What Did You Forget to Pack?

This is the 2nd installment in a series on how to enliven your Sunday School.

Going on a trip can be frustrating if you haven't prepared.

I can't tell you how many times I have forgotten to pack something. Like the band trip in high school when I forgot to pack black socks. Or the company conference when I forgot to pack my shaver. It creates an embarrassing situation, and has created new habits in me.

I make a list. I check with my wife. I recheck the luggage. I open a suitcase a couple of days early so that I can throw things in as I think of them.

Being properly prepared can also help you revitalize your Sunday School. Here are a few tips that Beth and I shared with the ReFuel conference a few weeks ago:

1. Know how to lead someone to Christ.  Sunday School teachers have a unique relationship with their students, and you have a larger amount of time with your class sharing spiritual truth and challenges than just about anyone else.  When the opportunity comes (and it will come) to lead someone to Christ, you will be ready.  Most quarterly Sunday School lesson guides have a page describing how to lead your students to Christ.  These instructions are also age-appropriate for your class.  Take time to become familiar with it - even to the point of memorizing it or making it your own.  This will certainly increase your joy as a teacher!
2. Arrive early.  Get to the classroom at least 15 minutes before Sunday School opening to get it ready. How many times have you entered your classroom only to find that someone "borrowed" your table for a potluck?  Or the Cub Scouts left their craft projects to dry on every available inch of counter space?  Or that someone made off with your markers?  Getting there early will ensure that your classroom will be ready for your class.  If the first time you walk into your Sunday School class is when the students arrive, you are getting there too late.
3. Read the lesson.  Do this early in the week.  If you only find out at 10:00 on Saturday night that you needed something unusual from the hardware store for tomorrow's class, you are in trouble.  Reading the lesson early will help you get the materials you need on time.  It will also make you more familiar with the lesson.  That way, you don't have to be tied to the lesson book and really interact with your students better.  Don't get me wrong - the lesson book will still be close at hand, but your nose isn't stuck in it.
4. Read the Bible passage.  Read it several times throughout the week.  Make it part of your daily devotional time or make it an extra time that you dedicate to Sunday School preparation daily.  If you make the Bible passage a part of your life during the week, it will seep out of your pores as you present it to your students. 
5. Be ready for visitors.  Few things are more discouraging to a visitor than to walk into a Sunday School room and there is nowhere to sit.  Make sure that your classroom has enough chairs, handouts, Bibles and craft supplies for extra people.  Build a vision among your "regulars" to invite others to the class (I will talk about this in a later installment).  Exercise your faith by praying over the empty chairs.  Maybe you will want to stretch your expectations by putting even more chairs in the room.  And then work to fill them.

It's Thursday, and Sunday is coming.  Are you prepared for your Sunday School class?  It's not too late to start now.

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