Articles: Adults

Adult Resource Consultant, Tom Bougher, discusses 10 questions to ask about your small group ministry.

Once discussed often, the topic is mostly missing from Christian conversations.

Wes Bartel sits down with 2010 Teacher of the Year, Peggy Southerland, and her husband Jurl.

The Executive Leadership Team discusses the Holy Spirit and Spirit Baptism.

I became a Christian shortly after I was married. My husband was in the army in Arkansas. He had been saved just before we married.

The central figure of the story you are about to read is presently the Kids’ Church Pastor of Timberline Church in Fort Collins, Colorado where he ministers to over 400 children every weekend.

“Americans revere the Bible—but by and large, they don’t read it. And because they don’t read it, they have become a nation of biblical illiterates.” — George Gallup

Words are used to try and communicate a thought. Signs are words that give directions. When you see a sign, you have the choice to follow the directive or not.

by Charles Crabtree
How does a weekly church become a daily church?

Change! Change or Die. Dare To Change. These are titles of recently published books and articles. Isn’t it true that the only hope for the future of any organizations is the ability to change what is already being done?

An ancient question is new again for 21st-century Christians.

by Dan Betzer

I was approached by a big burly guy in our church service last Sunday night (yes, Virginia, we have Sunday night services and always will). He said, "I just wanted to tell you something. I have been quite successful in business, but now, in my late 50’s, life seems meaningless to me."

An easy way for your Sunday School to reach out to the surrounding community is to take care of the needs of the people who live there. Use any of these outreach ideas in your Sunday School class, or join together as an entire church.

It is unlikely that either Helen Ackridge, 92, or Muriel Kelley, 90, anticipated the longevity of their respective ministries when they started them. Despite the ordinary and extraordinary challenges of life, both remain faithful to their callings: Ackridge teaches nursing home Bible studies three times a week and Kelley remains involved in her church after teaching a primary Sunday School class for more than 60 years.

By Billie Davis

The sound of an electronic droplet announced the arrival of yet another E-mail message. Like the hundreds before, this E-mail shared new information to be added to my already overflowing mental reservoir. I found myself wanting to shout, "No more messages," only to hear the droplet as another message plopped into my crowded in box.

A number of years ago, moviegoers filled theaters to watch the comedy Back to the Future. The film’s basic premise was if a person could go back in time and change a single event, the ripple effect of the change would have lifelong consequences. People who viewed the film were challenged, consciously or unconsciously, to think about the impact each action they make has on their future and the future of the ones they love.

Love is the essence of making disciples. Instructing people in the faith requires quality material, skilled presentations, and leadership gifts. However, all these characteristics are readily available in the world, but what is not available there is a caring heart, motivated by the Holy Spirit, that places the highest priority on people. Christian disciple making is set apart by love for God and for each other that draws both leader and learner into the journey of spiritual growth.

The "Bonsai Theory" and Adult Ministries Vital Signs

By Wes Haystead

One of the key concerns in adult ministry is helping students find their spiritual giftedness and determine how those gifts fill needs in the church’s overall goals. The usual answer is to administer spiritual giftedness questionnaires. Using these tests to help adults become involved in ministry requires perspective, preparation, and placement. Let’s focus on how to put this three-part strategy into place.

Excellence is the art of reducing complex tasks to simple virtues. If you are running any sort of ministry for adults, from Generation X to seniors, you need as much excellence as you can get! The burgeoning diversity of the adult population, intense competition from other activities, and the torrential pace of modern life can make the whole enterprise seem almost impossible. How many ministry leaders do you know who have simply given up?

Sunday by Sunday teachers open the Bible, convinced it is God’s special choice for speaking to us today, even as He did to the generations some 2,000 years and more ago.

The Bible is a personal Book. It is about people. Yes, its history is of people centuries past, of God’s initiatives toward them and their responses to Him. Yet it is infinitely more—a love Book that tells the extreme limits a holy, loving God and Heavenly Father would go to bring back to himself the children He lost. That includes us. The thesis of the Book is John 3:16.

The last promise in the Bible is still in effect: "Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely" (Revelation 22:17). This applies to the mentally and emotionally disadvantaged as much as it does to those who have been spared the challenges of disabilities. We need to include them in all the Christian education activities of the church.

The question is: How effectively do we present gospel truth to the mentally and emotionally disadvantaged adults in our Sunday Schools and churches?

ATTENTION RETAILERS: Set your sights on 50-plus. They represent an enormous market with a lot of disposable income, but many retailers may not realize the "gold mine" of opportunities.

So begins a story in a widely circulated newspaper. It explains that a research project commissioned by the International Mass Retail Association finds that marketing focused on the 50-plus audience falls short of its potential. The study tried to discover whether suppliers understand the needs and interests of customers in this age bracket. It revealed that retailers who fail to monitor trends in older consumers’ buying habits miss out on possible sales. The authors conclude that merchants should consider the needs these adults perceive. They suggest a strategy to attract customers by anticipating the interest of "our dynamic older population."

By Pamela Honan Peterson

The difference between a good class and a great one often is determined by one feature: discussion. We know students learn most effectively when they are actively involved. We know quality interaction draws students together, making their class a home rather than just a house.

