Recently in For Sunday School Teachers Category

College Street Church* had just hired Jack,* their new youth worker. And because he came to them with limited experience, the church provided him a year of youth ministry coaching. 

After decades of work with incarcerated youth around the world, I tend to classify religious outreaches into three different genres: conversion-based, worship-focused, and faith-education programs. Some of these programs are fear-based (eternal damnation), while others focus on the incentives of living a faithful life (healthier relationships, a life of meaning, service and salvation).

Okay, this one might get me in some trouble. And it's all because I'm increasingly convinced we're doing something wrong in youth ministry. We've been chugging along thinking we've been doing it right. As a result, we continue to do it wrong because we think it's right, and in doing so, we're undermining the very work of the very God who we pride ourselves in serving. Are you confused yet? Let me explain.

One of the most significant words in the teaching of Jesus is that in which he gives his command concerning the care of the children. He asked Peter a question, "lovest thou me?" and when he got a satisfactory answer, he said to him, "Feed my lambs."

How does your Sunday school stack up? Have you really thought about where your Sunday school is and where it is headed? To help churches evaluate their Sunday school programs, Rev. Jim Moss, well known Christian educator and author, has developed a series of "Study Questions" for Sunday schools to ask themselves and use as a springboard into future growth. Here are several items that he lists...

A friend recently called my attention to a survey by George Barna that showed very little difference in moral actions between youth and young adults who attend church and those who don't. "Shouldn't the people who attend church do a lot better?" my friend asked? Yes, they certainly should! But, the fact is that much of what we are trying to teach in the Sunday school and church does not translate into real changes in the lives of our students. Children, youth and young adults are hearing our words and even memorizing scripture, but these messages are not really being applied in their lives; their day-to-day actions are not being changed.