All About Sunday School

Dear Friends in Christ,

You are receiving this email from me today because you are either a member or a friend of First Presbyterian Church. I just wanted to let you know that we have a Sunday school program for all ages. We have three classes for children and youth starting at age 3 and we have a nursery staffed by Lisa Warden for younger children.

Laurie and I are teaching a survey class on the Bible in the Green Room where we are looking at the major themes and the history of the books that make up our Bible. This is a great way to gain some knowledge about the basis of our faith and discover what history and lessons are contained in some of the books that are probably less familiar to most of us. This is a good class for someone who considers themselves a beginner.

The Fun Bunch meets in the Fellowship Hall and is led by Walter Curry and each Sunday the class delves into the Scripture that will be used in morning worship.

This Sunday the Fun Bunch Sunday school class will be fixing breakfast, serving around 9:45, in the hopes that all the younger couples and younger adults in our church family will come. We hope to prepare a breakfast for you once a month to help you get to Sunday school and enjoy fellowship with each other.

The Parlor class is using a curriculum called This Present Word and is led by Jim Madary. The parlor class is made up of seasoned adults who enjoy fellowship and discussion of their Biblical text of the day.

So why come to Sunday school? 

1. You delight in God and therefore want to learn more of Him and be around others who delight in Him. If your heart beats for God then your desire for learning more about him should be natural. 
2. What else are you going to be doing at 9:45 AM on a Sunday? Redeem the time, don’t waste it. Figure out what is keeping you from being here and begin to think about giving an account of your life in light of that motivation and action.  
3. It ensures you will be on time for the Worship Service and even helps in the preparation of your heart for that time.

If you are not part of a Sunday school class you may be missing out on a great “combo deal.” “Sunday school is the place where you are known at church,” said Chris Jackson, Christian educator at Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church in Minneapolis. “Worship may be glorious and inspirational, but you cannot create discussions or develop interpersonal relationships while sitting in the pews,” he noted.

Sunday school is not just for kids. We are trying to create settings in which children, youth and adults can come to new relationships with God and each other that impel changes in their minds, hearts and lives and lead them into working for change in their community and the world. This is a big undertaking -- full of promise, but also fraught with the complexities of working in any organization full of people.

Pray for teachers, leaders and participants. Pray for church members who could be teachers, leaders and participants and pray for people outside the church who could find their home in God through the ministry of your Sunday school.

Please come join us Sunday mornings at 9:45 pick a class and let’s get to know God and each other better.