Author Archive for Sean Keith – Page 4

Praying for the Lost

By Sean Keith · Comments (1)
Wednesday, August 3rd, 2016

praying-handsYour group regularly prays for the needs of the members and their family and friends, but are you praying for the lost in your family, among your friends, and in your community? We pray for what is important to us. What did Jesus pray for? Yes, He prayed for His family and friends. But Jesus prayed to God that He would follow His will and not His own. Jesus was sent to this earth to redeem the lost. He came to “seek and save the lost.” (HCSB Luke 19:10)

Praying for the lost is a critical step in developing a love for the lost just like Jesus. Our purpose on this earth as believers is not to make our lives more comfortable, but to accomplish the will of the Father. His desire is that the lost would hear the Gospel. For that to happen, God has to transform the heart of the believer (us) and prepare the heart of the lost. A regular time of prayer for the lost will help make that happen.

May I make a suggestion? Let me encourage you to write down the names of three lost people that you know. Commit to pray daily that God would prepare their heart for the message of the Gospel and prepare your life to possibly be the one to share that Good News with them. Also, share the names of those you are praying for with your small group or Sunday School class. Imagine the celebration in heaven and in your class if one of those people comes to know Christ. I would say that would be a great and wise investment of your time. Wouldn’t you?

Sean Keith is the Sunday School/Discipleship Strategist for the Louisiana Baptist Convention.

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Categories : 100 Small Changes, Outreach/Evangelism
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Together

By Sean Keith · Comments (0)
Tuesday, June 28th, 2016

TogetherIf your church body took the form of a human body, how healthy would it be? Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12 both talk about how we as a “body of believers” should function and work together as one. There is one head – Jesus. There are lots of parts, but one body.

If I were to be honest, even my church (and I do love my church) would resemble a zombie more than a healthy functioning human being. Why is that? Maybe it’s because sometimes Jesus is not the head of our “body of believers.” Maybe there are too many people that are not doing their part. Maybe we just have too many jobs that people feel that somebody else can do the job better. Whatever the reason, we have a problem church!

One of the reasons I love Sunday School is because each class is unique. The church may not function the way it should, but sometimes a class does. If at least one Sunday School class is healthy and functioning, it can drastically improve the chances of God doing something incredible in that church and community. That is the Power of One.

Together there is so much more we can do than one person can do alone. 9 Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their efforts. 10 For if either falls, his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to lift him up. 11 Also, if two lie down together, they can keep warm; but how can one person alone keep warm? 12 And if someone overpowers one person, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not easily broken. Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (HCSB)

Don’t rob others of the opportunity to be a part of God’s great work in your church and community. Get as many people involved as possible. We weren’t meant to do it alone.

Your Sunday School class could be a healthy, functioning example of a body of Christ. My advice is to pay attention to the head of the body – Jesus Christ. Then, seek to involve and engage as many people as possible in fulfilling the Great Commission.

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Sean Keith is the Sunday School/Discipleship Strategist for the Louisiana Baptist Convention. Website: www.revseankeith.com; Twitter: @revseankeith.

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Categories : Ministry
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Stage 2: Declare and Resolve

By Sean Keith · Comments (0)
Tuesday, August 25th, 2015

ResolveMost of us have good intentions. We mean to keep our New Year’s Resolutions but our resolve is not as strong as our hopes. When it comes to starting NEW GROUPS; your resolve must be strong. New Groups are rarely started by accident. They don’t typically happen on their own. New Groups in most cases happen because of a catalyst. That is usually one or more people who have decided that a new group is not a possibility but a definite. The key is figuring out the right timing.

Growing things are healthy and healthy things grow. That’s not my opinion. It just happens to be true. Face it, if you haven’t started a new group (especially an adult group) in a long time; it will not be easy. Oddly enough, the more new groups you start the easier it gets. The first barrier to starting a new group is your resolve. Adopt this phrase: “it’s not if we will start a new group, it’s when we will start a new group”.

In the book, Countdown: Launching and Leading Transformational Groups, David Francis and Rick Howerton use the statement “a declaration phase”. When your plan to start a new group gets to the point that you have set a date, chosen a leader, selected a curriculum and put a sign on the door of a room; you are there. As a matter of fact, if any one of those items mentioned above are true, you are well on your way. This philosophy of name and claim it I can embrace.

Flake’s Formula reminds us that after we have “imagined the possibilities” it is time to “enlarge the organization”. In order to enlarge the organization, you need to start new groups and enlist and train new leaders. New Groups and New Leaders are the two most powerful forces in creating the dynamic of change in a stagnant culture.

Don’t settle for less. Name it and claim it for the kingdom of God. Determine today that you WILL start a new group and declare it to your church. That might seem like a lot of pressure but then again accountability sure goes a long way in helping you keep your resolutions.

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Sean P. Keith is the Sunday School/Discipleship Strategist for the Louisiana Baptist Convention.

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Categories : 31 Day Countdown, New Groups
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The Church’s Best Discipleship Strategy Is…

By Sean Keith · Comments (0)
Wednesday, August 5th, 2015

strategy

Research continues to clarify for churches that people are looking for a clear and concise plan from their church that helps them in their spiritual walk with Christ. Joining a church is not enough. People want and need to know what is next. Sunday School has been and still is the best “next step” for people who are a member of a congregation. If your church does not have a Sunday School, there is the option of small groups. It doesn’t matter when they meet, where they meet or what you call these groups; people just need to know, “where do I fit in”.

