2012 REACH TEXAS MISSIONS Sunday School - Student Lesson by Ken Lasater Partnership is the Word Teacher s packet with student handouts 1
Partnership is the Word Lesson in a Nutshell The Apostle Paul used partnerships to reach the lost, plant churches and develop other leaders. * Effective ministry partnerships include a web of connections * Effective ministry partnerships include plans and strategies * Effective ministry partnerships birth partnerships Teaching Goals Students will: 1. Learn how one Dallas area church partnered in ministry with lasting results. 2. Understand Paul s method of partnering with others in ministry in the Early Church. 3. Become aware of the existing ministry and mission partnerships between your church and the SBTC, SBC, IMB and NAMB. 4. Realize the impact they can each have on kingdom work. 5. Be encouraged to become involved in ministry and mission partnerships. Background passages Philippians 1:1-7, 2:19-20, 25 I Corinthians 3:9 Acts 15:30-36; 18:1-2, 18-19, 23-28 Key verse Philippians 1:5 Teaching resources Poster Partnership is the Word (make one copy for display) Readings Glenn and Linda s Story - Parts One, Two and Three (make one copy to be used during the lesson) Handout Paul s Partnerships (make multiple copies - one for each student) Handout SBTC Partnering Opportunities (make multiple copies - one for each student) Preparation 1. Before teaching this week s lesson, contact your church leadership to acquire the following information to share with your class. a. The amount or percent of your church s budget which is sent to the Cooperative Program to involve them in the ministry and missions supported through the SBTC, SBC, IMB and NAMB. b. If your church has a stated mission s goal for Reach Texas and what that amount is. c. A list of any ministry partnerships which involves your church. Be prepared to share these with the class as you feel the timing is appropriate for the lesson. d. Compile a list of the opportunities which exist through your church to involve the students in mission efforts (VBS, mission trips, apartment ministries, food and clothing distribution, Backyard Bible Clubs, ESL classes, community outreach, block parties, etc.) Be prepared to share these with the class as you feel the timing is appropriate for the lesson. 2. Make one copy of the lesson s title poster Partnership is the Word to be displayed prior to the lesson. 3. Make one copy each of these resources to be used during the lesson: Glenn and Linda s Story - Parts One, Two and Three 4. Make multiple copies of these handouts - enough for each student to have one. Paul s Partnerships SBTC Partnering Opportunities 2
A. Effective partnerships include a web of connections 1. Enlist a volunteer to read aloud to the class, Glenn and Linda s Story - Part One 2. Read aloud Philippians 1:3-6. 3. Ask them to listen again to verse 5, and identify the word that describes the relationship between Paul and those to whom he is writing. Reread verse 5. What is the relationship? (Partners) 4. Ask if any of your students have ever been in a partnership with anyone else. Give them a couple of minutes to respond. 5. Tell your class that today the lesson will focus on ministry partnerships, and that you hope they will understand the value of these partnerships. 6. Call on a volunteer to read aloud I Corinthians 3:9. Point out that this verse indicates that Paul believes he and others are in a partnership with God. Ask, who are these others? 7. Provide each student with a copy of Paul s Partnerships. Tell your class that you are going to look at several verses of scripture from which they will identify the names of people whom Paul calls his partners - those serving shoulder to shoulder with God. You may want to ask them to complete the fill-in-the-blank exercise in groups, working as partners to get the exercise completed more quickly. 8. Point out that Paul used ministry partners in numerous cities and regions. 9. Ask the volunteer who read Glenn and Linda s Story - Part One to look back through the story and read only the names of the different individuals printed in bold, which are the different partners in this ministry effort. Compare and discuss the similarities of Paul s experiences in the scripture passages as being the same model which we see in Glenn and Linda s experience. 10. Discuss with your class the ministry partnerships that your church has with other ministry groups or organizations. Discuss the benefits which come from these partnerships. (The Southern Baptists of Texas Convention, your local Baptist Association, the Southern Baptist Convention, the International Mission Board, the North American Mission Board, the Baptist Missionary Association, etc.) B. Effective partnerships include plans and strategies 1. Enlist a volunteer to read aloud to the class, Glenn and Linda s Story - Part Two 2. Read aloud each of the passages and ask the students to identify what actions are taking place in each case. Read Philippians 2:19-20 Read Philippians 2:25 Read Acts 15:30-36 Read Acts 18:1-2 Read Acts 18:18-19 In each passage Paul and the other disciples and believers were strategically moving from one place to another to spread the gospel, plant churches, encourage the brethren, teach the Word and strengthen churches. It took effort to spread the gospel, and planning made their efforts more effective. 3. Ask your students the following questions. Discuss their responses. a. Who in our church develops plans and strategies for ministry? Give some examples. b. What are some of the things our church does which you think produces fruit as a result of strategic planning? c. What would change if our church leaders never planned or developed strategies? 3
