Teaching for Transformation

Sunday School: Terry Beasley
Saturday, March 1, 2008

My youngest sons, ages five and seven, love Transformers - Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Ironhide, and Jazz. They appear to be ordinary cars and trucks. But upon the threat of danger, they quickly evolve into super-hero-like robots with incredible strength. If it were not for their transformation, they would be powerless to confront the situation before them.

So too is the life of a Christian. Once we accept the saving power of Jesus Christ and allow for the transformation of our natures from the old man to the new man, God can use us to change the world! Transformation - this is what the study of God's Word is about! As Paul wrote to the believers in Rome, "...be transformed by the renewing of your mind." But does our teaching of God's Word promote life change? Or is it more an exercise in Bible trivia, learning the facts of the Bible without bringing the learner to see the application of the Word to everyday life in the 21st century?

On Saturday, January 12th the churches of our association were invited to participate in a training conducted at Twelfth Avenue Baptist Church in Emporia. Though the focus of the leader, Aaron Reynolds, was on children's ministry, much of what he said is applicable to learners of any age. To reduce the instruction of the day to a few simple points, I would focus on the following four attributes of transformational teaching.

First, transformational teaching moves past head knowledge into heart knowledge. It moves the learner intellectually and emotionally so that the student wants to DO something with what they have learned. Teaching as a means of "information exchange" is fine for school, but for church we must move through the intellect to the heart.

Second, transformational teaching balances the talk of the teacher with the activity of the learner. Recognizing that students (of any age) vary in how they best learn information, we, as teachers, must vary our teaching techniques to meet the needs of auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learners. While some learners retain best by hearing, others prefer seeing, and still others need to put their entire body into the learning process.

Third, transformational teaching is creative. Perhaps one of the greatest inhibitors of creativity is the lack of preparation time. You can not be creative with a Sunday morning Sunday School lesson if you begin preparing at 9:30 on Saturday night! Granted, for a teacher with limited time to prepare, the easiest way to teach is to either focus on lecture (thereby minimizing distractions and the possibility of the discussion going to places for which the teacher is not ready) or to lean heavily on the "facilitator" concept whereby you ask questions and allow the learners to discover the content of the lesson on their own. While both of these methods have their place in teaching, one must not stifle the creative presentation of a lesson by staying in a familiar rut. At the same time, don't let creativity upstage content!

Fourth, transformational teaching is applicational. The learner must be equipped to live differently on Monday because of Sunday. A Sunday School lesson that does not apply to life may be "information exchange" but it is not for "life change." By applying these four principles of transformational teaching, we can best prepare our students to live their Sunday School lesson each week!

Our associational Sunday School team was pleased to provide a two-hour training for the Sunday School workers of South City Baptist Church this past month. If you would like assistance from our team, contact Terry Beasley at 684-5156.

VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL TRAINING OPTIONS

Vacation Bible School may still be months away, but preparation begins now! To assist you in equipping your VBS leaders, two training options are available over the next several weeks.

KNCSB Vacation Bible School Jumpstart

  • Saturday, March 8th, 2008 from 9:45 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
  • First Southern Baptist Church in Salina
  • Core Conferences & Enrichment Conferences for "Outrigger Island" and "Club VBS"
  • Registration Fee of $10 with Registrations due by February 25th
  • Contact the Bible Teaching & Discipling Department of the KNCSB at 800-984-9092 for further information

HOKSBA Vacation Bible School Training

  • Thursday, April 10th from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.
  • Sharon Baptist Church in Wichita
  • Training for Directors, Preschool & Children's Teachers, and Leaders of Crafts & Music
  • Focus on "Outrigger Island" Curriculum
  • No Registration Fee; Please RSVP the Number of Workers & Training Areas to Sharon Baptist Church (684-5156) by Monday, April 7th
  • Contact Terry Beasley at Sharon Baptist Church (684-5156) for further information