Sunday School Vision Strategy
How we view our Sunday School will have everything to do with what we do with it. I
believe we need a new vision of what Sunday School is and what it can do. Sunday
School is not just a program: it is a ministry. Sunday School is not just a weekly event; it
is a strategy. You see, we would all agree that we are to be about the Great omission.
But the real issue is how. Sunday School is how. It is how we tangibly and practically
flesh out the Great Commission. Question: If Sunday School is not how you flesh out
the Great Commission, then how do we accomplish it? Is this method as effective as
Sunday School? This I know, Sunday School has a track record that has been proven
over the decades. Many say Sunday School is no longer effective and now fails us. My
question is: Has Sunday School failed us, or have we failed Sunday School? The
Sunday School Vision Strategy will answer the question how. How can we go about
fulfilling the Great Commission? I see two crucial elements within the Sunday School
structure that are musts if we are to effectively become more involved in the work of
evangelizing and discipling. They are:
1.Developing New Leaders
2.Birthing New Units
If we have a vision statement which is the driving force behind a purpose-driven Sunday
School, then we must have a strategy to bring this vision into a reality - the strategy
being the small steps we must take in order to accomplish our predetermined goal. The
two steps we must take are developing new leaders and birthing new units.
Step 1: Developing New Leaders
If the key to reaching new people is new units, then what is the key to birthing new
units? Having new leaders! We must always be in the process of developing new
leadership within the Sunday School organization. Groups created based on need alone
will soon fizzle out. Genuine need must be coupled with genuine leadership for a new
unit to survive. Leadership is the foundational support of any new unit. Everything rises
and falls with leadership. Many new units which are birthed often are placed in an
environment to fail instead of succeed because the leadership base was not in place. I
strongly believe in birthing new units in order to grow, but I just as strongly believe the
leaders must first be developed and in place.
Step 2: Birthing New Units
If Sunday School is to continually reach lost and unchurched people, then we must be
creating new units (new classes) - whether new classes or new care groups within
those classes - to facilitate new people. New units grow faster than old ones. The old
formula is still true: New Units = New People = New Growth.