Joas, my two-and-a-half year old grandson’s favourite stories in song are ‘Dikkertje Dap’ and ‘David and Goliath.’ Undoubtedly the ending with ‘boom’ makes it great fun. Dikkertje Dap is able to add an aww, but Goliath remains silent. What usually happens when the story is read and the song is sung, he shouts ‘again!’ And sometimes he can be persistent even pressing us to sing it 10 times!
The great Biblical truth we learn from toddlers, is that effective teaching comes through stories which we hear again and again. I believe the church, broken away from its Jewish roots, has focused too much on doctrine and abstract truths. But reading, hearing and studying the great Bible stories, we learn so much about who God is and who we are and who we are called to be. So please: read and hear it again and again!
Pastor Gilbert van Bueren
PS: ”Dikkertje Dap” is a well known Dutch nursery rhyme. Find it on YouTube and enjoy Dutch with your kids!
