Take Captive Negative Thoughts

          This past week, I had the privilege of leading a workshop to help camp counselors learn to have "God talks" with their campers. One of the participants posed the question, "What you do if the kid knows more about the Bible than you?" Another asked, "What if they ask you something and you don't know the answer?" These questions cross the mind of pretty much every person who considers working with children or teens. Too often, these fears will keep people from taking part in ministry. 

          This past week, I had the privilege of leading a workshop to help camp counselors learn to have "God talks" with their campers. One of the participants posed the question, "What you do if the kid knows more about the Bible than you?" Another asked, "What if they ask you something and you don't know the answer?" These questions cross the mind of pretty much every person who considers working with children or teens. Too often, these fears will keep people from taking part in ministry. 

          When these thoughts creep into our minds we need to heed the advice from 2 Corinthians 10:3-5. Arguments against the knowledge of God are not just from outside the body. Most often, the hardest arguments to dispel in a spiritual battle are the internal ones. That's why Paul instructs the church in Corinth to take every thought captive to obey Christ. After yielding these thoughts to God, focus on His truth and fill your mind with what is honoring to God and His peace will protect you (Philippians 4:6-9). There are many great promises God gives to us as believers like: we can do all things through Him (Philippians 4:13; Proverbs 16:3); He will guide us (Proverbs 3:5-6; Psalm 37:5); He will always be with us (Hebrews 13:5)

          Satan enjoys reminding us of an inadequacies. When we feel defeated, we will not be productive for Christ. It is essential to yield these thoughts to God and allow Him to use our weaknesses for His glory. What is really fantastic is that He will, every time. 2 Corinthians 12:9.         

          So what do you do if the child has more Bible knowledge than you? First, make sure their "knowledge" is correct. Check their information against the Bible to make sure they were properly informed and they reiterated correctly. A good way to accomplish this without being demeaning to the child is to introduce them to the way of the Berean (Acts 17:11). Second, learn from them. This is a great opportunity to display to the rest of the group how you learn from each other.