C. Effective partnerships birth partnerships 1. Enlist a volunteer to read aloud to the class, Glenn and Linda s Story - Part Three 2. Ask the students to listen for the names of a married couple which Paul met in Corinth. Reread Acts 18:1-2. 3. Tell the students that Priscilla and Aquila were a Jewish couple who had been ejected from Rome. Paul stayed with them in Corinth and built a good friendship. When Paul left Corinth to travel to Syria he took Priscilla and Aquila with him. Reread Acts 18:18-19. 4. Tell the students, Before reaching Syria they stopped in Ephesus. Priscilla and Aquila decided to stay in Ephesus as Paul continued on toward Syria. While in Ephesus Priscilla and Aquila met an impressive, well-spoken believer named Apollos. Apollos was committed to the teachings of John the Baptist, but needed to grow deeper in spiritual matters and the life of Christ, so Priscilla and Aquila devoted themselves to helping him grow. 5. Enlist someone to read Acts 18:24-28. Tell the students that later in the book of Acts, and elsewhere in Paul s writings we learn that Apollos played a significant role as an effective teacher in the church. 6. Ask the students: Who helped Apollos grow spiritually? (Aquila and Priscilla) Who helped Aquila and Priscilla grow spiritually? (Paul) 7. Point out that Paul taught teachers (Priscilla and Aquila), who taught others to become effective teachers. Paul s partners in the gospel also partnered in ministry with others. 8. Discuss possible examples where your church ministries have birthed ministries of their own. Tie as many examples as you can back to the student ministry, or to the individual students and their families. 9. Hand out a copy of the SBTC Partnering Opportunities to each student. Point out that the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention (SBTC) has many ministry partnership opportunities which include students. Discuss them as thoroughly as you are able. Reach Texas offering - This channel of giving directly supports church plants, collegiate ministry and missions in Texas. SBTC mission opportunities - Mission s mobilization specialist Tiffany Smith provides numerous connection opportunities for students and student groups to become directly involved in missions and ministry. SBTC Disaster Relief - the SBTC has many opportunities annually where older students can be involved in various projects in clean-up, care and recovery following times of disaster. SENT Conference - This SBTC missions training event not only provides the preparation necessary for a group to step onto the mission field, but also trains church leaders how to conduct an effective mission experience. In addition, the SENT Conference offers many mission field opportunities on display to help a group select a place for involvement. The CALLED Retreats - These retreats help students evaluate how God may be calling them into some field of vocational ministry. Worship University - This weeklong camp setting provides intense training and involvement in planning and leading church ministries. Eleven tracks of study include: Worship, Preaching, Student Ministry, Ladies in Leadership, Missions, Recreation/Fellowship, Communications, Tech and Multimedia, and Drama. Engage - Teams, of college and seminary students lead revivals in churches during the summer months. Threemember teams consist of a preacher, worship leader and fellowship/outreach coordinator. 10. Conclude the lesson by challenging students to participate in giving to support your church s Reach Texas goal. Encourage the students to consider how God may want to use them in one of the SBTC partnerships. Allow time for individuals to pray for the Lord to lead them. Close in prayer for the ministry and mission needs in Texas, thanking the Lord for giving us partners in the task. 4
Partnership is the Word The Apostle Paul used partnerships to reach the lost, plant churches and develop other leaders. Effective ministry partnerships: * include a web of connections * require plans and strategies * birth partnerships Make one copy - display poster prior to the start of the class 5
Paul s Partnerships Work in groups to complete the blanks. Identify some of Paul s partners in ministry. I Corinthians 3:6, 9 6 planted, watered, but gave the growth. 9 For are God s. You are God s field, God s building. Romans 16:3 3 Give my greetings to and, my in Christ Jesus 2 Corinthians 8:23 23 As for, he is my and serving you; as for our, they are the messengers of the churches, the glory of Christ. Philippians 4:2-4 3 Yes, I also ask, true, to help these women who have contended for the gospel at my side, along with and the rest of my whose names are in the book of life. Colossians 4:10-12 10, my fellow prisoner, greets you, as does, Barnabas s cousin (concerning whom you have received instructions: if he comes to you, welcome him), 11 and so does who is called. These alone of the circumcision are my for the kingdom of God, and they have been a comfort to me. Philemon 1:23-25 23, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you, and so do 24,,, and, my. 25 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. 6