Groups Help People Move to the Next Step of Discipleship
Most churches that are effective at reaching and assimilating people in their community into their church have a process to making disciples through groups. That process requires an intentional strategy to identify people who are not in a group and a precise plan how to connect them to a group. To be successful, this process needs to be people focused and relational in context. People aren’t looking for friendly groups; they are looking for friends.

Groups Propel Measurable Spiritual Growth
The purpose of each group is to make disciples. Involvement is a key contributor to a person’s spiritual growth. Research proves that the more involved an individual is in a group, the stronger their relationship is with God. For example, a person who attends bible study every week tends to be more interested in spiritual things than does a person who does not. The person who is active in the leadership or engaged in ministry with the group tends to have stronger relationships with the group and the church. Regular attendance tends to lead to more spiritually mature people.

Groups can Address the Key Attributes of Spiritual Transformation
When people are actively engaged in their group on a consistent basis, they experience a greater sense of belongingness and feelings of being loved and valued. When those foundational needs are met, a person is more likely to be open to the teachings and application of truth from God’s Word into their personal life.
Groups are the churches best strategy to make disciples. Once leaders and participants clearly understand the “strategy” the church has in place to connect, then they can connect with the lost and unchurched, provide a place for biblical community to develop, help people to mature spiritually and to live missionally.
See, it’s really not that complicated. But, it does take a lot of work.

Excellent research about groups can be found in Transformational Groups, by Ed Stetzer and Eric Geiger

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Sean P. Keith is the Sunday School/Discipleship Strategist, Louisiana Baptist Convention

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Categories : 31 Day Countdown
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Start With “Why” When Training Leaders

By Sean Keith · Comments (1)
Monday, April 27th, 2015

question-mark1In all reality, I have spent most of my life training leaders HOW to perform their role as a leader of a small group; (Sunday School, Discipleship, Men’s, Women’s, Youth, etc). And to be very honest, I was pretty good in explaining how to perform and function in their role. After awhile, I felt my messages where going in one ear and out the other. Then I realized, (DUH) times have changed. Let me see if I can explain that change.

The Internet – When looking for information on the internet, I follow a precise line of reasoning in order to find what I am looking for. For example, let’s say I am looking for additional resources on www.lifeway.com to use with a study in the Bible study resource called Bible Studies for Life. When I arrived at the initial page I would then search for the program area of Sunday School. Then I would click on the box in the middle of the page for Bible Studies For Life. Next I would choose Resources/Blog to see what additional resources were available. Then I would scroll over to media and select downloads. There I found promotional videos and illustrations.

Does that sound complicated? Not to me. That is the way I think and process things. It was HOW I was taught. BUT ask someone under the age of 30 HOW they would find additional free resources for Bible Studies for Life, this is what they would do. They would choose a search engine (google) and simply put in Bible Studies for Life. They would arrive at the same page with the same information.
Sound simple? It is. My culture that I was trained in, led people through a somewhat complicated process to discover HOW to do what they were suppose to do. Our culture today that most of us are adapting to and those under 30 practice regularly is to focus on the objective, THEN figure out how to do it. We need to learn how that applies to us in the church.

Stop training people HOW to do great Sunday School! Instead, train those group leaders to understand WHY their group exists. Groups exist because it is the church’s best strategy to Make Disciples through small groups, (i.e. Sunday School, Small Groups, Home Groups, discipleship groups, men’s groups, women’s groups, etc.). Then, help them to discover WHAT priorities that group should focus on in order to Make Disciples. Then help them discover HOW to accomplish that.

The objective is to make disciples that we hope and pray become Disciple Makers. In order to do that, we need healthy effective groups that: Share the Gospel with the Lost; Develop Biblical Community among the group; assist people to Grow Spiritually; and to Equip believers to Live Missionally. A healthy group then has the right DNA to start more groups from the people in the initial group.

This changes everything. Instead of guiding people through a complicated process of learning HOW to be an effective group leader, I help them discover their purpose (WHY) and their priorities (WHAT) and then guide them to discover HOW they will accomplish their purpose.

Sound simple? It is. Easy to accomplish? NO! It’s time to discover the God given potential of every leader. People learn HOW to perform their role as leaders by observing other leaders. If your current leaders are ineffective, you will raise up more ineffective leaders. Why not help a potential leader discover WHY they are a leader of that group, WHAT they are suppose to focus on and then equip them in HOW to do it in their own unique way. All I can tell you is that I am having more fun doing this than I have ever had before.

SO, does this produce better leaders? Sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn’t. The difference is the attitude and heart of the leader. Remember, we lead an all volunteer organization. I don’t control the work and will of God. I also don’t control the choices, actions, behaviors and attitudes of others. What I do control is my plan to achieve what God has asked me to do and my choices, actions, behaviors and attitudes in accomplishing it.

Great leaders are not born, they are made. For some reason, God has chosen to use me to develop leaders to accomplish His mission. They are shaped by God to do His work. I’m just His instrument. I know God uses me and accomplishes His purposes through me.

Join me in a new culture of equipping leaders. Let’s stop training leaders in HOW to fulfill a program role. Let’s develop leaders who are willing to lead a small group of people to make disciples that become disciple makers as well.

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Written by Sean P. Keith, Sunday School/Discipleship Strategist, Louisiana Baptist Convention

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Categories : Sunday School, Training
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