Tried and True curriculum evaluation questions

There is a growing number of children's Sunday School curriculum options in the market today due to the ease of the internet and digital production capabilities of your average computer savvy church worker or leader. I was digging through some old Gospel Light resource books and dusted off this old resource and Surprise! Surprise! The content is just as important today as it was first written back in the 70s or even before that probably.
So here goes: when choosing a curriculum you must watch for:

BIBLE CONTENT AND USAGE

1. Is the curriculum designed to teach the Bible as God’s inspired and authoritative Word?
2. Is there balanced coverage of the Old and New Testaments?
3. Does the overall plan of the curriculum point students to faith in Christ as Savior and Lord, and also nurture and guide them to “grow up in Christ”?
4. Does the material present Bible truths in a manner appropriate to the abilities and development of the students’ age levels?
5. Are hands-on Bible usage and skill development encouraged at appropriate age levels?

TEACHER

1. Does the curriculum challenge the teacher to prepare spiritually for the task of teaching?
2. Is the material clearly arranged to show the teacher an understandable and logical lesson plan?
3. Are the Bible-learning and life response aims specifically and clearly stated for each lesson?
4. Does the material provide the teacher with a variety of Bible-learning approaches from which to choose?
5. Are the materials clearly presented, enabling the teacher to be prepared with a reasonable amount of effort?
6. Are there enough ideas and suggestions to adapt the material for longer or shorter sessions, larger or smaller groups, or limited equipment?

STUDENT

1. Is the vocabulary appropriate for the age and abilities of the students?
2. Does the curriculum provide a variety of ways for students to participate actively in the learning process?
3. Are the student materials attractive and do they encourage involvement?
4. Do the teacher resources provide a variety of attractive aids to stimulate student interest and involvement?
5. Are the Bible-learning approaches appropriate to the mental, spiritual, social and physical development of the students?

BEYOND THE CLASSROOM

1. Does the material provide ideas for making and sustaining meaningful contact with both students and families outside the classroom?
2. Does the take-home paper contain activities that assist the family in relating the student’s learning to everyday life?
3. Does the curriculum speak to issues relevant to the student’s everyday life?
4. Does the curriculum provide materials and suggestions for ways students may understand the responsibility and joy of sharing Christ?
5. Does the curriculum encourage outreach and church growth?

 © 2000 by Gospel Light. Permission to photocopy granted. How to Have a Great Sunday School (Content also appeared in a 70s copy of Sunday School Standards also published by Gospel Light)

Family Devotions in a personal and unique style

Our family has kept a tradition for years of reading to our children devotional books or any quality classic for that matter. We have been through the Bible in various forms, Narnia, Little House on the Prairie and countless other books over the last 18 years. This devotional is different than all the others. One simple, yet profound twist in the writing style makes this one interesting and memorable. Instead of reading about God and Jesus this book has Jesus and God speaking to us directly. This is how the Bible should be read and understood. Its God's love letter about His Son to us. I absolutely love the personal nature of this first person style in concept, away. It speaks to the heart and takes very simple passages of Scripture that are overlooked due to familiarity and transforms them to touch our hearts. Even though written for 3rd to 6th graders I find myself captivated by what God has to say to me today.
Today's devotion, September 30th, entitled, I Already Know, is about God being with us and walking beside us to help since He has already lived in our future and knows exactly what we need from Him to live for Him. I took great comfort in this truth presented by this book in a very personal way. I think your family will too. I recommend this book with some precautions to you especially if you are just starting out with family devotions.
As with almost every modern book, sloppy theology has infiltrated this devotional as well. Its so subtle but is especially troublesome with a book that in many ways is most dangerous to write, a book in first person from God. The author has taken a much needed approach  to writing a devotional but a little more theological sobriety would have been nice. Here is the warning for readers and writers of theology. We are dealing with God, His very words to His church and His very character and name are on the chopping block of men's hearts. When I say, "Thus says the Lord!" I better be sure He really did say that. The devotion for October 4th dumped in some of that insidious man-centered theology commonly known as Arminianism. The author, speaking for God mind you, says: "But when you choose to become one of My followers, I come to live inside you." This is unfortunate because the Bible is clear over and over again that we don't choose God first, we don't seek God first, we are dead in sin until God chooses us first. Once we are born again then we are able to have faith, repent, trust and live for Him all as gifts from God. Our spiritual gifts and tools are not inherent from within but from without. (see 1 Cor. 1:30 as one simple example) To be more biblical the author should have said, "When I choose you..."
For this reason, I can only recommend this book for the discerning parent who can glean the junk food theology out of the book for their children.

