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Haley Keen

Susan Lester

Advanced Lit.

11 October 2011

The Issues Facing Churches and Bible Studies

It is Sunday morning and Michael, age 12, has just gotten out of his 9:20 A.M worship

service at his church. Every Sunday after church he attends a Bible study class to learn about the

bible and the stories that it contains. He sits down in his usual seat in the classroom and he

begins to listen to his teacher. This scenario is the same for millions of children in the United

States, and although they do not know this, these Bible studies that the children attend are crucial

factors that will influence their faith and spirituality in the future. So why has the number of

children who attend Bible study dropped 40% in the past three years (Shafer)? Some studies

have shown that children might be ‘too busy” for church Bible study groups nowadays because

of a participation boom in extracurricular school activities such as sports and clubs. But is it

really because of packed schedules and sleep-in Sundays? Or could the real problems lie in the

Bible study classes themselves? In the field of youth ministry and education, the lack of child-

friendly lessons and activities in church and Sunday school has a negative impact on a child’s

church attendance and participation in Sunday school classes.

What are some of the thoughts that come to mind when the term “Bible study” or

“Sunday school” is heard? There are many differing opinions about what the two should be, but

let us first agree on what they should not be. Rebbecca, age 14, walks into her first day of

Sunday School. She sits down in a chair next to other children her age and her new teacher sits

down at the table and begins to ask them questions. She starts to notice that most of the questions

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are somewhat hard to answer and many are quite personal. She starts to feel uncomfortable with

the questions being asked. She looks around the room and sees the other children are too. The

class finishes and Rebbecca never comes back. Bible study is not an interrogation room. As an

active member in my church’s youth group, I know how it feels when a Bible study teacher uses

class time to dig into my past or to ask pointless questions. In his book, Grahame Knox explains

to Bible study teachers that “Bad questions cut short discussion and discourage participation.

Some members...will begin to feel threatened and feel like they don't know anything.” This is,

unfortunately, the situation for hundreds of children in churches today. Teachers do not need to

ask questions they already know the answer to or to try to make the students guess the answer

they specifically want. This error that teachers make gives the students the idea that the teacher

does not think the students know anything about the given topic. Doing this can make children

become insecure about their faith and, sometimes, even doubt it. Secondly, a children’s Bible

study class should not be taught as a lecture or a sermon. A child learns best when they are

taught in a way that is easy for that child to understand. Children are more likely to participate in

discussions in Bible study when they are taught the lessons in child-like ways. Children like to

play games, and integrating games and fun into a Sunday School lesson will catch the children's'

attention and they will have a better understanding for what is being taught. It is our job as

Sunday School and Bible study teachers to lead a class in a way that is most beneficial to our

students, and our students alone. Grahame Knox states in his book, “Positive interaction and

discussion help move young people from impassive listening to a deeper involvement with each

other as they share thoughts and views about a passage of scripture.” What he trying to explain is

that teachers should keep their class positive and interact with the students in a way that is

comfortable to them, and by keeping the discussions at their level, the results will have lasting

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positive effects on the class as a whole. A Sunday school teacher takes on this job to mentor

students in their faith and to watch them grow into their spirituality. The knowledge that a child

left the classroom on a Sunday morning with the lessons and the discussions still in mind, is very

rewarding. Therefore, the effect that will be left on that child will last a long, long time.

Now that the negative factors have been identified; it should be easier to grasp a better

understanding of how a child Bible study group should be organized and lead. Emily, age 13,

comes home every Sunday from her morning Bible study with a few of her friends from class.

She is participating in a middle school girls bible study with many girls who go to her school and

some who do not, and over the past few Sundays, she has gotten to know all of them quite well.

She tells her parents every afternoon after she gets home all about the fun games she participates

in, all of the lessons about famous women in the Bible, and the connections she has made with

her classmates and her teacher as well. She continues to be an active participant in this study

group through middle school and she even continues to attend the class in high school. This

scenario is an example of only a few effects a properly taught Bible study can have on a child’s

life. A fun-filled child-like based outlook on Bible studies can help create the ideal Bible study

for children. Nadya Labi states in her article, “nowadays lessons are based on the Gospel

according to the Simpsons, in which Homer stands in as Job, and the Gospel According to Harry

Potter, in which the boy wizard’s decision to walk through what appears to be a solid wall to get

to the train that will take him to his magical school becomes a meditation on faith.” Sunday

School teachers must organize and plan their lessons and class to benefit the “Nickelodeon

generation” (Labi). There are also many different opinions as to whether or not Sunday School

should be more fun-based or more like a Sunday church service. If the children are having too

much fun, then they will get to the point where they will forget the actual reason why they joined

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the class. To combat this problem, an equilibrium must be found so the fun and the lesson can be

evenly balanced. Tom Crandall, a youth pastor mentioned in Ladi’s article, explains, “You’ve

got to do whatever it takes to keep the kid’s attention focused on God...You’ve got to make it

fun, or its just more dry religious stuff.” Another contributing factor in the classroom would be to

start asking the right questions. Knox stresses the fact that “Questions are an essential tool in

group Bible study. Good questions help you engage with a passage, reflect on it and discover its

meaning.” Open questions are the best type of questions that a youth bible study teacher can ask.

