Here’s a creative idea for reaching the children of your church. My son-in-law is a pastor on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi. He gives a children’s sermon every Sunday. During the summer months he does something the kids (and adults!) of his church love. He calls it the “mystery box.” Here’s how it works.

The mystery box is just a shoebox covered in bright wrapping paper. Each Sunday my son-in-law gives the empty box to a randomly selected child. The child takes the mystery box home and brings it back the following Sunday with something inside. The rule is that the child can put anything s/he wishes inside the box, but obviously it must be able to fit in the box and it can’t be anything alive or at one time alive. Also the child cannot get the help of an adult, and s/he must not tell anyone what’s inside the box.

The next Sunday, the child brings the mystery box to church. When it’s time for the children’s sermon, the child hands the box to the pastor who must open the box, show the congregation what’s inside, and come up with a short children’s object lesson on the spot. Some of the objects in the box pose quite a challenge but it’s a fun way for my son-in-law to show the kids how the Bible speaks to anything.