Why are we content to write a “0” in the column “Outreach Bible Studies this week” on our Sunday School reports?
I remember a period of time many years ago when I served as the Sunday School secretary at church. I completed the attendance summary reports after they were turned in and it always bothered me when I had to write a “0” in the column “Outreach Bible Studies”. Week after week, I would do my job, but that lingering “0” just stuck in my head and I couldn’t shake it. Why was our church not involved in penetrating our community with opportunities for Bible study beyond the walls of the church? I made a commitment to change that in the years that followed and would seek out creative locations that could host a small group. It became a hobby of mine 
to look for unconventional places where community (verb) was already happening; it just needed an influx of discipleship and bible study. I would encourage my teachers to take their class to local fast food restaurants on Sunday morning and invite customers and employees on breaks to join them for a few minutes of class time as they taught the lesson right there in the dining area. A couple of my teachers started a truck stop ministry out by the interstate where they would share the Sunday School lesson to drivers who were passing through.
I also researched what other churches had done in the area of missional ministry and I found a few of the examples hit close to home. I remember my grandmother who would spend Sunday afternoons in a nursing home near her church in Shreveport to re-teach her lesson to any of the ladies there that were interested. In my home church, my dad would lead the singing and take turns teaching the Sunday School lesson at a local campground early Sunday morning prior to leading the same lesson on the local radio station one hour later.
I challenge you to make a point this next week to look around your city while you go about your routine and think of ways you can start missional small communities right where you live. Here are some ideas to help prime the pump.
- Hospital/ICU waiting area
- Coffee shop
- School teacher’s lounge prior to school starting
- Company break room during lunch hour or before work day
- City park/playground pavilion
Comment on this post and share your own ideas how you have penetrated your city with missional small communities.
Hey, great post. The location of our men’s “gathering” is hardly unconventional. But the content was. We started a mid-week group in my “man cave” basement at the beginning of the summer. The group started as the men out of our Sunday morning young couples class. Our content: the HBO mini-series, Band of Brothers. We watched 1 or 2 episodes a week until we completed it. Before it was done, we had picked up a couple of guys who don’t attend our Sunday morning Sunday school group. After we finished that series, the guys wanted to keep meeting. So we decided to offer a short devotion/Bible study, followed by the typical male bonding that I imagine Jesus and his disciples engaged in; complete with snacks and stories. The location now rotates among our group. I’ve noticed our Sunday morning discussions are more lively, and the guys are talking about other opportunities to invite their friends — like football tailgates, hayride/hotdog cookout, local concerts, etc. The Band of Brothers series is history, but the men of this group have grown very close — We Are, Easy Company!
Peace,
Alan
Thanks Alan. Great comments. I like how you are integrating relevant Bible study with an environment where men can be most comfortable. Sounds like a great ministry that can easily be reproduced in any setting.