1. Marketing – Guess what came in the mail today?! Selecting curriculum by the marketing efforts of publishers leads to frequent changes (there’s always something better – “the latest and the greatest”); the result: frustrated teachers, incomplete scope & sequence for learners, and a schizophrenic approach to studying the Bible.
2. Comfort – Ahhh, that feels good. Choosing curriculum based on “what we’ve always used” leads to infrequent changes (the other end of the extreme) and churches never consider if there are better, more viable options for their learners. Tradition is king…long live the king.
3. Pressure from members – This is the “tail wags the dog” syndrome. Parents have strong opinions about what their children should be studying and start a grass-roots campaign to change their church’s curriculum used in grades 1-6; adults may voice displeasure about the materials chosen for them by church staff, so church leaders give in to pressures for the sake of peace (or their jobs). In nature, pressure creates diamonds; in the church (as it relates to curriculum) pressure isn’t so helpful and the results aren’t quite as beautiful.
4. Peer recommendations – Church staff receive recommendations from their peers (often around a quick lunch…”Hey, what are you guys using for curriculum?”) A recommendation is made, a quick decision is made to change, and it’s all done without any significant research; oh well, at least you’re keeping up with the Joneses.
5. Research – Churches take the time to examine 4-6 publishers’ curriculum and then make choices. It’s time-consuming (6 months +), but you can rest assured you will have a new conviction you’ve made the best choice for your church, plus you involve teachers in this selection process.  I love this approach.
6. Ministry, Vision, & Purpose – Churches select curriculum based on their ministry’s vision and purpose statements to achieve maximum alignment.
7. Denominational loyalty – Churches select curriculum from their denominational publisher(s). This approach gives maximum doctrinal alignment, so if that’s important to your church, this should be a strong option. It’s a safe approach that usually yields positive results.
8. Empowered teachers and groups – Teachers and their learners determine what they will teach/study, secure curriculum, and “go for it.” The result is a hodge-podge of curriculum, poor scope and sequence, and an unexplainable strategy to members and guests.  But we love our autonomy, don’t we?   No one is going to tell us what to study!
9. Electronic delivery– “Paper is out, electronic delivery is in” is the cry of some church staff. Are lessons downloadable from the internet? Can I print my own copies? Can teachers access online information 24/7? While electronic delivery has great advantages, it also has disadvantages such as (1) no learner books…which means students can’t prepare before class, which enhances the group’s experience (2) no internet…not every teacher can afford the expense of having a computer, internet service, printer, etc. (3) there’s more reasons…just keep thinking!
10. Silo approach Vs. Coordinated approach – Preschool, children, student, and adult ministries are allowed to select their own curriculum without regard to how it connects to ascending grade levels/life stages in a silo approach. A coordinated approach, however, considers how each age group’s scope and sequence relates to the ones that come after it so that learning is life-long and spans the course of an individual’s life. This is very common in most churches…it’s the “Judges” approach to selecting curriculum. Remember the last line from the book of Judges? Everyone did what was right in their own eyes.

Robert Pazmino is a recognized expert in the area of curriculum.  He is the author of several books on Christian education, and in Foundational Issues In Christian Education, he calls attention to things you should consider if you choose to use published curriculum.  Here is a quick summary of key questions he recommends you consider:

A.  Does the theology of the publisher and curriculum writers agree with the theology of your church?  Are theological concepts presented in such a way that learners of all ages can understand them?

B.  Does the curriculum affirm the Scriptures as authoritative?  Is the entire counsel of the Scripture addressed in the sequence of the curriculum?

C.  Are the activities for the learners varied and relevant to their life situations?  Are students actively involved in the learning process?

D.  Do lesson plans allow for adapting the materials to deal with time constraints, available resources, and settings?

E.  Are the needs, interests, and concerns of learners addressed in the curriculum?  Do the learners find appropriate ways to apply biblical truth to their lives?

F.  Are the colors, layout, and quality of materials attractive and attention-getting?

I hope the things in today’s blog will help you think through curriculum choices you make in the future.  I’ll wrap up this 3-part series in a few days with a final post in which I’ll share 10 ways to ensure success in selecting curriculum.

Curriculum comes from the Latin word currere, which means to run. Curriculum was used during the Roman Empire to refer to the course used for chariot races. The “curriculum” was the racetrack. What a great picture of what we think of as curriculum today that is! Curriculum, like a racetrack, has a beginning and ending point, and provides parameters within which the material is taught (much like parameters at a race track showed participants the prescribed course. When I think of curriculum today, I can visualize materials that show me, the leader, where to start and end a study, and what topic(s) I should cover during a group meeting with learners.

