What People Are Saying About 36 Parables:
I've been a "36 Parable guy" from the beginning... mostly using them with my youth group (who absolutely LOVES them!). However, I recently finished a sermon series called "GROW UP: Jesus' Parables on Growth"... and our closing parable was the Barren Fig Tree. I was able to use the piece "Sean" as the intro to my sermon. It was the perfect lead-in to the message... and allowed the people to start 'thinking outside the box' on interpreting the parable. Plus, as always the production value was excellent. 36 Parables is top notch, relevant & engaging! Mahalo nui loa! www.aumc.us"
- Jim White (Aiea, Hawaii)
"You asked about adults. I only use the videos with adults - in worship, and in a parables study during Lent, which is mostly adults but one mature teen. They're really excellent; spark marvelous conversation! "
- Beth Galbreath
"My name is Shibu Mathew and I am the Director of Jr. High Ministry at Heartland Community Church in Overland Park, KS. Currently I am a 2nd year seminary student in MAP (Ministry Apprenticeship Program) at Heartland. I have had a lot of success in using 36 parables Yellow with my Junior High Youth Group. These films are an extremely relevant way to communicate the life-changing truths of Jesus. Our students love these films; and they keep asking when we can watch the next one. I've used 'Yellow' in a few different settings; both to lead into discussions about the Biblical text and as a visual before I begin teaching. As our church strives to be relevant to the world we live in, 36 Parables helps us to communicate the stories of Jesus in ways we have not before."
- Shibu Mathew
"I have 4 of the 36 parables. I downloaded them from your website. I teach at a Christian high school and I used them to lead 4 weeks of devotions for the students. The high school students enjoyed the videos. The videos were well done - "not corny". They displayed a good sense of humour. Our favourite was "buen vecino". The videos were good starting points for lots of discussion. I also used the PDFs to lead the small the group discussion. Thanks for your excellent work!"
- Dianne Van Rooyen
"i used the parable of the push ups for my churches jr. high ministries sunday school class. i gave this story to my pastor and he said that it would be a huge help and that it was a really neat parable. i thought it was really cool, and it was a very moving story."
- Naz Girl SE
"While participating in 2 earlier sessions using 36 Parables in our adult Sunday Small Group and leading 1 session, I found that the DVD stories were to the point and brought home the messages of the parables in a present-day situation. Besides that, they have been crafted skillfully. The background material and questions in the associated PDFs lent themselves to thought-provoking discussion within the class. "
- Joe Christoffel
"Many thanks to you for your weekly inspirational messages and keeping us updated on what's happening with The 36 Parables. May Father God abundantly bless you and The 36 Parables ministry as the good work of spreading the gospel and salvation of His Son, Jesus Christ, is "performed" through a "popular medium" of which the secular world is likely to turn a curious ear (and eye) to...and, God willing, will produce an abundance of "good fruit" for the honor and glory of our LORD! Shalom! "
- Hope Pryor
"Please do the rich young ruler--and use a teenager"
- Terri Orr
"Praise God for your willingness to communicate Christ's stories! Thanks so much! The account worked great with the download of the video and the Bible study. My wife showed the video to her reading class at our Christian international school here in Bangkok. The kids had a lot of questions like . . . 1. Why was the "owner" so mean? 2. The guy who didn't paint, didn't look like an artist. 3. Why didn't the guy paint? 4. What was the point of the video? 5. Why was the video named, "Buried Talent"? Needless to say, we had some explaining to do! We opened God's Word, and then started applying it to their lives. The Holy Spirit planted seeds . . . What will we paint on the canvas of our lives? Each of us has been given a blank canvas - our life here on earth. The Bible says that our time here on earth is a gift from God (whether we are Buddhists, Sihks, Muslims, or other religions - God has blessed all of us with today, and with life, energy, and talent). The Owner will be coming & his reward is with him! Jesus is coming sooner than we expect! (the fact that the owner was coming at an unknown hour) So what will we do with our talents, our time, and our lives today? Will we accept the golden gift of Grace to color our lives? Or will we miss the golden opportunity to paint God's loving character, His justice & mercy - by wasting our time playing video games, watching bad movies, etc.? I can't wait to get back stateside to see the other videos that you've mailed to us! -- Let's Uplift Christ! "
- Bangkok Church Planters
"I lead the Jr High Student Ministry for my church. I came up with a series idea I call "Truth AND Dare". Many kids like to play "Truth or Dare". My idea is to teach them the Truth that Jesus taught and then Dare them to follow it. Through discussions with adults who have had trouble understanding some of the parables themselves I thought the parables would be the basis of the series. Of course I began my research by digging through the gospels myself to create a comphrehensive list. It was when I started looking on Google for any material that might be a help that I came across 36parables.com. I'm using them as an intro to my lessons and use some of the bible study pdf questions along with many of my own. I can hardly wait until ALL the videos are done and that I can hardly wait to introduce the videos to the small groups as well."
