Our Kids Ministry at The Austin Stone has long been centered around something we call the “6 Basic Truths.” Years ago, we set out to summarize the gospel into a few kid-friendly and easy-to-memorize statements, in hopes that our kids could recite the gospel to themselves and share it with others. These six truths are:
To aid in memorization, we also paired a color and a picture with each truth. Through incorporating these truths into our weekly curriculum and building resources around them, we have seen many kids be able to recite the gospel to our volunteers and have heard stories of kids sharing these truths at their schools and sports teams. We are so thankful for how God has used this simple tool to shape the theology of our children at The Stone.
However, as effective as these truths have been, we have desired to see these truths go beyond mere head-knowledge. We long for kids to love and live out these doctrines, not just know them. And that’s why I’m so excited about our upcoming Only Jesus album – the first-ever kids album from Austin Stone Worship. Six of the ten songs on this album are written based on these six basic truths:
It’s one thing for kids to know that God made everything, including them. It’s another thing entirely for them to be singing the opening lyrics to “You Made Everything”:
You made everything / and You made me.
And everything that You have made / is for Your glory.
You made everything / and You made me.
The breath I breathe, the song I sing / is for Your glory!
This song moves Basic Truth #1 from passive knowledge to active worship. I can’t wait to see how God uses this album in our Sunday program and in the homes of our families to help kids know and love the great truths of Scripture!
Check out more resources for kids ministry here!
