Author Archive for Sandy Coelho

Communication Tools to Use with Your Class

By Sandy Coelho · Comments (0)
Wednesday, November 2nd, 2016

communication-toolsWHY IS THIS IMPORTANT? Communication leads to community, an important goal for groups.  As the leader, ensure your participants hear from you regularly so they feel connected to the group.  This will also help group members keep up with group life when unable to attend, and it also allows you to communicate opportunities of connection beyond the group time.

WHAT DO I DO? Today there are many communication options…

  • Handwritten notes:  While some think that this option has gone the way of the dinosaur, many really appreciate the time, effort and sentiment that a note brings.  Invest in note cards and stamps. Send out a card or two to group members every week. It really makes an impression.
  • Telephone calls:  This method allows for a two way conversation that is personal. Calls communicate that you want to hear what is happening in your student’s life.  Carve out time to make 1 or 2 calls a week, and watch your relationships with students become stronger.
  • Texting:  Find ways to text very short but meaningful texts to your class members to let them know that you are praying for them and to remind them of brief, but important information.
  • Social Media:  This tool could be utilized to facilitate total class interaction.  You might use this option for digging deeper into a question from your group time or to share other information relevant to your topic.  You can also share information that people might have missed.

There are other ways to communicate, but the key will be practicing them. Find what works best for your group. Mix them up and avoid getting stuck in a rut.

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Categories : 100 Small Changes, Sunday School
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Helping Your Members Discover Their Spiritual Gifts

By Sandy Coelho · Comments (0)
Thursday, October 27th, 2016

spiritual_gifts_2WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT? As a follower of Jesus, exploring and exercising our spiritual gifts is a vital and exciting part of our spiritual journey. Paul writes, “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.” (1 Corinthians 12:4 NIV).

WHAT DO I DO? Here are some ideas:

  • Teach. Small groups are a wonderful place to help members to discover, explore and put into practice their spiritual gifts.  You might consider taking time to do a study with the whole group to learn about spiritual gifts and how they really do work among the body especially in your local context.  Even if some of your participants know about the gifts they can really help to give first-hand testimony about their own gifts and how they have used them for the benefit of the local body and beyond.
  • Inventory. Once you have done some teaching on spiritual gifts, it really is important to be sure to have them do a spiritual gifts inventory.  There are many spiritual gifts inventory tools on-line for free.  Be consistent and choose one so that everyone is using the same list and definitions of spiritual gifts.  Once everyone has completed the inventory, spend some quality time debriefing the results and give time for questions and further exploration.
  • Utilize. It is now time to help participants launch and use their gifts.  It is important that, as a leader, you help facilitate opportunities for your group members to begin to utilize these precious gifts they have discovered.  Try and pair them with other believers who can walk with them in becoming a full partner in ministry as they learn to discover the joys of using their spiritual gifts.
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Categories : 100 Small Changes, Sunday School
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The Art of Closing the Lesson

By Sandy Coelho · Comments (0)
Thursday, August 11th, 2016

So by now you have introduced your Bible lesson with an introductory activity that has whet their appetite and they are hungry to know more.  You have brought them to a time of encountering the truth of the Word.  This Bible study time is primarily about imparting information that they can wrestle with, ask questions about, and discover the underlying truths that are found in the Word of God. During this time it is very important to be sure to ask some penetrating questions that will drive the class deeper and challenge them to see the fresh ways that God is revealing himself.  The introduction and the Bible study time usually takes about 45 minutes of your hour long class time.

conclusionThe last 15 minutes of your class should be the time to close your lesson and lead your class from information to transformation.  It is imperative that your guard this time and plan to use it for bringing the lesson to a strong close.  This is an opportunity to bring all of the content of the lesson into practical terms that will help your students to understand the application for their daily lives.  How?  Through good questions! Through a focused activity!  Through dialogue/conversation!  As a teacher/facilitator, it is up to you to use the best method or methods that will meet the needs of your students.  These methods should help you drive home the points from the Truth and bring them into focus for day to day living.  This time of application should help to bring them deeper into the Word where the answers live.

Sometimes as teachers we tend to wrap everything up in a neat little package and send them home with all the answers but the best gift you can give your students is a hunger for more and a fresh perspective in how the Word provides the practical tools for living.  Now go and close that Lesson!!!

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Sandy Coelho is the Lay Leadership Director for the Baptist Convention of New England.

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Categories : 100 Small Changes, Bible Study
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Expect Spiritual Growth

By Sandy Coelho · Comments (1)
Tuesday, August 10th, 2010

Recently, I spoke with an excited brand new mom who could not wait to tell me how her newborn son was changing everyday:  his first smile, gaining weight, growing hair, etc. She was expectantly sure that her baby would continue growing and she anticipated nothing less.

Have you considered having this same automatic, positive expectancy about the spiritual growth of your class?  If we are excited and expecting God to work in our students’ lives, that attitude will spill over as we prepare for our students to feast at a table that provides the nourishment which will promote spiritual growth.  The elements on your spiritual table will include:

PRAYER – Our prayer list must go beyond the typical “organ recital” of hoped-for outcomes.  We can pray effectively for lost people to be saved by name.  We can pray for wisdom and spiritual protection for our leaders and missionaries.  We have the opportunity to pray for the conviction of the Holy Spirit to fall on ourselves, our church, other churches, our nation and world and usher in a great awakening!

BIBLE STUDY – Is your Bible study focused on personal life-changing transformation?  Students get excited as they move beyond information transfer to discovering and applying God’s Word to their lives. 

NURTURE AND ACCOUNTABILITY –As we promote an atmosphere of nurture and development, we facilitate our students’ spiritual journey!  This environment will also plant seeds of accountability as students grow and mature.

SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES – There is only one way to excite our students to engage actively in the spiritual disciplines that will draw them into a closer, more intimate walk with the Father, and that is to actually be experiencing this ourselves.

I know that all of this probably seems overwhelming and beyond ourselves and it really is…but it is not beyond what God can do through us.  As the Sunday school leader, expect God to do the work in your life first and when He does it will naturally flow to your class.  Get ready for an amazing journey as you expect great things of the Lord!!!

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Sandy Coelho serves as the Lay Leadership Development Director at the Baptist Convention of New England.  She loves to read and is currently working on her family tree.

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Categories : Great Expectations, Prayer, Sunday School, Teaching