Author Archive for Kiely Young

Options for New Groups

By Kiely Young · Comments (0)
Saturday, August 31st, 2013

The line “We have never done it that way before”, still brings some challenges to some folks in many of our churches.  But, when considering possibilities for new groups, we must be willing to get out of our comfort zones.  We may even need to break with some of our existing traditions that hold us back from new ideas.

I heard a statement that still rings in my ears concerning issues that hold us back:

“Tradition is the living faith of the dead…traditionalism is the dead faith of the living.”

When two out of three people in our nation are not involved in Bible study, it is time to look at options to reach them.

What should we consider?

  • When should we meet?  Forty percent of individuals age 18-40 cannot (or will not) come to Bible Study on Sunday.  Are we willing to change? We can offer options Sunday morning, night or weekdays
  • Where should we meet?  Many others do not feel wanted or accepted come to “church”.  The number one complaint, valid or not, is still  “The Church if full of hypocrites”.  But they would come to a home for a family gathering.  Let’s be willing to consider possibilities.
  • What should we study?  People are looking for answers to issues they face every day.  Studies on family, finances, and future challenges are still hot topics that attract all ages.  Those could be introductory studies that lead to strong inductive Bible study.  Let’s meet the needs of those in our communities.
  • Where can we find leaders?  Seventy-five plus percent of our people are sitting in our present classes and pews not being utilized and waiting to be asked.  Consider some of the suggestions by our writers for enlisting and equipping workers.  Enlist to specific responsibilities with specific equipping for the specific task.  God will provide the right leaders.  He has always done that for His people.
  • Who will be the target audience?  Look at your congregation and look at the community.  How do they match up?  Far too many of our churches do not reflect the community around them.  Look at groups of people not being reached.  Look at friends not involved in small group Bible study.  They are ready to be asked.

The late Andy Anderson, founder of the Growth Spiral strategy, was an amazing individual when looking at options for reaching people.  His statement still resonates.  “We must consider asking anyone we can, anywhere we can, anytime we can, any way we can, every time we can if they would like to be a part of a small group Bible study.  Many will say yes, and they will bring their friends.”  That is still a great practice.

Prayerfully accept the challenge.  Be willing to step out of the traditional mold.  Offer options.

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Categories : 31 Days of Extreme Sunday School

Know Your Group’s Evangelism Potential

By Kiely Young · Comments (0)
Wednesday, August 7th, 2013
Arthur Flake

Arthur Flake

Arthur Flake was one of Sunday School great pioneers.

His first principle of growth was “Know Your Possibilities”

Every Sunday School class or Small Group has great, yet sometimes unreached potential.

At times your class might say “We do not have any prospects, or even suspects.”

They have limited their vision.

So how we discover our evangelism potential?

1) We begin with prayer and ask God for wisdom, insight, and understand of ways to reach those who need Him as Savior.

2) Think about people we associate with (friends, work associates, relatives, school friends) who give no evidence of being involved in a Bible study or any Christian activity.  You see no “fruit” from their life.

3) Develop a relationship for conversation with them.  Perhaps invite them to lunch, or coffee, or maybe a gathering at your home.  This will help you get to know more about each other to increase trust with each other.  When you are at ease with them, share your personal Christian testimony (in about two minutes) and ask if anything like that has ever happened to them.

If the door opens for further discussion you can share the Gospel with them and invite them to your Bible Study.

Another very effective way to discover individuals who do not yet know Jesus Christ is Prayer Walking a neighborhood.  There are many excellent articles on the web that can give you details.

Essentially, you pick a neighborhood where your class/small group has been led to reach.

1) Select a specific time each week to prayer walk the streets of that neighborhood.

2) Go in groups of two or three and simply walk the streets and pray for the families at each home.  You may choose to knock on each door explaining that you are there to simply pray for them and ask how you can pray for them.  Sometimes a conversation will open and you will discover they are not involved in Bible study, but would be open to an invitation.

3) As you Prayer Walk the same streets at the same time each week, more people will notice what you are doing.  Some may even open their home for prayer or a Small Group Bible study in their home.  You will have found a “House of Peace” (Luke 1) for that neighborhood.

These ideas are not new, but they are effective.  The majority of our neighbors are without Christ.  They can be discovered and reach when we make the proper prayerful effort.

We should also always be open to Divine Appointments that God brings our way. A friend of mine simply asked a server in a restaurant if he could pray for some area of his life when he returned thanks for his meal.  The server responded, “I have been doing this for thirty years and you are the first person to ever ask me that question.  He shared a burden of his family.  That opened the door for further contact with his family.  That is a Divine appointment.

There is potential all around us, we just have to be prayerfully looking.

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Categories : 31 Days of Extreme Sunday School, Sunday School

Preparation for Teaching…A Personal Prayer Approach

By Kiely Young · Comments (0)
Friday, December 28th, 2012

I stood before our Adult Sunday School Class leaders in a recent workers meeting I asked what they considered their greatest needs in Sunday School.  Without question, the greatest need was prayer.  Yes, we need to be adequately prepared to teach, but that must begin with prayer.  How true this is…

To see more, click here.

