Are You Ready for Christmas?

Those who use Concordia Publishing House Sunday School material will notice that in our first undated New Testament unit, we now have six lessons ramping up to the Nativity. Previous editions of these materials usually had only four. Taught in sequence starting from the first Sunday in December, the "Christmas" lesson will land in the middle of January. I can hear you already: "What were they thinking?!"

Here's the scoop! New Testament 1, God Sends His Son to Save Us, is the only unit of our material that teaches about this early portion of Jesus' life. Teaching the whole narrative involves these six distinct events, each of which we want our children to study and know. In other Decembers, other portions of Jesus' life and ministry will be studied. (Free Christmas lessons will be provided online for churches that decide to interrupt the chronological series of lessons to insert a Christmas lesson.)

How can congregations accommodate this unusually long series of pre-Christmas and Christmas lessons? Here are some options:

• Teach the lessons in order. When the church celebrates Christmas in worship, remind the students that in Sunday School we will get there eventually, but let them know there is important stuff to learn before they study the Nativity itself.
• Skip two or three lessons among those before Christmas. Return to them after studying the Christmas lesson, or not.
• Skip two or three lessons from the Old Testament 2 unit in November. Save them to be taught at the end of the spring quarter or at the end of the summer before beginning the Old Testament 3 unit.

Our undated Sunday School lessons give congregations lots of options and, over time, may save congregations money as they stretch each unit over a couple more weeks or reuse saved material.

God's blessings as you teach His children His Word!