Well, let’s jump in and think about 5 myths about curriculum. See if you have said any of the following:

1. There is a perfect curriculum. There is no such thing! Don’t waste your time looking for it, because it doesn’t exist. There is no such thing as a perfect company to work for, and no such thing as a perfect marriage…and there’s no perfect curriculum. Some curriculum will meet the needs of your Sunday School better than others…they all have strengths and weaknesses. Don’t give in to the pressures that some teachers will place on you when they ask you to choose a different curriculum because they don’t like the present one. Help them understand why you’ve chosen the one you did, train them on how to use it properly, pray for them to accept it and have a positive attitude about it, and stay the course.
2. The newest curriculum with all the “bells and whistles” is best for your church. Maybe, maybe not. If you believe this, you’ll be changing curriculum at least annually, because new curriculum is always being developed, and in this day and age, there is no shortage of publishers who produce Sunday School curriculum (and we can now add churches and individuals to that list). It is better to select a curriculum that meets your criteria, train your leaders in how to use it properly, and become experts in using it. If you constantly change curriculum, your learners will never complete a scope and sequence and their learning will be hindered.
3. We should change curriculum each time we get a new leader. The church must decide what its plan is for teaching people of all ages, and as new staff join the leadership team, they should be in agreement with the educational philosophy. That isn’t to say that a new leader shouldn’t be allowed to have a conversation about curriculum changes they would like to make, but generally they make those out of their own experience (i.e. “I’ve used XYZ curriculum at my previous church”) and they haven’t spent enough time fully understanding their new church’s philosophy and reasons for selecting its current curriculum. Sometimes the new leader is right, and a curriculum change should be made, but make sure you take the time to do the proper research before jumping ship to a new curriculum.
4. Teachers teach curriculum. Actually, they teach the Bible. Teachers use curriculum as a tool to aid in the teaching of Scripture, but it’s just a tool. Curriculum provides a rhyme and reason for the scope and sequence of study, it provides balance, and it provides teaching procedures and ideas for involving learners in studying the lesson, but ultimately teachers teach the Bible, not curriculum.
5. Teachers don’t need any curriculum…they have the Bible. Churches make a big mistake when they allow teachers to create their own curriculum plan and “just study the Bible.” It makes sense on the surface, doesn’t it? The Word of God is powerful, sharper than a two-edged sword, so why not just allow the teacher to open it, teach his or her favorite passages, and save the expense of buying curriculum and training leaders? Because it is a poor plan for teaching the entire counsel of God in age-appropriate ways in a scope and sequence that takes into account the life-long developmental and spiritual needs of preschoolers, children, students, and adults! At a recent conference in which I was teaching Sunday School directors, one man shared with the group that one of the adult classes in his church’s Sunday School had a teacher that had been leading his own study of the book of Acts…for the past two years! As good as Acts is, people need a balance of Scripture, just like you and I need a healthy balance of food. Too much of a good thing isn’t good.

In my next post I will share 10 ways churches are selecting curriculum. Until then, thanks for dropping by and being a part of this community!

I’d love to hear your stories about curriculum selection…no doubt there are some very good tales out there!

As I visited churches in an effort to find a new church home last year, and as I have visited many churches over the years as a conference leader, I have found that most are lacking in directional signs. First impressions made on guests are so important, yet so many churches overlook the need for adequate signage. Many guests make a decision to return to the church campus well before they ever hear a sermon or participate in a worship service, and signage is important to help guests feel empowered, not frustrated, with their visit. Guests usually form an impression about the church within a few minutes of being on the campus (as short a time as 30 seconds according to some experts). Does your church have clear signage so that a first-time guest can navigate the myriad of hallways, common areas, and parking lot options? Do they know where to go once they walk inside your church? The answer may surprise you.