Church + Home is the ideal combination for growing Christian faith

Mark Holmen of Faith@Home Ministry writes from personal experience as a Faith@Home dad and a Faith@Home pastor on how to build lifelong faith at home. The book is a very quick read filled with personal testimonies as well as other voices from all over the country. I think Mark gets it right when he encourages church leaders to weave home directed faith throughout the church programming instead of building another family program as a separate entity.
I'm just a bit uncomfortable with this self-proclaimed "Faith@Home movement" as it is described in this book and the general tenor of Holmen's ministry. Don't get me wrong, there is tremendous spiritual advantages as we as church leaders discuss and plan how to encourage families to bring glory to God at home. However, as I finished the book I was left with a few haunting reminders of how easy it is for the church in general to get caught up in systematic programming combined with sloppy theology thus detracting from Christ and clear vision of God's sovereign plan. All the events and steps in the Take It Home concepts are, I'm sorry to say, more programs. When you plan a regular event at the church it is a program. It very much has the feel of a silo, the very thing, I know Holmen wants to avoid. Here is the point: as a church gathers to worship Christ, preach and respond to a Gospel that no one ever outgrows, and studies in such a way to believe the Bible and live out the Bible, then you know from the Word that the Holy Spirit is behind the scenes orchestrating it all. I saw very little confidence in the work of Holy Spirit in this book as the driver of parents hearts to bring to bear the Word of God to fruitfulness. I saw hints of a man centered approach to salvation as all the pressure was placed upon the church leaders and the parents to bring faith to the home or another generation will be lost for Christ. I don't buy it. God uses His vessels certainly as He is a God of means but all the pressure is on Him to build His church.
The "movement" to build the Church was started at the cross and it includes every area of life and practice including the home. Its interesting to me that the New Testament constantly directs us to the Cross and to the Church. I think that the Bible writers were able to assume by God's inspiration that faith was going to be taken to the marketplace, the town, the countryside and the home. True God wrought conversion does that to a person. I think the main problem that Holmen exposes but never realizes is that faith is so often not at home because its not at the church or in the typical 'seeker' style entertainment driven church goer. Parents are not saved and that is why faith is not at home. The answer is the gospel, a true God centered gospel and not a Finney bootstrap false gospel.
Finally, all in all, I enjoyed the book as it was another reminder in my life to disciple my own children in the spirit of Deuteronomy 6. For this reason alone I give this book a thumbs up.

Intelligent Design needs better designed books

I was handed this book as a gift from the Answers In Genesis booth at a recent Munce show in Murfreesboro, TN. I rarely, if ever read novels but since it was a gift and had an interesting story line I thought I would give it a go. I will admit up front that I blew through this book quickly on a recent air travel business trip. Even after knowing exactly how it was going to end when I was about 50 pages in. I still enjoyed it and appreciated a novel attempt to expose the insidious nature of modern, humanistic religion also known as evolution. Conspiracy theory always makes for a good read and this one almost didn't disappoint, but alas, it did indeed disappoint. Here is where I think this author needs to grow a bit. First, the dialog between the scientists was quite lame. If you ever watched a creationist verses evolutionist debate you would immediately realize that these conversations were weak, straw man arguments at best. I think modified debate transcripts from some well know debates such as a Hitchens/Wilson would be in order. Secondly, and maybe the most disturbing, was the trite, Arminian laden gospel presentations. Man centered, boot strap, God's sovereignty, glory robbing gospel presentations are just flat out misleading at best. God saves us, rebirths us, gives us faith and repentance to believe in Him too. We don't have any resident or residual faith that we can exercise at anytime of our own choosing toward a relationship with God. The Bible teaches just the opposite: we are dead and do not seek God ever. God seeks us.  The gospel conversations were more like canned, Billy Graham training session presentations instead of real conversations with lost people. Finally, the plot was way too predictable. You basically could guess the ending well before the halfway point and seriously, that just takes all the fun out of a mystery. I'm sorry miss Julie Cave, new author, it just does. Again, I appreciate the attempt but would be more apt to recommend the book if it were a more believable read. All in all, though, I still want to read the next in the Dinah Harris trilogy to see how she grows as a character and how the author grows too.