- Ryan Duffy
"I am a big fan of the 36 Parable Series! The films really help me understand what Jesus meant when he shared stories in the Bible for us to live by. We have had great discussions because of films and can't wait for the rest of the series to become available. We also think the acting is great! It's like watching a short movie."
- Caitie Yoder
"I use 36 Parables because participants get more from my seminars when the sessions include a variety of communication media. I have used 36 Parables videos in several of my Stewardship workshops and the response has been nothing short of sensational – and right across the age spectrum from teenagers to seniors. The 36 Parables videos bring the gospel alive in the context of the 21st century where people spend their daily lives. Participants have enjoyed the contemporary gospel messages in the videos very much. Based on my experience, 36 Parables helps stimulate reflection and discussion in a creative and dynamic way."
- Steve Foran
"We enjoyed "Spilt Milk" quite a bit. Our church (Hosanna! Christian Fellowship in Lititz, PA) recently began a multi-week series on Jesus' parables, and this past Sunday, the sermon began with your video. The congregation enjoyed it quite a bit, laughing (and/or groaning) at all the right spots! It also helped that the little boy strongly resembled the son of our worship pastor! I'm sure we'll be back."
- Jeff & Jeannine Burkholder
"I have been showing these DVD's to a group of mostly older adults (over 60). They are people who have studied these parables over and over again. They have loved the films - and received fresh insight! The senior High School class that meets next door got curious - so now they're beginning to watch them too. Thanks for a wonderfully creative and well executed idea."
- Dr. Deborah Stevens
"As a public high school English teacher, I am not allowed to use the “36 Parables” films to teach biblical concepts. However, I am able to use the short films as a teaching tool for literary devices. So far I have shown 3 of the 9 available films. I have used “Buen Vecino”, “Out of Reach”, and “Found” to teach plot elements: exposition, rising action, climax, similes, protagonist, antagonist and metaphors. This makes an explicit introductory lesson lasting 15 minutes at the most, perfect for high school students with short attention spans."
- Rebecca Redwine
"Cyan - loved it. You guys are really starting to find a rhythm with this project, it seems. Spilt milk - the image of the chunky milk coming out of the container - and out of the boy's mouth - will stick in my head for a while! (And because I'm a Trader Joe's fan, the fact that the TJ milk was fresh in contrast to the other stuff wasn't lost on me. I hope you got some product placement bucks from Joe's for that one!) Loved the boy looking right into the camera toward the end of the video! a few weeks later - Watching this man mechanically processing all of his wife's stuff brought back memories of doing this task when my dad died a few years ago - right down to the casual "Why don't you just take some of this?" comment to the neighbor. I found myself getting a bit restless as I watched this - where was this man's emotion? You had me waiting for it for what felt like a long time in the story arc. When he finally broke down at the end, after feeding the birds - the image of crumbs contrasted with the piles of stuff was just perfect! - I actually got a bit choked up myself. This was my experience with my dad's belongings, as well. And that final shot of the windows....bulls eye. You caught the essence of this parable perfectly. Beyond Beautiful - Who doesn't love a love story? Though the set up for the date had to navigate all of the questions with exposition about why this beyond beautiful girl didn't have a date for "Much Ado" (a clever choice) - once you got us in the rhythm of watching Charlie watch the clock, I was hooked. This sense of rightness and responsibility - of doing the right thing even if our first inclination is to bag out - is at once an accurate statement about the frailty of human nature as well as a look at the thing Jesus values most - not our words, but our actions in response to Him. Loved the payoff - a promise of a really happy ending for Charlie and his blind date. I am so thrilled to see what God is doing through your team. These stories ARE God's story, being told in our lives. In Him,"
- Michelle Van Loon"I was talking to the senior pastor of my church last Thursday. He was working on a sermon to be delivered Sunday – a sermon of hope and healing in the aftermath of the Virginia Tech massacre. We wondered together if there were youth and young adults in our midst that we should be reaching out to in love. I told him about my favorite and most cherished episode of 36 Parables, “Sean”. He asked to borrow it from my lending library as a sermon illustration. I was so glad I had one of my three copies of “Purple” available. Usually, they are all checked out. Part of “Sean” was included in the sermon and it had a big impact on people. It was the perfect mini-sermon to help people respond to the terrible events in Virginia. Thanks for your important work."