First impressions tend to be lasting impressions, so do your very best to “think like a guest.” From the moment a guest arrives at your church, they will be looking for a number of places like the ones below:

• Guest parking
• Worship center
• Restrooms
• Coffee bar/fellowship area
• Large common areas where people gather
• Church office
• Nursery
• Children’s classrooms
• Student classrooms
• Adult classrooms
• Gym

You may know exactly where all of these are, but your guests don’t. And without adequate signage, you will frustrate guests. Here are a few tips for making your church more attractive for guests by using directional signs:

1. Think from the outside in – make certain that directional signs clearly show a guest where to park and where to enter the building.
2. Place easy-to-read directional signs at all major entrances and high-traffic areas
3. Identify all classrooms with clearly visible room numbers
4. Place directional signs at all hallway junctures…every time a guest has a decision to make (right, left, straight?) have directional signs
5. If guests must walk outside the main building to go to another area, have clearly visible directional signs along the sidewalks
6. Be consistent in your signage…use one color, one font style, and place signs at the same height…no “Frankenstein” signage, please
7. Don’t place too many words on signs…make them simple to read and understand
8. Be sure your signs have highly contrasting colors (i.e. dark sign/white lettering)
9. When you think you have placed enough signs around your campus, place some more
10. Visitors tend to move from sign-to-sign, so ask a friend to come to your church and see if they can locate certain areas you give them to find using only the directional signs you’ve placed in and around the campus

Do you recognize any of the following names: Swing of the Quad Cities, Greenville Drive, Springfield Cardinals, Lynchburg Hillcats, Modesto Nuts, Lowell Spinners, Savannah Sand Gnats, Fort Myers Miracle, Montgomery Biscuits, Olmecas de Tabasco, Potros de Tijuana, or Saraperos de Saltillo? Perhaps you realized these are all minor league teams that are part of the Major League farm system. It is estimated that 6,000 minor leaguers are working to fill some 950 Major League roster positions.

Why have such an elaborate farm system? Why give these 6,000 men an “internship” on a minor league team? Why put them through long bus rides, games played in front of small crowds, and minimal recognition by fans (no one is lining up to get their autographs). The answer is growth, development, coaching, experience, and the hope of being given the opportunity of a lifetime. These minor league “interns” need real game experience in order to grow and develop. They need a place to showcase their abilities. The farm team system gives future MLB players a venue to become tomorrow’s leaders.

Let’s turn out thoughts back to the world of Sunday School. Does your church have a farm system for growing new “players” for leadership roles in Sunday School? Tomorrow’s leaders are right under our noses today, waiting for us to get them on the field so they can gain some valuable “real world” experience. How will you as a teacher/leader provide internships for your next generation of leaders? Its time to think about getting these folks ready for “the Bigs.”

Invite “minor leaguers” to your training events. Don’t limit your training to existing leaders…require your teachers to bring an apprentice with them to training events your church sponsors.

Give “minor leaguers” playing time. The best way to learn to play the game is by doing it, so allow interns to take the field on a regular basis. If you want to raise up a new generation of leaders in your Sunday School, make sure they are in the rotation and have a chance to teach one a month, once a quarter, or some other interval.

Make a big deal out of advancing an intern to a “major league” roster spot. When a minor leaguer/intern moves up to start a new group, or takes over for an existing teacher, write a press release for the church to read, or call him/her to the platform and pray for them in front of the church. Don’t squander an opportunity to call attention not just to the person, but to your farm system, and the act that Sunday School is important!

Whether it’s the Charleston River dogs, the Everett Aquasox, or the Sunday School team you lead, development is essential in advancing from where you are to where you want to be.

Over the years, members of the two churches I served, plus men and women I lead at LifeWay have given me thank-you cards.  I have several folders full of hundreds and hundreds of cards given to me and my wife over the past 20 years of ministry.  I am so glad that I’ve held on to them, because any time I need a pick-me-up, I take a few out and read them.  The cards in the photo are just a handful of the ones that I’ve treasured.  I enjoy being told thank-you for a job well done…don’t you?

I once read a great quote (I wish I could remember exactly where I read it) that went like this:  “Praise is like oxygen to a worker’s soul.”  I love that thought and the word picture it gives me.  But I wonder how many of your teachers/leaders are living in an oxygen deprived environment?  Are you saying thank-you often enough?  If not, maybe your teachers are hoping you’ll turn on the flow of praise and bring new life to their souls!

When I was on church staff, I looked for volunteers doing things right each Sunday, and I frequently sent out thank-you cards to them on Mondays.  To my amazement, they often sought me out the next Sunday to say thanks for noticing their ministry!  They loved being noticed, and they loved being thanked for jobs well done.  A little praise goes a long way.  It’s a lesson I learned early in my ministry.  Leaders shouldn’t have to live in an oxygen deprived environment.

