Sunday School

News

1. Attendance 1/25/09 -- We had 597 in Sunday School Sunday!! 294 at 8:30 and 303 at 9:45!

2. Spiritual Growth Assessment Update -- I had 500 copies made of the Spiritual Growth Assessment and only had one left after Sunday, so that means that potentially 499 adults have or are taking the assessment. I pray God uses it to give direction to individuals about areas to strengthen in their walk with God.

3. Spiritual Growth Assessment Follow Up -- You should have had your class members complete the assessment during class this past Sunday. If you did not do so, please follow up with them during this week and especially this coming Sunday morning and make sure that they completed it. We will provide registration forms for the discipleship classes as inserts in this week's bulletin, so encourage people to sign up for a class that will address their spiritual growth needs.

4. Curriculum News -- Classes using Bible Studies for Life curriculum will be following the order of lessons for the month of January during February. In other words, switch back.

5. CARE Ministry -- If your class has not been involved in the CARE ministry on Tuesday nights, please come out and get involved. One class that has consistently been involved in CARE has grown twofold in attendance. CARE is every Tuesday night -- supper at 5:30, activities at 6:00 p.m.

Lesson Supplements for February 1

Bible Studies for Life
"Gain Fresh Perspective"
Psalm 19:1-14

The series of lessons for the month of February will focus on the question, "Do you need a fresh start?" This first lesson in this series will lead students to discover that one of the first things to do to experience a fresh start is to gain a fresh perspective. How we look at things influences our attitudes and actions in life. This lesson challenges us to seek a fresh perspective on God and life. The Bible is the best place to begin the search for a fresh perspective on God and life.

However, sometimes Christians get in a rut and reading the Bible becomes less exciting than it once was. For Christians in your class that are in this boat, how can you as their teacher infuse a fresh perspective of God's word in their lives this Sunday? The Word of God is living and active! Teacher, what can you do to be an instrument of God to bring it alive this week so that your students can gain a fresh perspective on God and life? Is God's word living and active in your life? If not, pray and ask God to make you that instrument that he can use to infuse a fresh perspective on God and life in your students this week.

Psalm 19 reveals places to look to gain this fresh perspective. The three places are (1) the sky, (2) the scriptures, and (3) the heart.

(1) The sky -- Look at God's glorious creation and become amazed once again at his handiwork. Watch a Discovery Channel documentary this week on nature and the universe. Bring a DVD or photographs that have been taken that display God's creation and cause you to awe and glorify God. Show these and discuss them with your class. How does this change your perspective on God? on life?

(2) The Scriptures -- Ask your class if any of them are committed to reading through the Bible in 2009. If you have any who are invite them to share how meaningful that has been to them so far. What have they learned? Encourage the rest of the class to fall in love with God's word again and commit to read it through. How does God's word give us a fresh perspective on God and life?

(3) The Heart -- What is your heart's desire? What is the most important thing in your life? What is the sweetest, most desirable and fulfilling thing in your life? Getting one's heart right with God will bring about a fresh perspective. Confessing sins and repenting of them will give a fresh perspective. This is confession and commitment time.

Explore the Bible
"Do You Get Along With Others?"
1 Thessalonians 5:12-28

Paul gives instructions to the church at Thessalonica on maintaining good fellowship among the family of believers. As you know, the church is not heaven, and in many ways, the people who say the church is full of hypocrites are correct. The church is made up of human beings who are still in this sinful world but who are attempting to live under the control of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, in this imperfect world, there are going to be disagreements and arguments. The underlying theme in maintaining good fellowship is that there needs to be a continuous exchange of love and respect in all of our relationships. Our relationship with the leaders in the church, with others, with God, and with ourselves are the specific relationships Paul addresses in this week's lesson.

Questions for Discussion:
1. How can church leaders gain and keep members' love and respect?
2. When disagreement occurs with leadership, what guidelines can be followed to help resolve those conflicts?
3. What should be done when members of the family are not "pulling their weight?"
4. How is your prayer life and what will you do to improve it? Prayer is the means of communicating with God. Communication is key in any relationship.
5. Is it a way of showing a lack of love and respect for yourself by holding on to unconfessed sin? Defend your position.
6. Are there people you do not get along with in the church? What actions will you take to show love and respect to that individual and thus restore good fellowship?

Suggested Activity
One activity to have your class do to enhance the learning experience is to break up into two groups and have each group write and perform a short skit about a possible disagreement that takes place at church. Perhaps you, as the teacher could create your own skit ahead of time and have the skit(s) acted out in class followed by a series of discussion questions about how to handle the situation acted out in the skit.

Comments Please

If you have any other thoughts, ideas, or questions please post them. Don't forget to pray for one another that God will use you this week to be an instrument of change in someone's life!