During the years of my own childhood, I witnessed the assassinations of U.S. President John F. Kennedy and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King. Within the church, I experienced a bitter church split that was played out in the local newspapers. A Sunday School teacher responded to my 10-year-old question, “How do you know God is real?” by throwing up her hands and sighing, “You just have to believe!”
Child disciples need more than simple answers: they need to be encouraged to think about, and reflect on, the nature of God so they can withstand the challenges they will inevitably face. We can help children grow into lifelong disciples — not by giving them answers, but by helping them think through their questions.
Biblical Foundation
Recently, Megan Fate Marshman spoke at my church and said, “Oftentimes divine encounters begin with a simple question. Questions open up the heart.” Easy answers can give us a sense of finality, of conclusion, while challenging questions invite reflection. Through questions, God has a chance to change us. Megan stated that Jesus asked 307 questions.
That piqued my curiosity, so I researched: Jesus did ask that many questions — and they were not simple ones! He asked curiosity questions, “how and why” questions, open ended questions, and challenging questions. A good listener asks good questions.
Jesus was asked 83 questions as recorded in the Gospels — but He only answered three of them directly! Let’s teach like Jesus did!
God respects the capacity of children. We must honor children by inviting their questions about God and helping them answer the questions — not us answering the questions for them, but helping children think through their answers.
Brain research supports the value of inviting children’s questions and getting them to think through the answers. Higher order thinking skills, analyzing, problem-solving, and theorizing are done in the Prefrontal Cortex (PFC) and trigger wisdom.
How Do We Facilitate that in the Classroom?
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Invite their questions. Use a question box in your ministry space or plan time for children to ask their questions about the Bible story you introduced. Don’t be discouraged if children don’t ask questions initially — they are used to adults being the ones to do so! Persevere, and after a few encounters, children will start to ask questions.
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Hold your tongue! Resist the temptation to give quick and easy answers. We do that so often because we are in a hurry, aware that we have much more content to cover. When children ask a question, they usually already have a theory about what the answer is, and they are only asking us to validate their theory. Let’s stop, listen to their questions, then turn it around by asking, “Tell me what you think?”
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Follow up with questions that nudge them to go deeper in their analysis and synthesis. I still rely on the framework for cognitive development that Benjamin Bloom proposed many years ago.
Think about this: Most of the questions in classrooms (80%) are knowledge and comprehension level questions such as, “How many giraffes did Noah put in the ark?” All those do is check if the children actually understood the story. They don’t invite children to think. More complex questions can be answered by five-year-olds— let’s not insult their capacity to think.
- Toss the lesson plan for the day when they ask the hardest, deepest questions, like “How do you know God is real?” Give them the time such important questions demand.
Try these kinds of follow ups:
- Why do you think God is real? How did you get that information?
- What do you wonder about God?
- What kind of proof would you like to have?
- What kinds of proof have we already been given?
- How do you come to believe something new, like, that a new person at school will become a trustworthy good
friend? How have we gotten that kind of information about Jesus? - AFTER children come to the biblical conclusion, it’s helpful to share relevant Bible stories, such as doubting Thomas in John 20. Ask, “How did Jesus respond? Did He honor Thomas’ unbelief?”
I used to lead a Sunday School class of eight-year-olds. Living in a small town, I was able to stay connected as the children grew.
When a former student was in high school, she came to me and said, “Ms. Wendy, may I talk with you? I am afraid of some of my questions about God!” I quickly responded, “Never be afraid of your questions. If God is, He will always be the answer to your deepest
questions!” THEN, I asked, “Tell me more about what you are wondering?”
Reference:
[1] Megan Fate Marshman; June 1, 2025 Message, Southwest Church, Indian Wells, CA
[2] Bloom, Benjamin S. Ed. Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. Handbook I: Cognitive Objectives. 1956. Ann Arbor, MI: David McKay, Edwards Bros.
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