In our years of Christian ministry, we have observed that most of the effective Sunday School teachers and Bible study leaders feel it best to develop their own lessons and teaching plans. Why? Because there isn't an abundance of relevant Bible studies.

Many who are qualified to teach decline to do so because they do not have time to properly prepare lessons. Should this be their only option? We don't believe it should be.

Less effective Bible studies and Christian education classes can degenerate into a review of current events or topics of interest, with little, if any, attention to Scripture. The leaders do not have the materials necessary to help them prepare a lesson or the time each week to develop their own. They "wing it" because they don't have enough options. We want to help. The lessons on this Internet site have been written to address these needs.

Exhaustive research has already been done for each lesson. Rather than the normal 5-10 hours needed to prepare a good lesson, leaders can teach effectively with as little as one hour of preparation. (Of course, the more familiar they are with the lesson plan, the better job they will do.)

When the lessons are presented as written, the leader will make a very effective presentation of Scripture in a comfortable, engaging and relevant context. In the same way an inexperienced cook can follow the directions on a cake mix to make a respectable cake, a leader can present tasty spiritual food by following each lesson plan as presented. Just as the recipe does not limit the experienced cook, the lesson does not limit the experienced leader. Additional material or personal experience can be added to a lesson, but is not required in order to be effective.

The lessons contain a rich supply of discussion questions and related Scriptures that address each question. The discussion questions relate closely to issues and concerns that touch our daily lives. The leader can easily relate the questions to current events, which gives the Scripture verses modern relevance and substance.

The lessons provide convenience and flexibility. Since the lessons provide the substance of the study, substitutes are easier to find when a leader must be away. People who turn down requests to teach often do so because they had a bad experience filling in for someone. Building the studies around quality teaching materials makes finding substitutes much easier.

Each lesson is written for a large group (Opening Time) followed by smaller break-out discussion groups (Table Time). If the group does not divide, simply delete the Opening Time Bottom Line and the Table Time Question.