- Susan Dal Porto
"I stumbled across “Found” on the Internet maybe a year ago and had decided to buy when more were finished. Then I totally forgot how I found “Found”! I went on my own frantic search fearing that I had lost a jewel of a parable-retelling. I finally found it on YouTube with no credits, but with continued searching found an article about the project which led me to your website. Thank you for artfully retelling the parables. Your group impresses me again with how God will speak out in so many voices despite the many fears and traumas in this world. I’m sure the Spirit of Jesus has blessed all who worked on these parables as well as each one who now buys them. Keep it up! Do all 36! I am boosting them from my corner of the US."
- Principal Jim Weller
"Aloha, Stewart and the rest of the 36 Parables crew... My small group of Waipuna Chapel regulars met again tonight and interacted with the first video on Cyan: "Spilt Milk." Our group is getting very comfortable with this format. It is so rewarding to see since the majority of our members felt this was a very strange thing at the beginning. We did a wonderful job of interacting with the video, the scripture, and the study sheet. But what I really want to share with you is the prayer our facilitator had written out to use to begin our study tonight... Dear Lord, we are here to learn to be people of the light by studying your parables. They make the abstract concrete. They bring great principles of Christianity home to us in ways we can visualize. The parables you told us about 20 centuries ago still live. Please, Lord, help us to apply their timeless inspiration to our daily lives. Amen. Isn't that just great? I was blown away. This was written by a previously non-audio visual retired man in his 70's. I am thrilled. Once again, thanks for producing the tools for God to use to bring about this level of insight. Keep up the good work"
- Pastor Donn W. Anderson
"I’m not sure how I stumbled across “36 Parables.” I can tell you that we are using it for a summer series – and it promises to help us overcome a summer slump. We are coordinating both worship services AND Sunday School around the parables. It will be a multi-media extravaganza for us; video, live skits, discussion groups, games (for the younger ones) etc. Our drama team plan on presenting a one-person drama (skit) to the combined group, then we will separate into three groups (age appropriate) and experience the parable. Thanks! God bless,"
- Dr. Douglas R. Miller
"I am saddened that the next DVD will not be out until 2008. But whenever, I will be ordering it. I have used 36 Parables on youth retreats, School Chapels (elementary and high school), and a Bible study series with adults to help them rethink the parables in todays life. I think they are fastastic, and it really opens the groups up for discussion and soul searching. In fact, just this morning I gave my copy, I forget what color, but the one with "Buen Vecino" the remake of the Good Samaritan, to one of the faculty members of our High School. He asked me for resources on the parable. Keep up the good work, and I will pray that God would speed up the production of the next DVD. Blessing,"
- Pastor Jim Weller
"I am the church librarian at Epworth United Methodist Church in Indianapolis. I try to have a great selection of interesting, cutting-edge materials for our Sunday School classes to use. I anticipate that 36 Parables will be perfect for our youth programs and our Young Adult Sunday School class. What usually happens is that our older, more staid adult classes try the materials that the younger classes use in order to feel hip, and then end up growing and learning in new ways. Nearly half of our congregation is active in Sunday School classes (!) and I believe these DVDs will be enjoyed by most of them ultimately. I heard about 36 Parables from the resource librarian at the South Indiana Conference of the UMC, our governing body. If you have librarians on your side, you'll have many converts and supporters! Thank you for your good work,"
- Susy Murphy
"We have loved the 36 Parables DVD's we purchased and have used them for both high school and adult class studies. It creates a wonderful connection between kids/youth and adults when they know they've all studied the same thing and can discuss their encounters with the material. I stumbled upon 36 Parables when I found a copy of Cyan in our Presbytery's library last summer. I took it home to preview as a possible short-term study to finish up our summer Sunday school class for youth and was immediately taken by it. We promptly ordered the other two DVD's that were available and look forward to the release of future installments. Thanks so much for your ministry!"