There is no wrong or right answer and it pushes children to go beyond the answers yes and no.

Asking the right questions gets children to think for themselves and to push themselves to really

engage into the discussion. There are many things that can go wrong with this method, so

teachers will need to prepare the questions before the class and also anticipate the possible

responses we might receive (Knox). Thinking ahead in this way will decrease the tension

between student and teacher and will create a more relaxed setting, which is one of the goals in

class. Lastly, above all else, teachers must be able to listen to their students. When a child knows

she is heard, she will feel encouraged to speak up more frequently and will be more open to

discussion with fellow students and their teacher. When there is a period of silence during class,

a teacher should not take that time to hear her own voice or to answer her own questions. “An

eager group quickly becomes passive and silent if they think you do most of the talking” (Knox).

When it all comes down to it, the students should be the ones who lead the class. Bible study

leaders are actually there to open up the discussion, listen to the student’s views on what is being

discussed, and to close the discussion at the end: “Listening first earns us the right to be listened

to when we speak” (Knox). When leaders become the listeners, the children will listen to the

leaders when it is their turn to speak. By understanding this concept, Bible study will no longer

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be a class. It will become a place where young people can come and openly talk about their faith,

any doubts they may have, or just about life in general. When the fun is balanced, the right

questions are asked, and when teachers’ listening ears have been put on, they can create an

environment that is enjoyable for the students and the themselves. Connections will be made and

Sunday School will no longer be the class that children dread on Sundays.

So how are churches combating these issues they face today? Moreover, what are

churches doing to keep their kids participating in church services and Bible studies? Firstly,

churches are starting to preach to the Nickelodeon generation in a showy, attention-grabbing

language they can actually understand (Labi). Church facilities are being updated with new

technology to introduce computer games to help teach the word of God. They are becoming

hands-on. Teachers are baking unleavened bread to go along with the Exodus and having skits

for certain passages in the Bible. Children learn when lessons are hands-on and accessible, and

churches are finally beginning to catch on to that idea. Secondly, there have been some drastic

changes in the Bible study setting among churches. Small groups are scheduled on the weekdays

to get rid of the “I needed to sleep in” excuse. Neil MacQueen states, “based on our most

successful efforts, it would look a lot less like kids in folding chairs at 9am on Sunday every

week. it would be varied and creative,not ‘one class or nothing.’ It might incorporate a blend of

special evenings, some special retreats, some family ministry events, some homes groups, and

some parent-led home teaching.” Thirdly, the most important change taking place is in the

parents: “If you want to reach and disciple children, you must reach and disciple their parents”

(Knox). When a child comes home from church or Bible study talking about all of the friends

that were made and how she wants to go back, it is assumed that the parent will say ‘OK’ and

return to said church. As a result of the fast growing children's ministries across the country,

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more parents are bringing their children to church. Due to this fact, the outlook for Bible studies

and churches is very promising.

A lot of change has been taking place within in the church, hence the growing population

amongst church groups services. The church body nevertheless has a long way to go until they

can fully understand the needs of the children in the congregation. Teachers are weaning away

from traditional practices like sermons and limited Sunday classes, and turning towards methods

that children can actually enjoy and above all else, understand. In the Book of Matthew chapter

19 verse 14, Jesus says “let the little children come to me and do not hinder them. For the

Kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these.” In order to carry out his commands in today’s

world and foreseeable future, teachers cannot sit and wait by Jesus’s side and wait for the

children to come to us (MacQueen). As the body of Christ, teachers must remove all hindrances

and all the walls that have separated the children from their chance to learn about God: “Train up

a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6).

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Works Cited

Labi, Nadya, et al. "The New Funday School." Anonymous 160.25 (2008): 60.

Academic Search Complete. Web. 13 Sept. 2011.

<http://proxygsu-sche.galileo.usg.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/

login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=8626918&site=ehost-live>.

MacQueen, Neil. “beyond ‘Sunday’ -and- beyond ‘School.’” Sunday Software 3 ser.:

n. page. Web. 14 Sept. 2011. <http://www.sundaysoftware.com/

stats3.htm>

The New International Bible. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print. New International Vers.

Shafer, Kent. "Sunday School Lessons Are Failing." Already Gone. By Church

Revelance. N. pag. Already Gone Book. Church Relevance, 30 June 2009. Web.

13 Sept. 2011. <http://alreadygonebook.wordpress.com/2009/06/30/

sunday-school-lessons-are-failing/>.

MacQueen, Neil. "Are Kids Too Busy These Days for Sunday School?" Sunday

Software 1st ser. (Dec. 2009): n. pag. Web. 13 Sept. 2011.

<http://www.sundaysoftware.com/stats3.htm>.

Knox, Grahame. “Creative Bible Study Methods for Youth Leaders.” Insight

Typepad. Creative Commons Attribution, Jan. 2009. web. 13 Sept. 2011.

<http://www.insight.typepad.co.uk/bible_study_methods.pdf>