Adult Bible Study Curriculum Adult Bible Study Ministry Training Lesson 1- Start With the End In Mind

Regardless of what you call your adult bible study ministry (small groups, Sunday School, Life Groups, etc.) there are a few things they will all have in common.  There will be a small group of people, a teacher, and an adult bible study curriculum for them to work through.  But even with these same components we are all fully aware that not all adult bible study ministries end up in the same place.  Some groups grown and some do not.  Some groups will actually disband and stop meeting.  Why does this happen? What goes wrong along the way? While there is no definitive answer I believe the thing we are going to discuss in lesson one of this training series goes a long way in making a difference between making an adult bible study group successful or not.  I believe that the fact that many of these groups are not successful has nothing to do with the teaching or the adult bible study curriculum that the group is working through.  This may play a part at times but I actually believe the biggest problem is that there was no vision.  Where there is no vision the people perish, or at least their small groups do.  You as the leader of the group or the ministry has to work with the end in mind.  You have to have an idea of what you want things to look like one week, one month, one year, even five to ten years down the road.  Once you have that idea in mind then you can begin to work a plan.  So that is where we start today.  I want you to pray and seek and try to decide what you hope your adult bible study ministry looks like in the future.  Dream big.  The sky is the limit.  Do not do any planning just dream.  Grab some coffee, a notepad, a laptop, a voice recorder or whatever else your preference is.  Don't worry about adult bible study curriculum or anything else.  Just get alone with God and try to formulate an idea of what you want your adult bible study ministry to look like when things are all said and done.