, small voice as you unravel the words from our God-breathed gift of Scripture.  As your kids learn the art of doing this on a regular basis, the Living Word will dwell within them (Colossians 3:16), and it becomes exactly the encouragement we all need.

Color the Biblical details with fun and simplicity.  Be honest with your life and how God has helped and come through for you as you’ve lived out real scenes from Scripture in everyday happenings. It won’t take long for your kids to see how comforting and true the love of God is. He is faithful, and His stories will live in them for their lifetime. So cuddle on up, and open the Book! Enjoy both the peace and the presence of His story in you.

Sarah is a wife and homeschool mom to three kids while also working as an artist, author, and voice actor.  Her writing and doodling can be found in her devotional, “40 Days to a Joyful Motherhood” and her voice in several commercials, children’s books, and audiobooks.