Having recently dislocated my shoulder, I am even more mindful of the condition of body parts when they are neglected. When we fail to use an arm, it atrophies and becomes almost useless. In the same way, when we neglect Sunday School, it becomes weak and useless. It is time to realize that Sunday School still works if we work on it together.
The road back to health and strength of an atrophied arm can be challenging and long. It may require therapy, exercise, pain, and lots of patience. Again, the same is true for Sunday School experiencing atrophy.
Working Together Still Works
What can we do to move Sunday School back to health and growth? Consider these critical steps:
- Pray together. This is a spiritual effort requiring supernatural help. But don’t pray alone for long. Invite others to join you.
- Plan together. Gather the team and evaluate current reality. Determine needs. Identify hopes and dreams. Consider where God desires Sunday School to head. Set goals, make plans, assign tasks, and set deadlines. Make small but important steps together.
- Learn together. Raise the lid of leadership. Read a book together or bring in an expert or consultant. Focus one or two small areas. Watch as energy and understanding grow.
- Enlist together. Recognize that more leaders are needed to provide more care. Ask God to send workers into the harvest. Talk about people in whom God is at work and ask them to join you. Add more leaders in existing classes and enlist leaders for new classes.
- Report together. Gather the team to hear reports of progress. This time of encouragement, training, adjustment, and challenge is absolutely essential for moving Sunday School toward health and growth. Meet monthly. Give everyone a task related to the meeting. Keep each (monthly) meeting short but relevant. Celebrate each small step and victory!
Pray, plan, learn, enlist, and report together in your effort to move Sunday School from weakness and atrophy to usefulness, effectiveness, and growth. Remember that “together” is key. Pursue these steps together with God and with each other.
Give God the praise He deserves. Affirm the hard work of the team. Have fun along the way. Be persistent Make disciples. Be revolutionary!
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