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Categories : Sunday School

Multiply Leaders and Units

By Kiely Young · Comments (0)
Monday, December 3rd, 2012

In a church culture where we are declining, in at least 72% of the mainline denominational churches, can we really expect to multiply leaders and create new units?! Yes indeed!

Just a few weeks ago, a group of us were in Imphal, India training leaders. We also taught them how to reach the lost and build multiplying leaders. As a part of the training they were asked to go to the streets and share the Gospel, in a culture that is less than two per cent Christian. They had one hour. When they came back they had presented the Gospel 26 times and saw 15 individuals pray to receive Christ. One lady had follow up the next week with one of the individuals she had led to Christ. She asked her friend to invite friends to come. She did and six more folks came to Christ and they started a home Bible study. Amen and Hallelujah.

We have to be intentional if we expect to see God multiply leaders among us.

Years ago, I had the privilege to serve with Bob Edd Shotwell, then the Minister of Education for Hyde Park Baptist Church in Austin, Texas. He was one of the best. I asked Bob Edd just how he kept the Sunday School on a steady growth pattern. He said, “You have to always be looking for places you need to start new classes and you have to always be looking for new leaders to lead the classes. Then you have to equip them and help them get the new classes off to a good start.” Bob Edd stayed at Hype Park for more than two decades and helped grow the church from 1000 to more than 3000 in Sunday School. AND they had to enroll 26 new people every Sunday just to stay even.

So how do we stay intentional? We must have a passion to reach the lost and grow strong New Testament disciples. It is not about church growth. It is about Kingdom growth. God will take care of the church growth if we are busy growing disciples.

Find those classes who are willing to multiply. Teach them multiplication principles. Every leader in the class needs to be multiplying themselves. Build the right attitude in the class, multiplication, at least every two years. Some can do so every year.

Look at your community. Are there unreached people groups in your community? Pray, asking God for the right leaders to reach them. Be willing to reach them in homes. Teach the leaders multiplying principles. Pray daily for them.

AND…if you really want to stretch your faith and

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your thinking, go online to T4Tonline.org and order the book T4T- A Discipleship Re-revolution by Ying Kai and Steve Smith. These IMB missionaries will tell you a story that will really stretch your faith. This is about exponential multiplication.

_____________________________________________________________

Kiely Young: Mississippi Baptist Convention Board

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Categories : Sunday School

From a Class to a Movement…YES New Groups

By Kiely Young · Comments (1)
Friday, August 17th, 2012

This is day 17 of 31 Days of Missionary Sunday School

1+1=2…2+2=4…4+4=8…8+8=16…32…64…128…

The math says multiplication always grow faster than addition. But, can WE see it work?

Ask Jeff Sundell, who lives just a few miles outside of Charlotte, NC. It has been about three years since they started their first small group Bible study to reach their community. From that class a movement started. A member of the class felt the need to start another in another community. It grew and the same thing happened again. A member of that study had a burden for a friend in another town and went there to start another Bible study. Soon multiplication began to take place. Today, from the beginnings of that first Bible study, and a passion of Jeff to reach North and South Carolina for Christ, thus far over 400 Bible studies in 39 cities have been started and thousands of formerly non-reached people have come to faith in Christ.

What is the difference in a Class and a movement?

A Sunday School Class is a group of people who meet weekly for Bible study. They enjoy their fellowship, the comfort of prayer support, the ministry to and with one another, the blessings of worship, and the study of God’s Word. If they become content and comfortable in their environment, they become what is known as a “closed group”, that is; they are no longer energized to reach out to others, and usually grow hesitant to any kind of change.

How does such a “movement” begin? Prayer…intensive prayer + hard work + seeking the Lord’s direction for the people He wants to reach in your context = the beginning of a movement. A movement begins with a group of people with a passion to reach their community, even a specific group of people within the community, with the Gospel of Christ. They are willing to do whatever it takes, anytime, anywhere, anyway under the direction of the Holy Spirit to reach these people. They are more concerned about reaching and making disciples for Christ than they are for their comfort and personal concerns. They are excited about seeing believers in Christ grow to the point that they want to reach their friends, and even start new Bible study groups themselves to reach other friends. They want to be spiritual parents, grandparents, and even multiple generations.

Is this possible in today’s culture, where “most” of our churches are in plateau or decline; where less than ten percent of churches have experienced continuous growth? Yes, Yes, Yes.

It is not about our power, but our obedience to New Testament principles of biblical discipleship.

Any class in any church in any location CAN decide to surrender to the direction of the Holy Spirit to become a part of a movement of God to reach their community for Christ.

It is a matter of prayer and priorities.

____________________
Kiely Young
Mississippi


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Categories : 31 Days of Missionary Sunday School, Bible Study, Enlistment, Evangelism, Group Life, Growing your Group, Leadership, Learning, Ministry, Mission, New Groups, Outreach/Evangelism, Prayer, Small Groups, Sunday School, Teaching
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