LEARNING ACTIVITY - ONE COPY Read aloud to the class Make one copy per student Glenn and Linda s Story - Part One: Mission Partnerships in Juarez Glenn and Linda are volunteers in their church, and for several years they planned, coordinated and led annual mission trips to the city of Juarez; directly across the border from El Paso, Texas. Those trips involved several dozen members from Church at the Cross in Grapevine, Texas in their annual partnered ministry with four International Mission Board (IMB) missionaries, serving in Juarez. Those IMB missionaries, Tommy and Beth Larner and Allen and Rebecca Alexander, had developed a strategy for establishing a lasting and effective ministry in several areas of Juarez which had no Baptist churches or organized Christian work. Their strategy was to include volunteer teams from Baptist churches in the United States in a partnered effort alongside healthy Mexican churches. One of those partnering churches was Iglesia Bautista Principe de Paz, in Juarez. The IMB missionaries strategy was to divide the unchurched, unreached areas of Juarez into a grid of sections, theoretically ten blocks by ten blocks. As volunteer groups were enlisted to assist, they would heavily promote and conduct Mission Vacation Bible Schools in one of the ten-by-ten-block areas. If the volunteer group from the U.S. church could conduct more than one VBS at a time, more locations could be covered. Most years Glenn and Linda led their group to conduct two VBS locations in the morning and two different locations each evening- for a total of four VBS s in one week. Each VBS included the normal VBS activities (songs, Bible study, recreation, games, snacks, crafts, memorization, etc.) but they also included classes for the adults. Separate adult men and adult women Bible study classes were a part of each school; and the adult classes included snacks and crafts just like the younger classes. Having adult VBS classes was the key to lasting results. While the U.S. leadership (through translators) was carrying out the VBS for all ages, the Mexican church volunteers were handling the registration of all attendees: learning and recording the names of all children, youth and adults. Then, when they felt the time was right, the volunteers from the Mexican national church would approach some of the adult Mexican nationals, who were attending the VBS, suggesting the possibility of one of them opening their home to hosting an ongoing, weekly Bible study - just like the experience they were having during the VBS. Their conversation might be something like, Are you enjoying this week of study? Would you enjoy doing this on a more regular basis? Would any of you consider making your home available for a similar gathering, each week? Once they had a volunteer home the other adults were encouraged to consider attending the newly established teaching/preaching point; and a church plant was born. For most years, by the end of the week, the partnered effort resulted in the establishment of one or more home-churches, or small group Bible studies which had not existed before that time. Without the strategy of the Larners and Alexanders, in partnership with Mexican churches, the planting of those churches wouldn t have happened. Over several years seven new church plants with 500 total in weekly attendance grew out of the work of the IMB missionaries along with the VBS efforts initiated by Glenn and Linda from their home church, Church at the Cross in Grapevine. 7
LEARNING ACTIVITY - ONE COPY Read aloud to the class Glenn and Linda s Story - Part Two: Strategically Involving Families It was the strategy of IMB Missionaries, the Larners and Alexanders, to include adults in the VBS classes which produced the long-term results of planting churches. Their strategy included involvement of volunteer U.S. teams, inclusion of a Mexican church, and a mapped-out grid which marked their progress and helped them to know how great was their remaining task. But, in addition to the field strategy of the IMB missionaries, Glenn and Linda had their own strategy. The teams of volunteers from Church at the Cross were family groups. Rather than taking a group made up exclusively of high school students, singles, or some other church demographic, Glenn and Linda insisted on taking families as the core of their missions team. There were always some individual students or adult singles who participated, but even then, they were linked, or adopted into a specific family. 8
LEARNING ACTIVITY - ONE COPY Read aloud to the class Glenn and Linda s Story - Part Three: Counting the Results Many families in Church at the Cross looked forward to the annual mission trip to Juarez. It was a lot of work, but the results of producing successful church plants, the victories of multiple salvations and the joy of developing strong friendships with the Mexican nationals helped to stimulate vigorous interest and support for the trip to Mexico each successive year. Each Juarez mission trip ended with a report listing the number of volunteer missionary participants, the cost of the trip, the places served, the attendance from each of the Bible schools, evident salvations, and such. But many of the results of those ministry partnership experiences were not reported because they would not become evident for two or more years. Because Glenn and Linda emphasized the involvement of families, a large number of children, youth and college-aged students participated in the Mexico missions work in Juarez. As a result several dozen students gained quite a bit of experience in missions and kingdom work. In the last few years some of those students have moved into high school, others have entered