We held a number of children's camps in Africa. One girl, Kathy, had been to all four camps. She knew all the right answers and could have told the gospel story backwards but she never made any visible response. As the camps were drawing to a close, one of the leaders asked her if she wouldn't like to be a Christian. She seemed surprised and said she was a Christian already. The leader was concerned to know if she had really made a commitment to Jesus and so asked, "If God said, 'Why should I let you into my heaven,' what would you say?" She stared blankly and didn't answer the question or say anything about forgiveness and repentance, the answers that were expected. The leader asked again. Still no response. Finally, one more time: "If God said, 'Why should I let you into my heaven,' what would you say?" She seemed quite distressed to be asked again and blurted out: "Why should I have to say anything? He'll recognise me. I'll just run into his arms!"
Kathy had seen something that the leader, for all his training, had not seen. She understood what it means to be a disciple. Though only in her twenties, Kathy died last year. I know she didn't have to answer silly questions, she would have run straight into his arms.
-From "Chapter Six: Some Stories" in Toddling to the Kingdom, ed. by John Collier. London: Child Theology Movement. 2009. Website: www.childtheology.org
Don't waste time thinking about the poor work of the teacher. Reflect instead of the capacity of the child. Remember an incident in your own life in which a child taught or inspired you to deeper levels of comprehension...
And the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple and He healed them. But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He had done, and the children who were shouting in the temple, "Hosanna to the Son of David," they became indignant and said to Him, "Do you hear what these children are saying?" And Jesus said to them, "Yes, have you never read, 'Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babies You have prepared praise for Yourself'?" -Matthew 21:14-16.