Here are a few ways you can start saying thank-you to your volunteer leaders.  How many other ways can you think of?

1.  Thank-you cards.  Make a commitment to send out two or three a week…catch people doing good things and thank them for it.

2.  Public praise.  Call attention to a volunteer’s good work in a public way…at a leader training event, from the pulpit, or in front of the people they teach/lead.

3.  Gifts.  Books, pens, a coffee mug, an iTunes gift card, tickets to an event, or something else that brings added value to the volunteer…the sky is the limit…just use your imagination.

4.  Breakfast, lunch, or dinner.  You’ve got to eat anyway, right?  Why not take a volunteer out to eat and spend time with them?

Each week after my teacher (and Minister of Education) Marty Blakely finishes teaching our class’s Sunday School lesson, I try to always say “Thanks, Marty.”  He goes above and beyond his regular responsibilities to prepare a great lesson and lead our class to study the Scripture.  He deserves a hearty thank-you from all of us each week.  How about the teachers who teach your children?  When is the last time you’ve said thanks when you pick them up from Sunday School?!  Remember, praise is like oxygen to a worker’s soul.  Don’t let your teachers live in that kind of environment…take steps this week to say thank-you.

From the movie Alice In Wonderland

Alice:  “Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to walk from here?”

Cat:  “That depends a good deal on where you want to get to”

Alice:  “I don’t much care where”

Cat:  “Then it doesn’t matter which way you walk”

Alice:  “…so long as I get somewhere”

Cat:  “Oh, you’re sure to do that if you only walk long enough!”

This is how the National Sunday School Director’s Seminar opened last weekend, by taking a look at the conversation between Alice and the Cheshire Cat.  Why? Because many Sunday Schools suffer from a similar affliction – the lack of direction that Alice seemed to have.  They wander from week to week without fully understanding their purpose and mission.  They’re going somewhere, but they’re not sure just where.

I had the privilege of teaching with a team of leaders at the NSSDS (National Sunday School Director’s Seminar).  LifeWay is sponsoring 17 of them in 2012, and they are making a real difference for Pastors, Sunday School Directors, and Ministers of Education – whoever is responsible for leading the work of the Sunday School in the church.

The team taught from 8:30-3:30, and over the course of the day-long training event, I learned several lessons as I spoke with Sunday School leaders.  Perhaps you’ll be encouraged by one or more of these.

1.  Sunday School is alive and well.  The leaders who attended the NSSDS are proud of this time-honored ministry and they are using it as their “step 2” in assimilating people into the church.  No one at this training event is even close to calling off Sunday School in lieu of another philosophy of Bible study.

2.  Leaders of all sizes of Sunday Schools are looking for help.  At one point in the seminar we asked people to identify themselves by the size of their Sunday School membership.  One the low end was one church with 70 members; on the high end, a couple of churches with over 1,000 in membership.  The majority were in between these two extremes…probably Sunday Schools in the range of 400-500 people.  While the challenges these Sunday Schools face are similar in many ways,  they do have unique needs…and they need help.  But the good news is that help exists, and good leaders were seeking to become great leaders through the training provided.

3.  Sunday Schools would benefit from annual planning.  At the NSSDS, we spent time during the final session walking leaders through an exercise in creating an annual plan for their Sunday School.  We had them identify strengths, weaknesses, needs, and victories.  We led them to prioritize their lists, and showed them how to create action steps, due dates, and delegate the work to others.  Most of the churches present had never conducted this kind of detailed planning for their Sunday School, but all agreed that it will benefit their Sunday School for the future.  I know that many classes will begin to set and achieve goals as a result of what their Directors learned during this exercise.

4.  Some classes are choosing their own curriculum.  I spoke with several Sunday School directors who lamented the fact they are fighting battles with Sunday School classes that are set on choosing their own curriculum.  Some classes want “deeper” study, others don’t like the idea of following a prescribed curriculum.  But all of the directors realize that this leads to a great imbalance in the materials being studied (one class has been in the book of Acts for over 18 months).  Sunday School directors were encouraged by me to lead…to set a curriculum plan for their adult Sunday School classes, and then stick to their guns.  I told one director that no other education system in America allows the students to tell the dean what they will study!  Why should this be the case in Sunday School where we study the riches of God’s Word?  Classes need guidelines and leadership from their church staff and/or Sunday School Director…give it to them!  Stress the benefits of using what we now call “ongoing Bible study curriculum.”

