I remember trying to lead a discussion. Students were not particularly engaged. Getting them to respond was like putting extra thick ketchup on French fries. A couple of boys started giggling. It took me a moment to figure out what they were laughing about. A little spider was inching close to the foot of one of the girls. She looked down to see why the boys were laughing, saw the spider, and screamed. The class descended into chaos.

This may seem like a ridiculous problem, but I am amazed at how often little distractions can get a Bible study off track. Maybe you deal with similar problems. Some Sunday mornings it seems like you just go from one distraction to the next.

So, how do you keep kids from getting distracted?

In my experience, you can’t. Teenagers are curious and are beginning to find humor in the oddest places. When someone pokes his head into the room and then leaves again, they can spend ten minutes talking about what the person was looking at, why he came to the room, and who on earth that guy was anyway.

If distractions are inevitable, how do you handle them? You will probably have to work out your own methods, but here are some ideas that have been helpful for me.

• Acknowledge the distraction. I’ve tried ignoring the distraction in the hopes that students would also ignore it. That tactic hasn’t worked for me. Students tend to keep laughing under their breath and nudging each other—especially the younger guys. After a girl screams, try a comment like, “A little afraid of spiders?”
• Don’t take the distraction too seriously. If you laugh along with students, they are more likely to be ready to get back into the lesson with you. I used to teach this class that met in a room at the back of the auditorium. Inevitably, just as I was trying to make the point of the lesson, the organ would start to play. The irony was not lost on the guys in my class. I don’t think they would have heard what I was trying to say if I had scolded them for not being serious. Instead, we would laugh, then I would say, “Okay, here’s what I was trying to say.”
• If you can find a way to use the distraction, do it. Suppose you are teaching about Simon Peter walking on water with Jesus when the girl screams. You might say something like, “I think Christina was trying to demonstrate how Simon Peter felt when he started to sink.” Let them laugh, then say, “But seriously, what do you think it would have been like for Peter?”

Ultimately, our students probably remember more about how we handle distractions than about the lessons we teach. Bible study that allows them to laugh a little can communicate that you understand them and love them. Refocusing on the lesson also communicates love for them. It helps them to see that you value the things you are teaching them and believe in what you are saying.

Of course, the toughest distractions are the students who constantly interrupt to try to get the lesson off track. I’ll write about that next week.