Monday Morning Scattershooting
Monday Morning Scattershooting while wondering why they call it a Fiat? Probably because if
you get mad enough, you can throw one.
I always thought that Bible class numbers are a more
accurate measure of the health of a church than worship attendance. I think it
was Ira North that said “as the Bible
class goes, so goes the church”. But
even those numbers can be off if we don’t make Bible class a priority in the
church. I've seen lots of churches that
have poor class number because they don’t really make the classes worth attending.
I’m focusing on adult Bible classes since if the adults come then the children
will as well.[*]
Here are some things that might help to fix that:
If you only give
folks a choice between one type of class and not coming, more people will take
that choice to not come. More classes
make for smaller class size, which in turn will keep people coming. If you are
in a larger auditorium class you can miss and no one really notices. Being in a
smaller class changes that. Also, more classes fit more learning styles. Some people
enjoy a discussion class; some enjoy more of a lecture style. Having a variety of
classes lets people find something that fit their learning style, so they will
learn more and come more.
If you have a
ladies class, a young adult class, and auditorium class, you still have the
same problem of having only one choice.
Don’t do something that makes people feel like they shouldn’t be in a class.
If you must have a class geared to a particular
group, call by the topic rather than group (“Being Biblical Parents rather than
Teen Parent Class). That way they chose rather than being excluded.
If you are on the
quarter system don’t have a quarter go by without starting at least one new
class or topic. Too many classes get stretched out too long.[†]
Nine times out of ten a class topic goes
longer than it should. Some classes
might need to be longer than a quarter but put a limit on it. Even if you are covering the same subject vary
what you are doing[‡]
new teacher, different title, new room, new format, something. Don’t get in
ruts. If you just did a book of the Bible then next time do character study.
Don’t use the same materials all the time either.
Every class should
be building up. Don’t spend half of your time reviewing. If you can miss three
weeks and not have missed anything, the teacher is not moving the class forward. Create a tease for next week’s class. Once a person comes to class make them feel
like they are missing out if they don’t come back. Give homework, I.E. questions to consider,
passages to read, tasks to do. If class
ends when the class ends, it will end your class.
Have you ever seen
a sign in the window that declares “Help Wanted”? What if the church had one but rather than
help wanted it said “Help NOT Wanted”.
It might look like this:
Help Not Wanted
Manager: A person that will not do any work themselves but will
tell everyone else how to do it and keep them in line.
Critic: They will make sure and point out everything that is not up
to their personal standards.
Score Keeper: They will keep a detailed list of every slight
someone in the church may have given them.
Reporter: This job is to make sure that everyone knows everyone else’s
business
Judge: This person will make sure to look down on everyone else
Historian: They will help
everyone remember how much better thing were “back in the day”.
While these jobs
make be good and vital in the business world, they are not very productive in
The Lord’s Kingdom. Before we sign up for these or any other job let’s ask
ourselves, “How will this benefit the church” and never choose to do anything
that be any real help.
Finally, Two
hunters are out in the woods when one of them collapses. He doesn't seem to be
breathing and his eyes are glazed. The other guy whips out his phone and calls 911.
He gasps, "My friend is dead! What can I do?" The operator says
"Calm down. I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead." There is a
silence, then a gunshot is heard. Back on the phone, the guy says "OK, now
what?"
[*]
Kids classes are very important but who are the ones that get the kids there?
If they are not coming, the kids won’t either.
[†]
I once heard of a congregation that spent 3 quarters on the book of Malachi. C'mon
Son
[‡] I know a class that has been on the same subject
for at least 5 years, it goes away
but comes back with the same topic. C'mon Son
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