Why Teach the Old Testament?

More than a third of the lessons in our current scope and sequence for Sunday School at Concordia Publishing House teach accounts from the Old Testament, four out of every ten fall, winter, and spring quarters and a generous portion of our summer quarters as well. Why?

• These lessons answer unique questions not addressed in the New Testament. How did the world and human beings begin? Why is there sin and trouble in the world? How did God prepare the world for the coming Savior?
• These lessons show the depth of God's love and concern for His people. They show His providence for both the spiritual needs of all people, and for their physical needs as well. (God provided food for a widow and her son through Elijah. He also provided food for "all the earth" [Genesis 41:57 ESV].) 
• These lessons shares God's forgiveness.
• These lessons demonstrates God's love for all nations. (Yes, Jonah, that includes Nineveh!)
• These lessons reveal Christ. He is revealed in the first Passover lamb and the blood painted on the door frames. He is revealed in the ram caught in the thicket. He is revealed in the bronze serpent lifted up on a pole for the healing of Israel.

The Old Testament lessons are divided among our four fall quarters, which means they are taught every four years. (Most of our New Testament lessons are repeated at least every three years.) This repetition allows the Bible accounts to be reviewed and taught anew in a depth appropriate to each student's age and development stage, contributing to the student's overall biblical literacy.

This fall the cycle begins anew, with lessons coming from the first 28 chapters of Genesis.

God bless you as you teach His children His Old Testament Word!

Have You Considered "Cross Explorations"?

Cross Explorations is a site rotation, large group/small group hybrid curriculum now in its third year of publication. It's a great alternative to our traditional Sunday School material.

• It is designed for first through sixth graders.
• It follows the same sequence of lessons as Growing in Christ (so your preschoolers and junior high students can use that material for a unified weekly experience).
• Up to 30 students could be taught by just two volunteers (but the activities are so varied, you'll probably find lots of eager volunteers).
• In addition to the Engage opening and Explore Bible studies, student can enjoy a variety of Express sessions of lesson related activities: music, drama, crafts, snacks, games, and service projects! Offer the same kinds of activities each week, or alternate among them. Your choice!
• The perfect alternative for congregations looking for something "a little different"!
• Buy the "Starter Kit" and leaflets for each student, or order individual components a la carte!

You can view an explanatory video, explore the starter kit contents, and download samples at cph.org/sundayschool.

God bless you as you teach His children His Word!

Say Thank You

When was the last time your congregation said "Thank you" to your Sunday School teachers?

No one agrees to teach in order to receive your thanks. But the act of saying thanks blesses both the one thanked and the one doing the thanking. It acknowledges that we need each other in the body of Christ.

So, say "Thanks" . . .

• personally, one to one
• with a small gift
• with a card, handmade by the Sunday School children
• publicly, from the pulpit or during the announcements
• have the children sing a song
• with a phone call
• _________________________________

There are dozens of ways to say "Thank you." Don't put it off. And don't worry about doing it too often.

Thank you for teaching God's children His Word!

Editors Wanted

Did you know? CPH is seeking to fill a couple of editorial positions.

One is a director of curriculum, a management level position that would supervise nearly a dozen curriculum editors spanning products: Sunday School, VBS, day school, midweek school, confirmation, and adult Christian education.

Another is a curriculum editor: someone with interest, experience, and skills to editor material in one or more of the areas listed above.

The best candidates for both positions will have strong ability and interest in educational technology. Both positions are "working in the building" positions.

You can seek the specifics of these positions, and a few others available here at the LCMS publishing house, at www.cph.org; scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on "Careers," or browse straight to www.cph.org/careers.

Do you know of someone with talent who is too shy to apply? Contact me at tom.nummela@cph.org and I'll try to encourage. We truly want the best possible people in these positions.

Help us prepare the resources that will help you teach God's children His Word!

Who Is Your Sunday School For?

Don't just blow past the title of this post. It is a serious question! For whom do you conduct your Sunday School on a week by week basis?

The student, right? Sunday School is all about delivering the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ to the students in each class. That's not as easy as it might sound. It gets complicated because we must balance delivering the best content with making sure that the students and, in the case of most of our students under the age of 16, their parents desire to have this Sunday School experience of themselves or their children.

Then, assuming that you buy into the "it's for the students" mindset . . .

Sunday School is not for volunteer teacher. ("What is the easiest material to prepare and teach? I want something I can pick up and teach without spending my time studying the lesson and getting ready for class.")

Sunday School is not for the church finance board or treasurer. ("What is the cheapest alternative out there? Can we find something with reproducible student material? What about this stuff that is available free online?")

Sunday School is for the spiritual health of the student. ("Well, yeah, the theology is a little off, but the activities are really fun. And the material is cheap. And the teachers don't have to prepare.")

Forgive me if I sound harsh, but it seems to me that some congregations get off track on this at times.

Teaching Sunday School is a high calling with a vitally important goal. It truly is worth giving it our best!

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

Help! Share Your Thoughts!

CPH is conducting a Sunday School materials survey. It is a multi-path survey for anyone interested in or using any Sunday School curriculum. It is designed to help us measure which components of our curriculum are most used and what new features Sunday School leaders and teachers are seeking.

You can help in two ways!

First, take the survey! Your thoughts will be extremely helpful as we craft the next generation of Sunday School resources her at Concordia Publishing House.

Second, encourage others (your Sunday School teachers, and colleagues and their teachers in other churches) to take the survey as well.

You can access the survey by following the link below. It will be live through June 30.

Please take our Sunday School survey to share how you use Growing in Christ or Cross Explorations, what you like about the curriculum, and what you think could be improved. 

God bless you as you teach His children His Word!

Training Your Volunteer Teachers

So, how do you train your volunteer teachers?

It used to be that congregations had annual, semi-annual, or even quarterly volunteer training courses. Sunday School teachers came together weekly for several weeks to study and share.

CPH over the years has published many different types of teacher training resources, including video products like the Teaching the Faith series. Two of our latest books are God at Work and Discipline in Christian Classrooms.

It seems to me that teachers still need training, be it orientation, one-on-one mentoring, workshops, or training meetings.

What kind of training does your congregation provide?

What kind of resources would be most helpful for training your teachers?


God bless you as you train those who teach God's children His Word.