5.  Flake’s Formula still works.  Arthur Flake was an early pioneer in Sunday School work, and he led the Baptist Sunday School Board to help churches know how to grow and expand their ministries…and he did this back in the 1920s and 1930s.  He was a salesman prior to working as the first Director of Sunday School at the old BSSB (now known as LifeWay).  He developed a 5-step formula for growing a Sunday School, and I was surprised that many of the attendees at the Sunday School Director’s Seminar had not heard about these simple but profound steps.  (1) Know your possibilities (2) Enlarge the organization (3) Enlist and train workers (4) Provide the space (5) Go after the people.  If you’d like to download a free copy of the book 5 Step Formula for Sunday School Growth, go to the iBook store and do a quick search…it’s a free download, and I carry it on my iPad wherever I go.  I was encouraged to hear of churches that were using this simple formula to grow their Sunday Schools.  Hopefully, many more will now use it since they became aware of it last weekend.

If you ‘d like to know more about the National Sunday School Director’s Seminar and how you and your Sunday School could benefit, click here to go to an information page at lifeway.com.

1. Multiple Sunday Schools do not double your space availability…remember that preschoolers are there for two hours
2. Multiple Sunday Schools do create breaks in fellowship…gear up to increase fellowship activities
3. Do not move into multiple Sunday Schools too quickly – give the people time to adjust to the new format, time to ask questions, and time to express concerns
4. A greeter center and a greeting system are “musts” for multiple Sunday Schools – things can get confusing really quick, so you’ll want trained volunteers who know the class options backwards and forwards
5. Use major recreation or fellowship space for multiple Sunday Schools (gym or fellowship hall).  Consider purchasing movable walls that can be used to create temporary classrooms in large open spaces like gyms
6. Plan to remodel and update some education space (restrooms, walkways, waiting area, classrooms, etc)
7. Janitorial services for waste cans and rest rooms will be necessary.  Trash receptacles must handle double or triple the use
8. “Ownership” of wall space, storage space, resources, coffee pots, etc. must be clearly understood among classes…head off conflicts early by helping teachers to “play nice together”
9. Your staff must be able to delegate for multiple Sunday Schools…can they?
10. How will you assign prospects who have never attended Sunday School before? Which class do you assign them to if you have options in both Sunday School hours?
11. Will you have classes for all ages in each of the two Sunday School hours, or will each “specialize” in reaching certain age groups?
12. Consider how your schedule of adult classes impacts the worship service(s)
13. Some parents will attend worship only and put their children in Sunday School and “do church in an hour” – it’s unavoidable…but don’t stop promoting involvement in small groups
14. There will certainly be an imbalance between the two Sunday School hours…one will have the majority of the people…know this going in and don’t give up on the smaller of the two hours
15. Can your parking handle an increasing number of cars as your second Sunday School grows?
16. Watch out for the impact on choir members who are also teachers/leaders in the Sunday School…you’ll want to visit with your worship pastor about the impact on the church’s worship ministry
17. Don’t mix age groups in the same room unless they can use the same size furniture
18. How will your worker training change as a result of multiple Sunday Schools that will have multiple Directors?
19. Do you have enough volunteers to staff two Sunday Schools?  Are the people supportive?
20. Two record keeping systems will be needed.  Each Sunday School tracks its own attendance
21. The budgets for the two Sunday Schools should be coordinated to maximize usage and purchasing of equipment, supplies, and storage
22. You will want a Director and an Assistant Director for each of the two Sunday Schools
23. Prospect information should be collected at a central location and distributed to the appropriate Sunday School class
24. Don’t go into multiple Sunday Schools unless absolutely necessary.
25. Are you allowing enough time between the two Sunday Schools for transition, fellowship, and occasional late dismissals?

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A mind map is often created around a single word or text, placed in the center, to which associated ideas, words and concepts are added.  A mind map is a diagram used to represent words, ideas, tasks, and other items.  These items are linked to and arranged radially around a central key word or idea. Mind maps are used to generate, visualize, structure, and classify ideas,and as an aid in:

• study
• presentations
• notetaking
• organization
• problem-solving
• decision-making
• writing

By presenting ideas in a radial, graphical, non-linear manner, mind maps encourage an unorthodox brainstorming approach that can generate ideas without regard for a more formal, hierarchical organization system.

Why use Mind Maps instead of Conventional Notes?

