There I was, in my beat-up ’69 VW Bug — just 20 minutes before youth group — barreling down the freeway. I was late for youth group, but now I had no time to prepare my lesson. Even worse, I saw brake lights ahead. I usually studied (I’m using that word loosely) the same day I taught. Lately, though, I had gotten into the habit of cramming in the church parking lot. But tonight there would be no cramming.
That moment in my VW occurred 20 years ago. Since that day, I have been more intentional in my teaching. My goal is to transfer God’s Word to students by showing them how God has transformed my life through the Word. I call my method the “Life-Changing, Transformational Approach.” This all sounds good, and I know what you’re thinking: How long does this process take? My answer: approximately two hours. That’s it! If you can carve out an extra couple of hours per
week, you can be an excellent Bible teacher. Here’s how it works.
1) Pick a passage of Scripture. This is ALWAYS where we MUST begin. If we start anywhere else, the message ultimately gets tainted.
2) Begin at least a week in advance. That’s because preparing a life-changing, transformational study is more like cooking in a crock-pot than a microwave (or on a parking lot).
3) Look at the context. Read the passage(s) three or four times and write down every significant thought, followed by a question that forces clarification.
4) Use good study tools. I recommend an easy-to-read commentary or resources found at Web sites such as www.crosswalk.com so you can gain an understanding of what a passage meant to the original audience.
5) Construct a main idea sentence. State the major idea of the passage in a single sentence. This will help you stay focused during preparation and can also help you drill home the main idea to students during the actual lesson.
So far, so good. But God wants to transform me first before I attempt to join Him in transforming others. The final three steps will help with that.
6) Personalize the main idea sentence. How does the main idea statement relate to me? I actually rewrite a personalized version of the main idea statement. For example, a personalized statement from Ephesians 4:29 for me might read: “God is calling on me to stop tearing down my family and my friends with sarcastic and aggressive words and, instead, build them up with positive and supportive words so that I might respond well to them and make sure my words draw them closer to Christ.” I added specific difficulties (‘sarcasm’ and ‘aggressiveness’) and focused on two groups (‘family’ and ‘friends’).
7) Pause and pray. The Holy Spirit wants us to embody our personalized statement, and this process won’t happen instantaneously. Set all of your preparation aside for a few days. Additionally, write out your personalized statement on a Post-It Note and stick it where you’ll see it every day. Proactively participate in God’s transformation of you by giving Him your time and attention.
8) Teach to transform. Before leading a lesson, I write out how the verses I’ve studied have been fleshed out in my life and what can be applied to my students. Contextualize what you have learned in a way that a 15-year-old can grasp. Ask yourself, <i>How can I transfer this information in a way that will help transform my students into disciples of Jesus?</i>
If teens are given the opportunity to discover God’s Word and its transforming power, as well as an opportunity to see the truth being lived out by their youth leader, then you have done your job well.
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Kent Julian is the national director of Alliance Youth. Chris Lankford is lead pastor at Long Beach Alliance Church in California. This article is adapted from their recent book, ‘The Inside-Out Youth Worker‘ (www.liveitforward.com).