The Church should be allergic to the world

Tozer connects another lethal blow to man's self-centered sufficiency in this newly discovered, unpublished work. 47 years after his death, Tozer is still absolutely critical for the modern church to take heed. Tozer's lifelong message of battling entertainment in the church and an insidious form of Christless mysticism still rings truer than ever. Listen to Tozer in his own words: "The average person, unable to understand this passion for intimacy with God, fills his life with things, hoping somehow to satisfy his inward longing. He chases that which is exterior, hoping to satisfy that inner thirst, but to no avail."
This work of Tozer is a basic walk through the book of Hebrews guiding the reader into an opening of the scripture. The modern church still has so much to learn from the simple message of real Christianity that Tozer champions. Tozer was able to see the danger signs in the road of post modern, post Christian American churchianity and his message in this new book needs to be heard and applied. Our churches our filled with entertainment seeking, sin cauterizing conscience, spiritual lethargists.
Here is another great quote to sum up this book and it's importance to us: "From my reading of the Holy Scriptures, church history and Christian biography, I find that there is nothing in the church that appeals to the world, and nothing in the world that appeals to the true Church of Jesus Christ." Tozer's problem with the Church was that worldliness was creeping in and taking over. "Christianity, I fear, is not allergic to fads and fancies." Tozer's simple Christianity from a simple study in the book of Hebrews is another wake up call for us, the modern church. Are we still hitting the snooze button?

Star Parker, female Uncle Tom

Star Parker's Uncle Sam's Plantation from Thomas Nelson is the exact book we need as we face these troubled times in this country. Hard hitting, no punches pulled honesty from someone who lived exactly what she now warns against. Star Parker must be heard and deserves to be heard. Since she broke free from liberal welfare plantation ownership her clarion call is refreshing and right on target. Star Parker for president I say. After reading this book I am more convinced than ever that a welfare state causes infinite harm to the individual, the family, the community as well as the country and is the source of our economic troubles, certainly not the cure.

This experienced voice needs to be heard and trusted. Star's ability to write of her experiences applied to our modern troubles in American politics is most helpful. You will really like her definitions of poverty breaking it down into three levels. From the very beginning to the last page she paints an unflattering picture of what happens to humans that are constantly feeding from a free food trough. I really appreciate her insights into the problem with plenty of answers from common sense and the Bible. Add this to the increasing pile of proof that the government is not at all the answer. Put this one down on your Christmas giving list for all your politicians and even your liberal friends.

Big read for Small groups

In What Every Small Group Leader Should Know, Larry Kreider gives the church a very solid training tool for any church's small group ministries. Whether you are a Sunday School teacher, Bible study leader or home fellowship host you will greatly profit from this book.
The book is filled with some basic biblical theology of ministry and small groups. The added strength of the book is the tons of tips, ideas and illustrations about doing it right and learning from doing it wrong.
I like this book. Rarely will a book stimulate whiteboard, dream big sessions with my creativity but this one delivered. I found myself with pen and paper jotting down notes and ideas about my own fellowship group that I lead. Maybe that's the key to this book's success with me: I needed the contents to encourage me to wade out of the shallow end of my small group experience and venture into the deep waters of real ministry. I have left this book encouraged and ready to pursue God with my small group.