Since faith is technically invisible, it can be pretty tough to explain to children. One way of teaching children the importance of faith is through an object lesson which involves first defining faith as the complete confidence or trust in something or someone else. So, the parts of the Bible that discuss faith in God mean that people should put all their hope and confidence in God. An object lesson of faith would be to imagine sitting down in a chair and thinking about the way people show faith in the chair holding them when they decide to sit down on it. The chair example is a good example because it shows faith, but since people sit down in chairs all the time, this example doesn’t really show the strong faith that is needed for those who put their faith in God.
Faith in God requires believers to obey Him even when they cannot see the end and know that God knows best. A stronger object lesson example for children that shows faith in God involves having one of the children stand on the side of you and pull out a blindfold that none of the kids knew about. Then explain to the children that faith is not being able to see the same way the blindfolded child on the side is not able to see; it’s listening to God and trusting that He will help to lead everyone exactly where they need to go.
To use this lesson to make the children see how faith in God works, you should first spin the blindfolded child around a few times so that they are not really sure which way to walk. Then, give the blindfolded child instructions on where to walk, and every so often, make it so that the child almost runs into something but then makes a turn and doesn’t run into the object because of the instructions you are giving to him/her. Finally, you tell the blindfolded child to sit down without first feeling for a chair or something to sit down on in a place that previously had no chair. Quietly place a chair behind the child and have the blindfolded child sit, then allow them to take the blindfold off and receive applause and praise for their help. After that, the lesson ends by explaining to the children that just as the blindfolded helper had to listen for instructions to ensure they would not get hurt, we all must listen to God to ensure we follow the right path to safety and love.