- Dawn Raelene Flippin
"Purple - Out of Reach, The Car Lot and Sean were really good, especially Sean. We had a former high school nurse in our adult group and she added extra insight to this. I really appreciated the comments from the pastors and professors on these three themes. They gave a different perspective to them than we would have probably thought of. I feel of the two DVDs we have used so far that this was the best. We will be using Cyan next. Am anxiously awaiting any new ones. Our adult group of about 20 meet every Wednesday night at church. Feel this would work well with the high schoolers also. Thank you so much. Thank you."
- Shirley Kersten
"I have been teaching 6,7 or 8th grade Sunday school for the last five years. I decided last summer to really focus on the Parables with my 7th grade class this year. I went out looking for some teaching aides and found your video series on the Internet. I think that the videos are a fantastic teaching tool and the young people really like them. They look forward to the next DVD in the series. Their favorite so far is the good Samaritan one which they refer to simply as “Pool Boy“. If there is time at the end of Sunday school they will actually voluntarily watch it. I have wondered what it is about “ Pool Boy “ that they like so much. I have not asked them yet but I might try to get some answers from them later when they have seen more videos. Please send me any information, commentary or Bible studies that you have."
- Gerry Fahrenthold
"I just used the parable about 'Sean' in my sermon this past week. Absolutely positive affect all around. Really touched hearts. Youth and parents alike really responded. Many compliments on a newer style of preaching. Anyway.. thanks for your video's. They are going to be part of our overall approach to the new year. God Bless!"
- Pastor Rick Mills
"I watched all three films at home with my 19 year-old college student son on his X-Box 360 last night. He was captivated by "Beyond Beautiful" and was disappointed when it ended at 5 minutes. He didn't necessarily get the Biblical/scriptural connection and I didn't push it at this time. Later I will do that. He just loved the films as a strong piece of filmmaking. He could have gone for a feature length film with the storyline and the characters of Beyond Beautiful. I watch the documentary pieces this morning and they were helpful. I found the vineyard images for the Parable of the Two Sons quite amazing. Kudos on your screenwriting credit on "A Few Weeks Later". That one was just haunting. I also am fond of some particularly memorable shots such as the close up of the impish face of the kid in "Split Milk" looking into the refrig. Also, the Behind the Scenes really helped me critique a rough cut of a new film on Baptism which I received from United Methodist Communication today. The quality of the 36 Parables films has made me more discriminating on other things that I see. You guys have really raised the bar. Thanks & continued blessings,"
- Susan Dal Porto
"The videos are incredible. I am a Family Minister in Austin and have been using these as the basis for a class I’m teaching to high school students and their parents. We have over 200 teens and adults in that class and they are riveted by the videos. So well done and so to the point of the parable. I preached on New Year’s Eve Sunday to the church in the absence of the regular preacher on resolutions and used the parable of the fig tree as my text. After talking about the parable for a minute, we showed the video up on the big screens (Sean). The response afterward was tremendous. So many people were touched by that rendering of this parable! I know God used it to drive home very important points about giving someone a break and getting back in the game if one has been on the sidelines. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your work. Videos connect in a way words cannot and I will use them until I’m blue in the face or until they cease connecting! I’m looking forward to Amber and to the rest after that. This is Kingdom work God has laid on you and you have been and are being faithful. We are the beneficiaries of that."
- Rick McCall
"Aloha from Maui... Just wanted you to know how your efforts to bring Jesus' parables to contemporary life are touching people you never imagined. Several times a year I get the privilege of teaching men and women from developing countries all over the world how to use audio visuals for evangelism. Just this last week, I taught 58 women from over 30 countries. For our final workshop I had them focus in on the parable of the Good Samaritan. We looked at a "no tech" way to present it, a "medium tech way" and then a "high tech" method. Then I challenged them to literally see this parable in a whole new way. I showed them "Buen Vecino." How I wish you could have been in the room to watch all these internationals experience your creativity."
