Storytelling - An Ancient Art That Inspires and Nurtures Civilization
For centuries, our ancestors have passed information down from one generation to the next. It wasn't always as easy as heading down to Wal-Mart and stocking up on inkjet printers and computers to save a story in digital form.
Storytelling was the media of choice when it came to teaching everything - from the laws to the Biblical messages of redemption and spirituality. For children, especially, Bible stories were a form of entertainment that helped them remember ideas and ingrain lessons into their still-developing minds.
As a parent, storytelling can be a wonderful way to bond with your child. You'll notice their eyes light up, questions forming, and lightbulbs going off as they learn to believe the words you pass on to them.
Some storytelling is done via a high-media format, like animation. There's an Animiated Bible that takes all of the beloved children's tales and turns them into a format most kids can connect to these days.
But that doesn't mean you have to forego one-on-one conversations and storytelling with your child. In this lens, you'll find several children's Biblical stories that you can print out and read aloud to your child, and links to my blog where you can access more storytelling ideas!
The Story of Abraham and the 12 Tribes of Israel
Abram and his wife Sarai could not have children. They wanted to have a family, but a baby was never born. Abram and Sarai grew to be very old, and they began to believe they would never have a child.Then, one day God came to Abram. He told Abram, "One day soon, you shall have a child. You shall have a big family, and you will be the father to a great nation. Your family will be very prosperous and will go on to create many nations of people!"
"But I am already 100 years old!" Abram protested, "And Sarai is 90! She can't have a child at that age!" He could not believe that this could happen.
God said to him, "Obey my word, and it shall be so." He also told Abram that from now on, he would be named Abraham, and his wife Sarai would become Sarah.
And, so it came to pass. Soon, they had a son and they named him Isaac. They were very happy, and everyone who knew Abraham and Sarah rejoiced!
Isaac grew, and when he was a boy, God came to Abraham. He said to Abraham, "I asked you to obey me, and promised that your family would be the kings of nations, so now I want you to do something." Abraham listened. He was eager to do what the Lord said for him to do.
But it was something terrible! "I want you to kill your only son, Isaac!" It was too horrible for words! Abraham was stunned. But, there was nothing he could do. God had spoken, and Abraham must obey. Abraham knew that the Lord sometimes did things we men could not understand. And so, he went to find Isaac. He would do what he had been commanded by his Lord.
But, before he murdered the boy, God came to him again. "Abraham," said God, "I do not want you to murder your only son. It was a test of your faith to me. You have shown that you are faithful." With tears streaming down his face, Abraham thanked God. Then, he took Isaac up in his arms and held him tightly.
Isaac grew to be a strong young man who was a skilled bow hunter. He went to live in the land of Paran. He had a big family with many, many children. His descendents became the Jewish people of today.
If you liked this child Bible story check out the Animated Kid's Bible site, where you can download and print out many child bible stories for free.
The Story of Noah, His Wife and the Great Flood
God also knew Noah. He knew Noah had a good heart, and that is why he chose him for a special task. You see, at this time the world had turned bad. People everywhere were ignoring the word of God and doing terrible things to each other. The world was full of sin.
So, one day God came to Noah. "Noah," he said, "I have a special job for you. I want you to build an ark. The ark must be 300 cubits long."
"300 cubits?" Noah asked. That was a very big boat!
"Yes," God told him. "It must be 300 cubits and no less. This ark will have a very special purpose." Noah was never one to question God, so he set about building the ark.
When the ark was finished, God told Noah, his wife, and his 2 sons Shem Ham and Japheth and their wives, to get on board. He also gave Noah animals to take on his journey. He brought at least 2 of each animal, a male and female, so that they could have children.
Noah and his family stood on board waiting for God's next words. It began to rain. God closed the big door of the ark. He said nothing more.
It rained. And, it rained. And, it rained. It kept raining for 40 days and 40 nights, until the whole world was covered in water. Even the highest mountain peaks were below the water. All the people and animals of the earth drowned and died. All except for Noah, his family, and the animals on the ark.
One day the rain stopped. Then, the water began to lower. Soon, Noah could see the peaks of the mountains.
Noah sent a dove from the ark to fly around the world. It came back a few days later with an olive leaf in its beak. Noah and his family looked at each other and smiled. They were happy because this olive leaf meant there were trees and plants again!
Soon, God came to Noah again. The great door of the ark was opened, and before it stood dry land, full of plants and animals, for as far as the eye could see.
Noah was more faithful to God than ever. He made an altar for Him and prayed at this altar every day.
For Noah, God made the rainbow. God promised that he would never again destroy everything on the earth, and this rainbow is a sign of this promise.
Whenever you see a rainbow, think of Noah's faithfulness in God and God's promise to Noah!
The Story of Moses and the 10 Commandments
The Ten Commandments, or Decalogue, are a list of religious and moral imperatives that, according to Judeo-Christian tradition, were written by God and given to Moses on the mountain referred to as "Mount Sinai" () or "Horeb" () in the form of two stone tablets. They feature prominently in Judaism and Christianity. In Biblical Hebrew language, the commandments are termed ???? ?????? (translit. Aseret ha-Dvarîm) and in Rabbinical Hebrew ???? ?????? (translit. Aseret ha-Dibrot), both translatable as "the ten statements." The name "Decalogue" is derived from the Greek name ????????? or "dekalogos" ("ten statements") found in the Septuagint (, ), which is the Greek translation of the Hebrew name.In Biblical Hebrew language, the commandments are termed ???? ?????? (translit. Aseret ha-Dvarîm) and in Rabbinical Hebrew ???? ?????? (translit. Aseret ha-Dibrot), both translatable as "the ten statements." The name "Decalogue" is derived from the Greek name ????????? or "dekalogos" ("ten statements") found in the Septuagint (, ), which is the Greek translation of the Hebrew name.
The phrase "Ten Commandments" generally refers to the very similar passages in Exodus and Deuteronomy . Some distinguish between this "Ethical Decalogue" and a series of ten commandments in Exodus 34 that are labeled the "Ritual Decalogue".
The commandments passage in Exodus contains more than ten imperative statements, totalling fourteen or fifteen in all. However, the Bible itself assigns the count of "ten" to the list, using the Hebrew phrase aseret hadvarim.The uses of the phrase aseret had'varim'' are at , , and . For alternative theory to what these verse may be referring to see Ritual Decalogue Various religions divide these statements among the Commandments in different ways, and may also translate the Commandments differently.
Do You Think Bible Stories Should Be Taught in School?
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Do Animated Bibles Have a Bigger Impact on Our Kids Today?
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How can we teach Biblical stories of Old Testament to our children while the OT is full inappropriate stories like Incest, Lust, sex, foul languages etc...?
Posted June 12, 2008
How can we teach Biblical stories of Old Testament to our children while the OT is full inappropriate stories like Incest, Lust, sex, foul languages etc...?
Posted June 12, 2008
