Flannel Board Lessons

It’s common in Christian circles today to make fun of “flannel board Jesus” and all the flannel board characters and stories of our childhood. I grew up in a small First Baptist Church in a rural community in South Texas. Some of my earliest memories are of lessons taught with the aid of a flannel board. For the uninitiated, a flannel board was set up on an easel, must like a blackboard, and the various characters and necessary props for storytelling were cut from other flannel pieces and affixed to the board as the stories progressed. I must have heard most Bible stories for the first time in that room with the flannel board. We would sit on miniature chairs, at a large round table decorated with a patchwork of colorful shag carpet pieces covered by Plexiglas. It’s in that setting that I first remember hearing about Solomon. King Solomon. Wise Solomon. Solomon who knew better than to cut babies in half, but told two fighting women that he would do just that if they didn’t tell the truth. Mrs. McElroy, “Mrs. Mac” for short, told us that God gave Solomon permission to ask Him for anything the young king desired. Solomon could have asked for great wealth and prosperity, for health and length of days, or for victories in battle and great fame. But, Solomon asked God for wisdom, and it pleased God very much. I didn’t know it when I first heard the story, but James 1:5 says that “If any man lacks wisdom, he should ask God who gives generously to all without finding fault.” Wisdom is a greatly esteemed virtue throughout scripture. I can picture my preschool age Sunday School self sitting in a miniature plastic chair around the shag carpet table studying a flannel King Solomon kneeling before the Lord, asking for wisdom. I am not at all certain how in the world I comprehended such things from such youth, but I remember being so impressed that Solomon’s request for wisdom pleased God in such a way that God granted Solomon wisdom … as well as fortune, health, and fame. That’s the first time I remember praying for wisdom. God, make me wise. God, give me the wisdom to choose the things that please you. God, help me to be someone you can bless. I’d be lying if I told you I “feel” wise. I don’t. But, sometimes, when I’m visiting with a friend in crisis, my heart repeats those early petitions for God to grant me wisdom from above, and I hear myself offering counsel that could only come from His very Spirit. Friends say to me, “You are wise beyond your years,” or come to my home specifically in search of wisdom. It might seem tempting to grow arrogant about such things, but God has been gracious to me. Each time I hear someone comment about the wisdom they have gained from me, I am humbled. I see a child in a frilly dress with matching hairbows, head bowed over folded hands asking God to grant her wisdom just like He did for the flannel board King Solomon.