college and a few have graduated from college. But their personal involvement in missions and ministry beyond Juarez can be counted as a portion of the benefits of the Juarez experience. Here is just a partial list of some of the benefits which have grown out of the family mission trips to Juarez: - Tyler volunteers regularly at Beautiful Feet ministries for the homeless in Fort Worth. - Katy works at 6 Stones Mission Network in Euless. - Alyssa has been involved in missions in Africa, New Orleans, Ecuador and Thailand. She has worked with Student Life camps for several years fulfilling roles as the mission s coordinator, housing coordinator and event coordinator. - Daniel served as a journeyman missionary to Brazil. - Taylor worked for Student Life camps for three summers and now serves at Gateway Church. - Sarah participated in a summer medical mission trip. - Amy has served in Thailand, Tanzania, Laredo and East Asia. - Heather has been involved in missions in Laredo and Tijuana, and will soon join a team to Peru. She has assisted her church as a children's ministry intern and has worked as the director for a neighborhood VBS. She has been a Kid s Camp counselor for three summers. - Melanie has served in Honduras. - Natalie has helped in Laredo. - Kristen has served in Thailand and Africa and has worked at Kid s Camp. - Morgan is involved in local apartment missions, has served as a junior counselor for Kid s Camp, and has worked alongside NAMB missionaries in Laredo. - Jeremy is serving as a journeyman missionary in Europe. - Bonnie works with prison ministries and Beautiful Feet in inner-city Fort Worth. - Caleb has participated in mission efforts in Nicaragua, Mexico and Africa and has served a small Baptist church as a youth minister through college. - Kelsey has served in Russia, Africa, and Thailand and has also worked at Shepherd of the Ozarks camp. - Macy is involved in local apartment missions and has served as a counselor for Kid s Camp. Only one or two of these are into their mid-twenties at this point, and even though they are still young they have accepted major responsibilities in the Lord s work and have provided the planning and leadership for many of these efforts. One of the mothers said, For my own girls, I think the early family mission trips were instrumental in their development as mission-minded believers. I remember clearly on our first family mission trip praying that God grow my girls, who were 14, 11, and 9 at the time, into believers who were passionate about missions. He definitely answered that prayer! Certainly, there were other factors (training opportunities, ministry involvement, their parents encouragement, accepting additional assignments of responsibility, and solid Biblical teaching from the pulpit, etc.) which helped to shape and prepare these students for the leadership they are showing, but the partnership in Juarez under Glenn and Linda s leadership played a big role. Effective partnerships birth additional ministry and mission partnerships. The Juarez/Grapevine partnership helped produce seven new fully self-sustained church fellowships, and they, in turn, are maturing to the point of doing missions and planting churches. Several of the home church groups planted in Juarez are supporting new works and are being involved in further strategies for reaching their city for Christ. 9
SBTC Partnering Opportunities Many students participate in ministry and missions with the SBTC. More information for each of these opportunities can be found at www.sbtexas.com Reach Texas offering - This channel of giving directly supports church plants, collegiate ministry and missions in Texas. We encourage each student to participate in this missions support plan SBTC mission opportunities - Mission s mobilization specialist Tiffany Smith provides numerous connection opportunities for students and student groups to become directly involved in missions and ministry. Contact tsmith@sbtexas.com SBTC Disaster Relief - the SBTC has many opportunities annually where older students can be involved in various projects in clean-up, care and recovery following times of disaster. Call 817-552-2500 for information. SENT Conference - This SBTC missions training event will provide the preparation necessary for a group to step onto the mission field, but will also train church leaders how to conduct an effective mission experience. In addition, the SENT Conference offers many mission field opportunities on display to help a group select a place for involvement. www.sbtexas.com/sent The CALLED Retreats - These retreats help students evaluate how God may be calling them into some field of vocational ministry. www.sbtexas.com/thecalledretreat Worship University - This weeklong camp setting provides intense training and involvement in planning and leading church ministries. Eleven tracks of study include: Worship, Preaching, Student Ministry, Ladies in Leadership, Missions, Recreation/Fellowship, Communications, Tech and Multimedia, and Drama. Students can also earn three college accredited hours through Criswell College during the week of camp. www.sbtexas.com/worshipu Engage - Student-led summer revival teams consist of three member teams of mature high-school, college or seminary students leading revivals in churches during the summer months. Teams include a preacher, worship leader and fellowship and outreach coordinator. Most participating churches average between 60-120 in total weekly attendance. www.planetstudents.org Make one copy per student 10