Starting Strong: Thriving in the First Years of Preaching
Aug 4, 2026 · 48 min · 15 segments
Send us Fan Mail **Season 2, Episode 6: Kids Talks with Ian Jones** How do you explain big truths to little people? And how can a children's talk…
Ian JonesGuestOllieHostMattHostBut perhaps if we go right back to the start or foundations to-
... begin with.
When you hear kids' talk, what is it? What is it not?
Do you want to give us a, a-
So some of the things that I think it is, I think it's, um, a, a teaching moment in, in, in the worship service.
Um, and it's, it's-- Wh-when I say a teaching moment, it, it is, um, something that kids can connect to.
And it's kind of a recognition that the corporate worship, that when we gather for worship, it's for everybody, from the youngest to the oldest.
And so it's, it's really a way of saying, "Kids, you're welcome here, and so we want to include you." Um, it is directed often, it's usually directed at the kids.
But, um, I've recently kind of been told that it's actually- Directed at the kids, but it's for the parents often to give them a language, to give them tools to be able to communicate the gospel clearly to their kids.
And so it's g- often just a weekly example, how can I explain the gospel to my kids? How can I explain this passage to my kid? So it is for the whole congregation, and so it's hopefully very accessible for the whole congregation as well.
Um, and I often hear people talk about the kids' talk in, you know, with feedback from those who have done it or, or f- feedback to me, that for people who perhaps are new Christians, um, people whose English isn't their first language, that actually I get-- sometimes I get a bit more out of the kids' talk [chuckles] than I do out of the sermon, or maybe not quite that extent.
But they really appreciate the kids' talk because often it is just condensing the s- the sermon down to three to five minutes that is very clear and, uh, really just gets to the big idea of what the sermon will be later on.
It's often just the big, big idea of the sermon being clearly articulated somehow.
But perhaps if we go right back to the start or foundations to-
... begin with.
When you hear kids' talk, what is it? What is it not?
Do you want to give us a, a-
So some of the things that I think it is, I think it's, um, a, a teaching moment in, in, in the worship service.
Um, and it's, it's-- Wh-when I say a teaching moment, it, it is, um, something that kids can connect to.
And it's kind of a recognition that the corporate worship, that when we gather for worship, it's for everybody, from the youngest to the oldest.
And so it's, it's really a way of saying, "Kids, you're welcome here, and so we want to include you." Um, it is directed often, it's usually directed at the kids.
But, um, I've recently kind of been told that it's actually- Directed at the kids, but it's for the parents often to give them a language, to give them tools to be able to communicate the gospel clearly to their kids.
And so it's g- often just a weekly example, how can I explain the gospel to my kids? How can I explain this passage to my kid? So it is for the whole congregation, and so it's hopefully very accessible for the whole congregation as well.
Um, and I often hear people talk about the kids' talk in, you know, with feedback from those who have done it or, or f- feedback to me, that for people who perhaps are new Christians, um, people whose English isn't their first language, that actually I get-- sometimes I get a bit more out of the kids' talk [chuckles] than I do out of the sermon, or maybe not quite that extent.
But they really appreciate the kids' talk because often it is just condensing the s- the sermon down to three to five minutes that is very clear and, uh, really just gets to the big idea of what the sermon will be later on.
It's often just the big, big idea of the sermon being clearly articulated somehow.
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