According to Coyote

My kids & I attended According to Coyote at the Children's Theatre.
Wow! We all loved it.
These were old spiritual stories. They were engaging.

My kids and I attend church regularly and hear the lectionary readings.
Wow! We're all bored.
These are old spiritual stories. They're a struggle to engaged with.

Why?
Is it the stories? I don't think so.
Is it the professional actress and professional support? I think there's more to it than that.

• Telling stories is different than reading stories aloud.
• A story teller or reader who engages deeply and fully (beyond mind and voice) engages listeners more deeply and fully.
• In church we take ourselves and our beliefs so seriously. We resist having fun and playing. We're not good at combining serious topics and serious fun, godliness and play.
• Stories benefit from the support of noticeable context, be it visual, auditory, historic, cultural, personal, etc.

How could we do more with this in church & in our families? Brainstorm some ideas. Let's do it .

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Proximity - Come on Down

How does being near or far the altar or front of church impact your involement?

What perspective do various positions give you?

Why do you pick the place to sit that you do?

Have you ever experimented with other places?

Have you participated in churches where physical seating had a different layout?



Read more at my post by the same title on Children in Church.