- Pastor Donn W. Anderson
"A lot of the stuff I see marketed for churches is kinda cheesy. The few segments I’ve been able to watch from you folks, however, has been anything but cheesy. The segment called ‘Found’ is so creative & disarming in its approach that I was immediately drawn into the story. That, I believe, is what made Jesus’ parables so powerful. Listeners were drawn into his stories. 36 Parables seems to be faithful to Jesus’ gift of storytelling."
- James A. White
"You gave us an opportunity to review your work and I really enjoyed your presentations. For Easter this year we we’re doing a “Lost & Found” theme. You’re Yellow feature entitled “Found” was just what we were looking for. We had the concept we wanted with appropriate music and Bible verses. We wanted a way to make it come alive visually. You helped us to do that. It was wonderful. Mature believers and new seekers were all moved by the piece. I find it makes preaching a sermon so much easier when people’s hearts have already been opened by artist experiences like yours before I take the podium. Thank you."
- Dr. David White
"Subject: Purple Got it. Love it. You nailed it. You just provided my next 3 weeks of Sunday morning scripture study curriculum."
- Drew Moser
"I ordered the first installment of parables a couple months ago. I wanted to say well done. The stories are great - the video done well - and the message enhanced through the new "filter" of the parables. Thank you for stepping out and doing something powerful and creative. I count my experience as very positive! Keep it up!"
- Jake Knodel
"Thank you for the opportunity to preview 36 Parables. Every person who viewed one or more of the vignettes was profoundly impressed with the work done. The message of each is so simply stated, yet so profound it the presentation. ACSI normally will not consider a video/DVD for inclusion in our catalog but 36 Parables is unique. We see its utility in the Christian school to be very appropriate. Nearly every content area would find these parables to be quite useful as an instructional component for the classroom. The three parables I have viewed are superbly done. They are authentically presented and accurately represent the biblical account. I cannot wait to put this product before our member schools."
- Steven C. Babbitt
"Recently I agreed to teach a class at our church. I began searching the web looking for good material to use. I found the run-of-the-mill stuff that provides a list of rhetorical questions or fill in the blank type forms and workbooks. I stumbled onto your videos being offered at another web site and soon realized that I had found exactly the kind of material I yearn to use and teach with. It has truly been a delight to use the videos as we've drunk deeply of the truths that Jesus taught. The variety is so refreshing and the freedom to teach the way I do fits with the videos like hand in glove. Thanks so much for your labor of love in producing this series."
- Clayton Gibbs
"I loved these videos! They all made sense. For people like me who have trouble understanding the Bible these would be really good for them."
- Grace - High School Freshman
"I enjoyed watching the parables. Most of them made sense to me. Sean is my favorite one that we have watched so far. It made the sense to me and it kept me interested. These parables have been good so far." - John - High School Freshman
"I liked the videos because they had a different perspective on how the parables can relate to us in real life and they were entertaining and cool but, a few of them were hard to understand before we discussed them. Then I understood what they were trying to say."
- Christina - High School Freshman
"For Lent this year I used your scripture outline and used a few of your videos as well. My favorite one is "Spilt Milk" because it gives new perspective through the eyes of a child. After studying the scripture and having a discussion about wine I showed the video and it sparked a whole new dialogue. Thanks guys, I am excited for the new videos to be released."
- Ryan Caldwell
“Together” Gary, a middle-aged alcoholic must choose to stay sober or live his old life when his attempt to keep his relationship with his daughter backfires. Based on the Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds (Matthew 13: 24-30); approx 5 min.
“Wise/Foolish” A college girl who procrastinated all semester is forced to make a choice between cheating on her final paper or going on a date with her new boyfriend. Based on the Parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders (Matthew 7:24-29, Luke 6:46-49); approx 5 min. 
“Charlie” A young jazz saxophonist struggles to make a living as an artist. Based on the Parable of the Mustard Seed (Luke 13:18–19, Mark 4:30–32, Matt 13:31-32); approx 5 min. 
