Serving Churches, Part 2

In this blog article, I share one of several approaches that are utilized by the Sunday School and Discipleship Team to Make Christ Known by Serving Churches. I would love for you to respond with your comments and thoughts on the effectiveness of this strategy in today’s climate. You can e-mail me at mmiller@tnbaptist.org or call me at 1-800-558-2090, ext. 2048.

Many churches are still seeking experts to serve as speakers, conference leaders and consultants. One Day Consultations are available to churches of all sizes at no cost to TBC churches. One-Day Growth Consultations are customized to help your individual church evaluate the performance of your Sunday School, Discipleship, or Age Group Ministries over time and develop action plans that promote the healthy growth of your church.

One Day Consultations are a combination of two phases. In Phase One, the consultant meets with the pastor, Sunday School Director and other key leaders. The consultant utilizes information from the Annual Church Profile and reports submitted by the participating congregation prior to the day of the consultant. The consultant dialogues with the church leaders concerning the strengths and weaknesses of the church and the dreams and concerns of the leaders. Since space is a major obstacle to many churches, a thorough space walk of facilities is included. The Sunday School Growth and Evaluation plan is completed to evaluate the ministries of your church.

Following phase one, the consultant will prepare recommendations, reports, and a presentation on principles to share during phase two. In Phase Two, a church conference is held to discuss the findings and recommendations of the consultant. The pastor determines the audience. The audience seems to vary by church size. The smaller membership churches usually invite the entire congregation and often Phase Two is conducted on a Sunday evening or Wednesday evening. The medium to larger congregations usually invite Sunday School leaders and/or reports or given to the staff.

The strength of One Day Consultations is they are always customized.One Day Consultations provide the pastor and church with information and strategies to consider. One Day Consultations can also be the front door for other opportunities to serve the church, such as conferences and coaching.

Call my office if interested in a One Day Consultations for Sunday School or Discipleship. I look forward to working with you.

Already Gone!

Already Gone! At the annual meeting of the Tennessee Baptist Convention, one of the messengers shared, he had been reading a book by Ken Ham, entitled Already Gone: Why your kids will quit church and what you can do to stop it. I look forward to reading the book but reviewed some reviews and excerpts on the Amazon website.

"We've always been trying to prepare our kids for college... but it turns out that only 11 percent of those who have left the Church did so during the college years. Almost 90 percent of them were lost in middle school and high school. By the time they got to college they were already gone! About 40 percent are leaving the Church during elementary and middle school years! Most people assumed that elementary and middle school is a fairly neutral environment where children toe the line and follow in the footsteps of their parents' spirituality. Not so. I believe that over half of these kids were lost before we got them into high school! Whatever diseases are fueling the epidemic of losing our young people, they are infecting our students much, much earlier than most assumed."

As State Sunday School Director, one of the most disturbing findings by Beemer and Ham was that attending Sunday School did not make a significant impact on those who were surveyed. The conclusion was an indictment on what is being taught in Sunday School. Teaching stories about the Bible are not enough. Children, youth, and adults desire answers to life’s challenging questions through effective Bible Study. I look forward to reading the book and contemplating how Sunday School and Christian Education must change so that changed lives is the product of attending Sunday School.

All Christian Educators, youth and children leaders, and parents will find this book essential reading. Let’s be open to examining our practices and seeking God’s direction to impact the lives of children and youth.