• Mind Maps are more compact than conventional notes, often taking up one side of paper
• Make associations easily
• If you find out more information after you have drawn the main Mind Map, then you can easily add it in
• Mind maps are quick to review and easy to refresh information in your mind
• Effective mnemonics – remembering the shape or structure of a mind map can give you the cues you need to remember the information within.  More of your brain is engaged in the process of assimilating and connecting facts compared to conventional notetaking

Creating Mind Maps

Mindmaps can be drawn by hand, either as ‘rough notes’ during a lecture or meeting, for example, or can be more sophisticated in quality by using mind mapping software.  To create effective mind maps, you’ll want to have at least 4-5 different colored pens so that each branch of the mind map will be a different color, making it very easily to see your different points throughout your presentation.

If you have an iPhone or an iPad, you can download inexpensive apps that will enable you to create mind maps on your mobile devices.  Go to the app store and simply type in “mind mapping” in the search bar.

If you wish, you can go to a number of websites and use mind mapping software.  Try www.imindmap.com or www.thebrain.com.

Reason 1:  the leader is afraid to lose his job.  Some leaders know that if they change too much too fast, they’ll run into a buzz saw…a disgruntled teacher or personnel committee member who does not like the leader’s insistence on using an ongoing curriculum…and some leaders may have even been told that if they insisted teachers follow an approved curriculum plan, they’d end of losing their job.

Reason 2:  the leader doesn’t want to make people mad.  Other leaders want (perhaps need) to be liked.  Relationships are a motivating factor in their life, and they don’t want to alienate people or cause unhappiness (most of us in ministry are “people persons”).  The leader may have a Golden Retriever personality and peace is a value they hold dear.

Reason 3:  the leader doesn’t understand the benefits of an “ongoing” curriculum plan.  If you don’t care about people having a balanced approach to studying God’s Word, then any plan is fine.  Let a teacher write his or her own material.  Allow another one to teach the book of Revelation for two years.  Give permission for yet another teacher to teach only from the New Testament.  If you use an ongoing curriculum, you’ll ensure that learners receive balanced learning and counsel from God’s Word.  You’ll also make sure that Personal Study Guides are available to help class members continue studying and growing outside the classroom.

Reason 4:  the leader inherited the philosophy from someone else.  A new Sunday School director or a Minister of Education may have walked into a situation that’s been ongoing under the former leader’s ministry.  They didn’t create the Judges 25:21 situation, but now they are the one to have to deal with it and implement change.  Class autonomy is a part of the Sunday School’s DNA, and teachers are use to calling the shots.

Reason 5:  the leader genuinely believes it is better to empower classes to make curriculum choices.  Some leaders want to push the decision about curriculum down to the class level, but I have a different opinion about this practice.  As the leader, I want to set the pace and determine the direction.  I want to be able to do what Scripture commands and “guard your doctrine closely.”  I do not want to stand before God and give account for false doctrine infiltrating my church simply because I abdicated my leadership to the people.  My son graduates from college this May with an earned degree in marketing.  On the first day we registered him for college and talked with an academic advisor, Josh was given a degree plan that had been determined by his school; the Dean of his school, along with other faculty, had spoken into the kinds of classes that are required to earn the degree.  At no time was Josh allowed to dictate to the college the courses he would study (except for the freedom to choose a limited number of electives)…quite the opposite.  There is no institution of higher learning that allows students to determine the curriculum they study…those decisions are made for them.  If this was good practice, colleges would have put this into practice years ago.  It’s not.

Reason #6:  the person responsible for the Sunday School is lazy.  There, I said it.  It’s the elephant in the room.  Sometimes classes are allowed to select whatever they want to study simply because the staff leader or volunteer Sunday School director is not a hard worker.  It’s easier and quicker to simply tell classes and teachers to “study whatever” and then move along to something more interesting that the person really wants to work on…there’s just nothing glamorous about selecting curriculum or dealing with teachers who desire to make that kind of choice for the class.  Who needs the fight?

I hope that you are the kind of leader who does value a curriculum plan for both you and your learners.  Publishers like LIfeWay have teams of people who develop outlines, lesson titles, and edit content on a full-time basis.  Their ministry is to use their God-given passions and years of experience and Christian education to create lessons and teacher resources that guide teachers, allow for teachers to inject their own creativity into lessons, and save the teacher many hours of advanced preparation so that time can be better invested in ministering to people and leading classes to think and act like “missionaries to the culture.”