Why Good Questions are Different

Good Questions that have groups talking are different from most lessons you have seen. Here are a few reasons why.

Discussion based rather than lecture based

Our tag line is, "Good questions have groups talking" and that is the goal of every lesson. Look at one of the sample lessons and you can see this difference right away. Put these lessons into the hands of all your teachers and watch your classes transform from lecture-based groups to discussion based groups. Each lesson consists of 20 or so ready-to-use questions that get groups talking.

Why is this important? Jesus taught that we are changed by what comes out of us. Until we confess the truth--not just hear it--we are not changed by it. See this article for more details.

Commentary quoted from world-class writers

Most curriculum has an inherent flaw. They can often get past it, but it cripples nearly every series made. Here is how it works. A committee gets together and decides o a text and topic. Then, someone is assigned to find someone who can write something brilliant about it. Turns out, this is a very difficult assignment and does not always meet with success. One of the reasons I have been a fan of Lifeway's Masterworks series is that that series goes at it in the opposite way. They find someone who has already written something brilliant--books by people like Beth Moore, Billy Graham and John Piper--and turns it into a curriculum.

I try to do a similar thing with my lessons. Each question is footnoted with answers taken from of the best commentaries ever written. John MacArthur, Warren Wiersbe, Holman, Life Application Commentary, and many others. I also include great illustrations and stories form illustration books, trade books and devotional books. Quotes from world-class sources make these lessons different.

Application-driven

Application is not tagged onto the end. We don't spend an hour talking about the passage n a rather abstract way then tag on a question on the end about application. Application is woven all through the lessons. Application is the point.

Howard Hendricks used to say that the goal is not to make smarter sinners. Jesus taught us to "teach them to observe" not just teach them.

Make it easy to find teachers

These lessons are so easy to use, they make it easier--a lot easier to find teachers. In fact, when I was a Minister of Ed, I never struggle to find teaches again after I started writing these lessons. Click here to read that story.

Underlying theology: it is always in our best interest to live the Christian life.

I have written on this extensively in my free E-book on Good Questions Have Groups talking. For a shorter read, see http://www.joshhunt.com/mail289.htm

God is a rewarder. We cannot come to Him unless we believe that He is a rewarder. We must come to Him for reward. We must believe it is always in our best interest to live the Christian life. Prayer must become a sweet hour of prayer of we are not praying very well. We much come to love serving or we don't serve. We must come to love the Word, or else I bet you didn't read this morning. We must come to love the Christian life or we will never come to live the Christian life.

Every lesson is driven by this theology. I continually ask: how does it benefit me to follow God? What does it cost me if I don't follow God? We ask this in every arena. What does it benefit me to forgive; what does it cost me if I don't forgive? When people come to confess that it is in our best interest to live the Christian life, they begin to live the Christian life.

Still not convinced? I offer a free week's trial. Get them to your teachers and see if they don't love them. Email me josh@joshhunt.com for a free username / password.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to keep the next generation in church.

Image
The latest research indicates that 70% of the kids who grow up in our youth groups are not staying in church. Project that out for about ten years and we have disaster. Based on data from Essential Church, the trend looks like this: For a free sample of the book, see http://www.lifeway.com/lwc/files/lwcF_PDF_Rainers_Essential_Church_Sample.pdf Another good book on the subject is Ed Stetzer's Lost and Found. Let's look at it more personally. My oldest son graduated from High School in 2004. He walked across the stage at church at the recognition ceremony along with 20 or so of his classmates. Most of them had been very active in youth group. Very few of them are active in church today. In fact, my son may be the only one. If you are in the mood for a good depression, do the math at your church. Dig up the list of the kids that graduated five years ago. See if you can figure out how many of them are in church
Read more

Puzzling data regarding lecturing teachers

Image
Many of you know I am working on a new book on What Makes Groups Grow. I am puzzling just now over the data regarding teachers to lecture. Here is the puzzle: Teachers who use all lecture were the second mostly likely group to be growing Teachers who use all lecture were also the most likely group to be declining (by a wide margin) I have my own theories as to why this is true. What do you make of it? How could the lecturing group be both likely to grow and likely to decline?
Read more

The Gospel that doubles, part 1

I work full time promoting church growth in a world where church growth is a multi-million dollar industry and the church is not growing. Millions are spend every year on books, CDs, conferences, DVDs, web pages, research and consulting and the church is not growing. I don't want to be too hard on those of us in the church growth industry/ministry. (I often feel I wear two hats: business man and minister.) The church might be doing even worse without us. But, I can't help but contrast this world with the world of the early church where, best I can tell, there was no church growth industry. They didn't have any church growth seminars or church growth books or church growth consultants, and the church was growing and growing rapidly. Not just one church. Not just a few churches. Overall, there was a movement of church growth that was rapidly advancing. (As it is in much of the world, outside of the USA, today.) Not only did t
Read more