A common trait among volunteer teachers is to teach others according to their own learning preferences. This is normal and would be fine if everyone learned in the same manner, but this is not the case. If only a small segment of your class seems to be "with you" while the rest seem to be "zoned out," you may be limiting your teaching approach to methods that appeal to your learning preference.

An increasing, but often overlooked, segment of our society is the single-parent family. Recent statistics reveal that 25 percent of children under 18 years of age live in a single-parent home. During the last decade, the number of single fathers increased 33 percent; the number of single mothers,17 percent. There is no sign this trend will stop.

What can we do as church leaders and as Christian educators to minister effectively to the single parents in our society and churches?

By Stefanie Reubell

by Billie Davis

A sad dark face seemed to accuse me as I opened my morning paper. "Tears rolled from the eyes of the African-American teen," the front-page story began. She had found ugly racial words scrawled on her art-class project. The article called black/white relations in the school a "racial divide," and asked, "What can we do to bridge it?"

"I wish we could have a seminar for parents," the pastor of a small church wrote me. "I know parents need help, but we lack both money and personnel. Larger churches can offer people many special services. What’s a small church to do? How can we meet the changing needs of today’s parents?"

Gen X is the least churched generation in America. According to George Barna, only 28 percent of Gen Xers (ages 20-37) attend church compared to 51 percent of Builders (58+). Even so, there is reason to hope that more Gen Xers will attend church soon.

Inspirational story of Todd Beamer

by Billie Davis

By Wes Haystead

Methods for teaching adults

This four-part presentation is designed to help your members understand God's purposes for the Church, the structure and needs of the local church, and their calling to serve God by discovering their gifts and learning they can fulfill themselves through service in the local church.

by Billie Davi

by Leroy R. Bartel

By Charles T. Crabtree

What will it take to reinvigorate a fading emphasis on discipleship?

by Darren Daugherty

Churches can respond in many ways in today’s culture to make disciples of Christ, but there is one change many are unwilling to make.

(PDF) by Dr. Debbie Gill

Jesus’ New Kind of Teaching—with Authority that amazed the people, penetrates ones character and spreads like a contagion; this New Kind of Teaching—with Authority not only may be reproduced, but must be reproduced, over and over again; This New Kind of Teaching—with Authority is called discipleship.

by Dr. Debbie Gill.

(Download includes PowerPoint, Teaching Notes, Student Notes, and Answer Key)

(Download includes PowerPoint and Teaching Notes), and watch video by Dr. Debbie Gill

by Dr. Debbie Gill

by Greg Herrick Th.M., Ph.D.

by Stephen Lim

Flawed ministry paradigms sabotage the church’s efforts at disciple making. Consider this approach that is sure to improve the quality of disciple making in your church.

by Greg Ogden

Here is a simple, reproducible way to grow disciples that will forever change your practice of ministry and leave your church with self-initiating, reproducing disciples of Christ.

by Stephen F. Olford

by Pablo Polischuck

Here are six concrete guidelines that form the ingredients of an integrated, caring, and loving congregation.

By Charles T. Crabtree

A program for introducing the basics of Christianity to those interested.

Interview with Henry Blackaby

Read what the author of Experiencing God has to say about how walking in an intimate relationship with God impacts the pastor’s life and ministry.

by Becky Brodin

Asking questions is often the best way to connect with a non-Christian.

by Becky Brodin

Here are four ways to have an impact for Christ in the workplace before you say a word.

by Earl G. Creps

Three shifts to reunderstand the challenge of discipling those who are navigating the postmodern turn.

by Tim Downs

If no one responds, it doesn’t mean you’ve failed.

by L. Alton Garrison

Misconceptions hamper the future of missions in America. But there are ways church leaders can overcome them and stand together for national revival.

by Jim Hall

New believer disciple making is indispensable if churches are to curb the alarming spiritual death rate among them. Consider these practical steps that will turn decisions into additions and additions into disciplers.

by Lynn Hallimore

The most overlooked way to influence your coworkers for Christ.

by Mark Lauterbach

Given a pastor’s lifestyle, is lifestyle evangelism even possible? One pastor’s refreshing discovery.

by Dary Northrop

The principle of Christ’s love transformed this church’s entire approach to ministry.

by Dr. Thomas S. Rainer

Their seven most common responses about the churched.

By Dr. Thomas Rainer

Understanding their hearts and mind

by Randy D. Raysbrook

Evangelism can be as natural as conversation.

by John D. Sloan

Are you willing to take a chance with people who don’t seem like a sure bet for success?

by Stephen W. Sorenson

Here are some easy, practical ways to get to know the people who live around you.

by J. Mack Stiles

It takes more than the right arguments to lead people to faith.

by J. Mack Stiles

What will you miss if you don’t share your faith?

by Robert J. Tamasy

You spend nearly half your waking hours with the people at your job. How can you influence them for Christ?

by Paul Thigpen

Small but effective ways to share your faith.

by Charles Gallaudet Trumbull

This article offers us timeless help in answering these questions: What should I be thinking about when I am trying to help a nonChristian become a believer? How can I develop tact in speaking about Christ? What do I say about sinful habits in a nonChristian’s lifestyle? How can I help him be interested in my message?

So often we measure people by their extraordinary moments, but the ordinary moments are what we should pay attention to.